Cardale Jones Rips Ohio Politician For Rivalry Game 'Sportsmanship Act'
12/11/2024 02:30 PM
The college football world is still reacting to the fallout from the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry game, when the two teams engaged in a brawl at midfield.
The altercation stemmed from Michigan players attempting to plant a flag at midfield of Ohio Stadium, and Buckeye players taking exception. The brawl resulted in Ohio State university police using pepper spray, hitting a few Michigan players in the process.
After both teams were fined $100,000, one lawmaker is looking to introduce legislation that would stop future altercations.
Ohio State representative Josh Williams introduced the "O.H.I.O. Sportsmanship Act," or House Bill 700.
The bill would "prohibit planting a flagpole and flag in the center of the Ohio Stadium football field on the day of a college football game," essentially preventing Michigan from repeating their postgame celebration in Columbus by order of the law.
"Behavior that incites violent brawls and puts our law enforcement officers in danger has no place on the football field," Williams said on social media.
A former Ohio State star and national champion reacted to the bill on Wednesday, and he wasn't happy with the suggestion.
"Not a political statement, nothing against Rep Williams, I'm sure the thought comes from 'safety' and good intentions but this might be the softest [expletive] I've ever heard," said former Ohio State quarterback Cardale Jones.
Fans on social media agreed with Jones, calling out the lawmaker for his response to the postgame melee.
"just when I thought beating Ohio State for the 4th time in a row couldn't get better. Michigan really broke you guys huh?," said one fan.
"Josh, this has to be the dumbest thing I've ever seen. It's shameful to have people like you in politics working on things like this," another fan said.
"I don't think you went far enough. Need to remove the scoreboard for the game. When players see points on the board, the competitive juices start to flow, creating a toxic masculinity environment," another fan joked, pointing out the absurdity of the lawmaker's suggestion.
As you may expect, the law doesn't have much hope in its current state. With only a few weeks left until the end of the year, any bills that aren't passed by December 31 will need to be reintroduced after the new year.
If the public response to Williams' bill is any indication, it doesn't seem that his suggestion will become law in 2025.
Related: UNC Reportedly Set To Hire Bill Belichick As Head Football Coach
