Charlie Brande will no longer call UC Irvine volleyball games.
Per OutSports, UC Irvine assistant athletic director Stacey King confirmed that Brande — who has served as a volunteer commentator for the program’s broadcasts rather than an employee or contractor — is done. “His comments during the broadcast do not reflect the standards associated with our events or programs,” King wrote. “He will not be participating in future broadcasts.”
The comments in question came during the April 9 Big West Conference match between UC Irvine and CSUN. As we covered earlier this week, Brande said on air that he was amazed nobody had “popped” CSUN redshirt junior Jordan Lucas yet, calling his on-court celebrations — an imaginary hair flip, a strut after a point, a dismissive wave at opposing players — “very distasteful.”
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“When I was playing club volleyball, a lot of people admired it and thought it was different in the sport,” Lucas, who is gay, told OutSports regarding his celebrations.
Brande apologized Sunday through UC Irvine’s own social media channels, saying he took full accountability and that violence should never be acceptable or tolerated. Lucas, when asked about it, wasn’t particularly satisfied. “I appreciate that you have the ability to apologize and understand what you did was wrong,” he told OutSports, “but don’t feel like UC Irvine men’s volleyball had to post it, they had to spread the word.”
Brande is a UC Irvine Hall of Famer — inducted two years ago — who played and coached for the program before volunteering as its broadcaster. King’s statement did not address whether the school had any further response beyond removing him from future broadcasts.
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.