The discussion around Saturday’s Jason Kelce incident continues to grow. That came after ESPN’s College GameDay, where Kelce (an ESPN NFL analyst, but also a prominent podcaster with New Heights with his brother Travis, a show that just got an Amazon deal for $100 million) smashed the phone of a fan who uttered a homophobic slur to him about Travis.
That incident (in State College, PA, ahead of Penn State hosting Ohio State) sparked discussion for several days. That included fans and media weighing in to defend Kelce’s response to the fan. But it also saw an apology from Kelce on Monday Night Countdown, where he noted “I fell down to a level that I shouldn’t have.” And there’s now a confirmed police investigation into the incident, as Alex Andrejev of The Athletic reported Tuesday:
Penn State University Police and Public Safety are investigating an incident in which Jason Kelce slammed a fan’s phone onto the ground Saturday after taunts and a homophobic slur were said toward him, a PSU police spokesperson confirmed Tuesday.
The process for reviewing the incident is ongoing, the spokesperson said. A report for the incident in PSU police’s daily crime log lists criminal mischief and disorderly conduct as the offenses.
According to the report, an officer “observed a visitor damaging personal property” at an intersection outside Beaver Stadium on Saturday. The exchange, which occurred before the Nittany Lions’ matchup against Ohio State, was caught on video.
There isn’t really any dispute of the claim of Kelce “damaging personal property.” The first two videos of this to emerge showed that relatively clearly, especially the second one:
“Kelce how does it feel that your brother is a f****t for dating Taylor Swift?”
Jason Kelce proceeded to slam this kids phone on the ground.
Looked like a Penn State student was getting in Kelce’s face for no reason. Wild scene in State College pic.twitter.com/3PEdZXWhSg
— Chives (@jarrett_daveler) November 2, 2024
W Jason pic.twitter.com/DxP7QSxCBp
— Kyle (@kylesixers) November 2, 2024
However, there is more debate about Kelce’s particular response. Some saw it as justified and slight compared to what it could have been, but others wondered about the idea of Kelce interacting with fans without security, and the particular physical dimension his actions here took. And another video of this that came out Saturday night, but didn’t receive as much attention as the earlier ones, included Kelce throwing the homophobic slur back at the fan when the fan tried to get his phone back:
UPDATE: In a new video of the altercation with Jason Kelce, the fan demanded Kelce give him back the phone back, to which Kelce said: “Who’s the fa— now?”
🎥 @GetawayCaroline pic.twitter.com/j80wT6z0Ap https://t.co/W4QBBvoHKc
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) November 2, 2024
It remains to be seen if anything will actually come of this. Police investigate many incidents without recommending charges, and district attorneys don’t proceed with all the charges recommended to them. It’s also unclear at this point if the fan who taunted Kelce is pursuing this at all. And thus far, public sentiment has largely been on Kelce’s side, and neither ESPN nor Amazon has shown any indication they might punish him for this. But it is notable to have it on the record that police are investigating.
