Report: Pac-12 commissioner called players’ movement ‘misguided PR stunt’
By SDS Staff
Published:
Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott’s Zoom call with players involved in the #WeAreUnited movement was not as productive as the commissioner presumably would have liked, according to a new report.
Billy Witz of The New York Times spoke to some of the players on the call. They noted that Scott called a statement posted on The Players’ Tribune a “misguided P.R. stunt.” The statement on The Players’ Tribune included calls for racial equality, revenue sharing and COVID-19-related measures such as more frequent testing and protections of status and eligibility for those who opt out.
“(Scott) boasted how progressive the conference has been in giving the players a voice, but the way he treated us didn’t reflect that,” Otito Ogbonnia, a junior defensive tackle at UCLA, told Witz.
“I don’t think he thought of us as people who were making a legitimate case,” Ogbonnia added.
Valentino Daltoso, a senior offensive lineman at Cal, came away with a similar impression.
“It was not very productive,” he told Witz. “We did not come away with many answers. He made it very clear that he does not want to meet again.”
The Pac-12 players’ movement has inspired more organized movements in college sports. On Saturday, a group of MAC players issued a #MACUnited statement.
Saturday Down South reports and comments on the news around the Southeastern Conference as well as larger college football topics.
