Three Michigan State players raise fists during national anthem
By David Rouben
Before playing Wisconsin, three Michigan State players joined the ongoing national anthem protest by raising their fists in solidarity.
When Colin Kaepernick decided to protest the national anthem by sitting down, it divided a nation. While some thought his actions were unpatriotic, others commended him for taking a hardline stance against a serious issue. A month after he started protesting, plenty of other athletes have since joined his cause. The Michigan State Spartans are the latest team to do so.
According to MLive, three Spartans players raised their fists during the national anthem. Those players were fullback Delton Williams, safety Kenney Lyke, and defensive end Gabe Sherrod. The latter sent out this tweet earlier in the week, suggesting that he and his teammates would engage in a demonstration:
A day earlier, Eastern Michigan engaged in a peaceful protest after their game. When racist graffiti was found on their campus, their students rushed the field, while locking arms together, and chanted “no justice, no peace.”
Related Story: Eastern Michigan students protest during game
Many will speculate that Michigan State’s protest was fueled by Eastern Michigan’s actions, especially since they’re only an hour away from each other. But the timing of Sherrod’s tweet suggests that this protest was planned for a while. And if they’re asked why they did it, they’ll probably respond it was due to Colin Kaepernick, as well as the recent police shootings of Keith Lamont Scott and Terence Crutcher.
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But with Michigan State currently trailing 20-6 to Wisconsin, this protest might have served as a distraction to the rest of the team. Football is predicated on a full team effort, and if three players’ minds are elsewhere, then Mark Dantonio won’t take kindly to that. They may have just beaten Notre Dame, but a loss to Wisconsin a week later would make it a moot point. While these players were well within their rights to protest, it’s not always in the team’s best interest.