College Players Charged in Postgame Violence

6 Michigan State teammates face charges after tunnel clash last month
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 31, 2022 11:29 AM CDT
Updated Nov 23, 2022 4:10 PM CST
College Football Rivalry Turns Nasty in the Tunnel
Security and police break up a scuffle between players from the Michigan and Michigan State football teams in the Michigan Stadium tunnel after their game on Saturday.   (Kyle Austin/MLive Media Group via AP)
UPDATE Nov 23, 2022 4:10 PM CST

Seven Michigan State University football players have been charged in violence after a loss to the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor last month. The clash took place in a Michigan Stadium tunnel as the players were going to their locker room. The Washtenaw County prosecutor announced Wednesday that six members of the Spartans face one count of aggravated assault, the Detroit News reports. In addition, sophomore Khary Crump is charged with one count of felonious assault; video appeared to show Crump swinging his helmet at an opposing player. All are suspended. No one on Michigan's team was charged, per the Detroit Free Press.

Oct 31, 2022 11:29 AM CDT

The rivalry between the University of Michigan and Michigan State University took a nasty turn following their game on Saturday. Four MSU players have been suspended following an altercation between members of the teams in the tunnel leading to the locker rooms, reports the Detroit Free Press. Worse for those players, the police are investigating as well, per an MSU statement. This video from Matt Charboneau of the Detroit News provides a sense: It shows several MSU players roughing up a Michigan Wolverine.

"I saw the one video, the 10 on one, it’s ... pretty bad," said University of Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, per CNN. He added that two of his players were injured, one of whom may have a broken nose. It's unclear exactly what led to the confrontation, though Andrew Hammond of the Free Press writes that "typical end of the game chippiness turned ugly." The fourth-ranked Wolverines had just defeated unranked MSU 29-7. Michigan State coach Mel Tucker condemned the incident and said "there is no excuse for behavior that puts our team or our opponents at risk," per CNN.

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"In complete cooperation with law enforcement, the Big Ten Conference and MSU and UM leadership, we will evaluate the events in Ann Arbor and take swift and appropriate action," his statement added. The News identifies University of Michigan defensive back Ja'Den McBurrows as the player roughed up by several MSU players. "When the player who appeared to be McBurrows got to his feet, Michigan State linebacker Itayvion Brown grabbed him and tossed him through an open doorway at the end of the tunnel," writes Charboneau, adding that an MSU police officer then held Brown back. (More University of Michigan stories.)

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