Last Updated on September 22, 2016 12:59 pm
The University of Miami has found no evidence of wrongdoing regarding accusations by the Appalachian State Color Guard team before the start of the Miami/AppState game, according to multiple media reports.
According to a Facebook post after the game by Sophie Randleman, a member of the AppState Color Guard team, some members of the Miami Hurricanes blindsided a member of the color guard team while running onto the field, while other members were “grouped, sworn at, taunted, and touched in ways that were definitely not asked for.”
Mariah Martin, a member of the color guard, told WSOC-TV in Charlotte that she was shoved to the ground by Miami players, felt pain and had to sit out the game. She said the group received a letter of apology from Miami Athletic Director Blake James.”We got a written apology from the athletic director in Miami, so I think that's all we really needed,” Martin said, according to the TV station.
According to the Palm Beach Post the letter was not an apology. “Unless someone finds something new to me, it’s over.” the paper quotes James as saying. The paper also quotes James,“I didn’t apologize in the letter, so I wouldn’t classify it as an apology letter,” “If that’s what she wants to go with to allow her to move forward, I’m not going to sit here and argue semantics in the media.”
On Thursday afternoon Doug Gillin, Director of Athletics for Appalachian State University released this statement:
“On behalf of Appalachian State University, we apologize to all those impacted by the situation created as teams took the field prior to kickoff on Saturday. The University of Miami administration has been incredibly cooperative throughout the review process. We've investigated the concerns, and we've provided support to our students. We will continue to support our students and keep their safety as a top priority.”
