A volleyball legend has apologized after saying he was surprised that no one had punched a college volleyball player over his celebrations during games.
During last week’s Big West Conference match between Cal State Northridge (CSUN) and UC-Irvine, CSUN redshirt junior Jordan Lucas racked up 8 kills and 7 digs in the loss. As he does routinely, Lucas would often celebrate after positive plays with a brief celebration that is often coded as flamboyant. Per OutSports, Lucas does identify as gay.
After one such moment, Charlie Brande, a UC-Irvine volleyball legend and the game’s color commentator, said that he was surprised one of Lucas’s opponents hadn’t “popped” him yet.
“I’m amazed Jordan Lucas hasn’t been popped by somebody,” Brande said, via OutSports. “The antics he’s making under the net, it’s very distasteful.”
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Condemnation over the comments was immediate. Along with intense criticism across social media, prominent voices in the volleyball communities expressed outrage.
Volleyball commentator Canaan said that Brande’s comments were specific to the fact that Lucas is gay.
“If a straight player did this, it’s seen as tough,” said Canaan. “But because what Jordan did is feminine and flamboyant, all of a sudden, he needs to be ‘popped’?”
Volleyball coach and influencer Arielle Houlihan said that what Brande was insinuating would be a hate crime.
“My mouth dropped. An absolute abomination,” she wrote. “Popped? So like a hate crime right?”
On Sunday, Brande released an apology to Lucas over the comments via the UC Irvine Volleyball social media channels.
“I’d like to publicly apologize for my comment on the UC IRVINE VS CSUN Broadcast, Thursday, April 9,” Brande said in the statement. “Most importantly, I apologize to Jordan, I wholeheartedly regret my comment towards him. I take full accountability for my comment and the damage it may have caused. Violence should never be acceptable or tolerated.
“I have spent my life promoting the game of volleyball and regret any harm to the sport or the people that play it. I will learn from this and work to do better.”
OutSports reached out to Lucas, who declined to comment on the situation.
In an Instagram story posted on his account Sunday that included Houlihan’s video, Lucas said, “Thank you to everyone for all the kind words and love I’ve received over the past couple of days.”
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.