There have been many questions about how Pat McAfee will fit in at ESPN. Whether he’ll continue to receive the same freedom he enjoys as an independent podcaster remains to be seen. McAfee, however, has pushed back on those criticizing his decision to join ESPN. He said he believes he’s earned trust, especially as he has moved the show from several platforms recently.
ESPN showed that trust in McAfee by giving him a significant contract figure. And while we know what the network has allowed Stephen A. Smith to get away with, it’ll be curious if the same rules apply to McAfee. Because already, McAfee’s commentary has drawn attention for the wrong reason.
On Sunday, McAfee tweeted something tasteless and reprehensible and one that was still up at the writing of this article. McAfee responded to a tweet about Michigan State’s new uniforms. He was responding to a tweet to a person by the name of Evan Fox, whose bio on Twitter says that he does “all things video for The Pat McAfee Show.”
I think Nassar was in on the design team actually
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) July 30, 2023
McAfee’s appalling response can be seen above. We’ve included a screenshot in case the tweet was to get deleted, but again, it has been up since 12:46 p.m. ET.
“I think [Larry] Nassar was in on the design team actually,” McAfee wrote.
McAfee, of course, is referring to the Larry Nassar scandal, which saw the former USA Gymnastics and Michigan State doctor eventually sentenced to 140-360 years in prison on a variety of sexual assault and child pornography charges. Nassar was recently in the news because he was stabbed by another inmate who was upset by a lewd comment Nassar made about girls, while they were watching Wimbledon on TV.
We aren’t going to speculate on McAfee’s decision to invoke Nassar’s name here, but quantifying Michigan State’s jerseys as being so bad that the disgraced former doctor, who pervasively abused young women, must’ve come up with it is a gross use of his platform.
McAfee received a ton of backlash for invoking a serial predator in the name of an offensive “joke.”
If this joke made any sense it would still be bad
— Jason Kirk (buy my novel) (@JasonKirk_fyi) July 30, 2023
This is disgusting Pat. I would take the L and run this one back. This is offensive to so many that tried to right a wrong and to the women that were hurt. This is not funny.
— Brian Mosallam (@Bmosallam63) July 30, 2023
ESPN fired people to clear money for this guy https://t.co/2BaL5fktCl
— Ishmael Johnson (@IshmaelRJohnson) July 30, 2023
Just insane that this tweet hasn’t been deleted yet https://t.co/W0EwReaHOP
— Greg Waddell (@gwizzy12) July 30, 2023
What’s the thought process here.. https://t.co/IplTHOHKtz
— ᗩᑎT ᗯᖇIGᕼT (@itsAntWright) July 30, 2023
this comment is weird af
— Justin Thind (@JustinThind) July 30, 2023
McAfee, clearly not understanding the seriousness of the matter, doubled down on his tweet when someone implied he should delete it, he replied with a GIF of Stephen A. Smith saying: “For What?”
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) July 30, 2023
And in case that wasn’t bad enough, he retweeted the tweet a mere couple of hours later.
It remains to be seen if McAfee is actually remorseful for his comments and if he is later forced to issue an apology. Judging by his reaction, it’s pretty clear he doesn’t understand the magnitude of his words here and how using Nassar’s name, even if it was a joke, is just an inappropriate use of his platform.
[Pat McAfee on Twitter]
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.