The Tweet, according to a school spokesman, was aimed at motivating the Buckeyes to play well and silence the Penn State crowd, which is typically loud and dressed in all white
Ohio State football’s Twitter account has drawn criticism ahead of Saturday’s game against rival Penn State for a post that included a graphic with the word ‘Silence’ – a potentially offensive term given Buckeyes coach Urban Meyer’s recent suspension for failing to alert authorities about allegations of domestic abuse against an assistant coach.
The graphic includes a picture of wide receiver Austin Mack, who is holding his index finger up to his facemask, as if to shush someone. The caption read: ‘Silence the white noise.’
As Ohio State spokesman Jerry Emig told ESPN, ‘white noise’ is a reference to Penn State’s crowd that will be dressed almost entirely in white and presumably will be very loud at Saturday’s game in State College, Pennsylvania.
‘That message is the same message we used before the 2016 whiteout game at Penn State,’ Emig said. ‘And that message is directed to our team to play really well to silence an incredible whiteout crowd at Penn State.’
Urban Meyer (right) was suspended three games after a two-week investigation into his handling of abuse allegations against now-former assistant coach Zach Smith. A summary of the investigation concluded that Smith’s conduct was repeatedly ‘met with reprimands and warnings by Coach Meyer, but never a written report, never an investigation and no disciplinary action until July 23, 2018,’ which is when he was fired
With regards to Penn State, ‘white noise’ usually refers to the spectators at Beaver Stadium
Emig did not immediately respond to the Daily Mail’s inquiry as to who is responsible for the team’s Twitter account, a student or an athletic department employee.
It did not take long for Twitter users to descend on the perceived misstep, largely due to the scandal surrounding Meyer.
The tweet was hammered by those accusing Meyer of being too silent when it came to abuse allegations against Zach Smith
‘Even if this is about a game, in light of the domestic violence & sexual assault scandals at OSU, this is inappropriate,’ tweeted Brenda Tracy, a victim’s advocate who speaks to football programs about sexual assault issues. ‘Messaging matters.’
Among the NCAA’s highest-paid coaches at $7.6 million annually, Meyer was punished for his mishandling of domestic abuse allegations against now-former wide receivers coach Zach Smith, who remained with the Buckeyes after his ex-wife Courtney Smith claimed he assaulted her in 2015.
Despite seemingly denying any knowledge of the accusation during the Big Ten Media Days in July, Meyer has since acknowledged that he was aware of the allegations against Smith.
Zach Smith continues to deny he physically abused his ex-wife. He was fired in July after the accusations came to light when Courtney Smith successfully petitioned for a protective order against him.
Brenda Tracy, a victim’s advocate who speaks to football programs about sexual assault issues, was quick to criticize Ohio State Football’s tweet, which included the word ‘silence’
A tweet from @Reflog_18 included pictures of Meyer and Smith, as well as deceased former Penn State coach Joe Paterno (upper right, in blue) and disgraced defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky (in white) who is serving between 30 and 60 years for 52 charges of sexual abuse against young boys over a 15-year period
Although her ex-husband Zach Smith denies the abuse allegations, Courtney Smith did produce pictures of bruises she claims were the result of him being violent towards her
As Meyer explained, his handling of the situation was clouded by his abiding devotion to the legacy of former Ohio State coach Earle Bruce, the grandfather of former wide receivers coach Zach Smith and an early coaching mentor for Meyer.
Meyer’s suspension followed a two-week investigation into his handling of the situation. A summary of the investigation concluded that Zach Smith’s conduct was repeatedly ‘met with reprimands and warnings by Coach Meyer, but never a written report, never an investigation and no disciplinary action until July 23, 2018,’ which is when he was fired.
Before his death in 2012, Joe Paterno (right) was blamed publicly and fired for his failure to turn Jerry Sandusky (left) into authorities, despite claims he was aware of the abuse. Paterno denied any knowledge. According to the Freeh Report, Paterno and other Penn State officials were aware of the accusations in 1998, when Sandusky was investigated for abuse but never charged
Ohio State’s tweet, which has since been taken down, elicited a number of clever responses.
Several commenters replaced Mack’s image with that of Meyer under the word ‘Silence.’
Others included a picture of Meyer alongside Zach Smith with another picture of deceased former Penn State coach Joe Paterno and his former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky, who is serving between 30 and 60 years for 52 charges of sexual abuse against young boys over a 15-year period.
Before his death in 2012, Paterno was blamed publicly and fired for his failure to turn Sandusky into authorities, despite claims he was aware of the abuse. Paterno denied any knowledge.
According to the Freeh Report, Paterno and other Penn State officials were aware of the accusations in 1998, when Sandusky was investigated for abuse but never charged.
Sandusky’s coaching career ended in 1999.
Ohio State is also currently dealing with several lawsuits stemming from deceased athletic department doctor, Richard Strauss, who is accused of sexually abusing male athletes at the school. He committed suicide in 2005.
The reaction on Twitter was negative, and Ohio State deleted the original offending tweet