C’mon Man! Texas A&M Coach Dismissed After Punching Player

30 Dec, 2014

Texas A&M dismissed student assistant coach Michael Richardson on Tuesday, one day after videos showed him hitting West Virginia players out of bounds during the Liberty Bowl.

Coach Kevin Sumlin apologized to coach Dana Holgorsen, the two players who were hit and West Virginia overall for Richardson’s “inexcusable actions.”

“I am extremely disappointed and embarrassed, as his behavior reflected poorly on our program,” Sumlin said.

Videos on Twitter late in the first half Monday showed Richardson using his elbow to hit one West Virginia player in the back of the head and pushing another Mountaineer in a separate incident as the Aggies were on their way to a win.

Sumlin said he gathered information and reviewed clips of the incidents before dismissing Richardson. Along with apologizing to West Virginia, Sumlin said sorry to A&M fans as well.

“I also want to apologize to the Aggie faithful, as they deserve a program to be proud of, not only in our play, but in the integrity and respect we show on and off the field,” Sumlin said. “This student assistant coach’s actions are not representative of our program.”

Richardson was a freshman linebacker at Texas A&M in 2012 when a spine injury during a game ended his playing career. He tweeted an apology from his Twitter account (at)AggSwaggCEO.

He tweeted: `Something like this was never my intention,’ with a picture displaying a longer apology.

“In the heat of the moment of yesterday’s game I did lose myself with everything going on,” he tweeted. “To the players involved I do apologies for the ignorance I displayed and there was nothing personal with the actions I made on that sideline yesterday. To the school, fans and friends of WVU my actions were uncalled for and it was very disrespectful to y’all and the game I love so dearly. And for every Aggie I let down I know that is not how an Aggie acts no ifs and or buts about it.”

AP

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