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Demeaning letter to PSU football player prompts supportive response from AD Sandy Barbour to student-athletes
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A demeaning letter from a Penn State alum aimed at a Penn State football player, criticizing his appearance and hair length, has prompted a response from athletic director Sandy Barbour.
On Monday evening, several Penn State football players took to Twitter with a photo of a letter that was sent to one of their teammates. In the note, a PSU alum criticized the player for his hair length and said he wished a “dress code” for student-athletes was in place.
There was plenty of response to that letter on social media, with most supporting the Penn State football team. That includes athletic director Sandy Barbour, who sent out a message of her own on Twitter on Tuesday morning.
“I stand with our Penn State student athletes and appreciate how they represent PSU in competition, in the classroom and in the community,” Barbour wrote. “Their dress, tattoos, or hairstyle has no imact on my suport, nor does their gender, skin color, sexuality or religion! #WeAre #ONETEAM.”
I stand with our Penn State student athletes and appreciate how they represent PSU in competition, in the classroom and in the community. Their dress, tattoos, or hairstyle has no impact on my support, nor does their gender, skin color, sexuality or religion! #WeAre #ONETEAM🦁
— Sandy Barbour (@TheBarbour_Shop) October 8, 2019
Unfortunately, this hasn’t been the first incident in which Penn State football players have been criticized. Recently, the new “Lawn Boyz” chain — worn by the team’s running backs on the sidelines during games — came under scrutiny by older university alums.
Those criticisms from the alums were also under scrutiny in the social media world.
Below are some snippets from the letter sent to the Penn State football player:
“We miss the clean cut young men and women from those days…”
“We couldn’t help but notice your – well – awful hair. Surely there must be mirrors in the locker room! Don’t you have parents or girlfriend who’ve told you those shoulder length dreadlocks look disgusting and are certainly not attractive…”
“You need to remember you represent all Penn Staters both current and those alumnni from years past. We would welcome reappearance of dress codes for athletes…”
“We have stopped watching the NFL due to the disgusting, tattoos, awful hair and immature antics in the end zone.”
You can read the full letter here.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB