Jason Kelce used his platform on ESPN’s Monday Night Football pre-game show to apologize for his role in a viral incident before the Penn State-Ohio State game at Beaver Stadium Saturday afternoon.
The longtime Eagles center was approached by an antagonistic Penn State fan after appearing on College Gameday, who began recording Kelce and called his brother Travis a “fa—-” regarding the tight end’s relationship with pop star Taylor Swift. Kelce responded by slamming the fan’s phone into the ground before repeating the homophobic slur back in a mocking tone, saying “Who’s the fa—- now?”
“Listen, I think everyone has seen on social media everything that has taken place this week,” Kelce said to begin the MNF broadcast. “I’m not happy with anything that took place, I’m not proud of it and in a heated moment I chose to greet hate with hate and I don’t think that’s a productive thing. I really don’t. I don’t think it leads to discourse [or is] it the right way to go about things, and in that moment I fell down to a level that I shouldn’t have.”
Jason Kelce opens “Monday Night Countdown” with an apology.
“I chose to greet hate with hate, and I just don’t think that’s a productive thing.” pic.twitter.com/9rScqAKpVD
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) November 4, 2024
“So the bottom line is, I try to live my life by the golden rule. I try to treat people with common decency and respect and I’m going to keep doing that going forward even though I fell short of that this week.”
Kelce has had to adjust to life in the spotlight after a mercurial rise in the sports media world, sparked by the wildly successful “New Heights” podcast he co-hosts with Travis. The sibling duo recently agreed to a three-year, $100 million deal with Amazon’s Wondery platform, with New Heights’ massive success opening doors for the recently retired Kelce — the former offensive lineman signed a multi-year agreement with ESPN in May as an NFL analyst on MNF.
His controversial incident in Happy Valley came after another appearance on a landmark ESPN program, challenged by College Gameday host and former Colts punter Pat McAfee to kick a field goal in his trademark Timberland boots. Kelce evidenced his decision to play center, brutally shanking both attempts to the left, but both Pat McAfee and the Timberland brand followed through on a proposed $250,000 reward to benefit those affected by Hurricane Helene in North Carolina.
