Notes and quotes after the MSU-Tulsa Armed Forces Bowl fight
Long after the final score of the 2020 Armed Forces Bowl is forgotten, many will remember the scene that happened after the final horn sounded. Mississippi State defeated No. 22 Tulsa 28-26, then a postgame brawl ensued.
If you somehow haven't seen it by now, let's briefly catch up with video courtesy of ESPN on Twitter:
It was just an ugly scene all around. Unfortunately for Mississippi State, one of the most talked-about moments from it all involved a Bulldog as receiver Malik Heath kicked a Tulsa player that was on the ground and ran away.
Making matters look worse for Heath, he was later on social media bragging about what all went down. (Before clicking on the video below, be warned it contains profanity and offensive language)
Make no mistake though, Thursday's scene wasn't a good look for Heath or anyone else. State head coach Mike leach summed it up this way:
"The root of it is dumb no matter what the root of it was," Leach said of the fight. "The continuation of it was dumb. I would have it solidly in the category of dumb. Where the dumb started I am not entirely sure."
So what else did Leach, MSU players, Tulsa head coach Philip Montgomery and Hurricane athletes have to say about the fight? Here's a look at that with the transcribed quotes courtesy of Mississippi State media relations:
MSU head coach Mike Leach
On the postgame sequence…
"All of a sudden there was a mosh pit out there. During warmups there was a group of their guys that circled around our warmup and were talking. I really don't know. I haven't seen enough film to let us off the hook on this thing by any stretch. We haven't had any trouble of that sort of thing all season. We haven't had any trouble with that. I don't know if they had or not and I don't know where the basis of that was."
On any possible discipline from after the game….
"I have no idea. I don't know what happened exactly. There was a mosh pit and there was jawing back and forth. I haven't seen it. You all probably saw it better than I did."
Did the postgame mar the game…
"It didn't mar anything we did out there whatsoever. It is done. The root of it is dumb no matter what the root of it was. The continuation of it was dumb. I would have it solidly in the category of dumb. Where the dumb started I am not entirely sure."
MSU wide receiver Austin Williams
On what he saw after the game…
"I wasn't really a part of it. I was on the outside and caught the tail end of it and didn't see the roots on it. I hate that it takes away from our first bowl win in a few years. I hate that it was negative publicity for the teams that played really hard today."
MSU defensive end Kobe Jones
What goes through your mind on what happened after the game…
"In any game we emphasize keeping our composure. Coach Leach addressed us as a team after the game and we will handle that in-house. It was emotional and a mishaps. We have to be better and more disciplined."
Tulsa head coach Philip Montgomery
What happened after the game?
"I'm not going to comment a whole lot about it. The one thing I'll say is our program, our guys, we're a team that's going to stand up for each other and we're going to battle. We talk about faith, family, football. Family's going to take care of family. We're a team that has battled all year long. We battled again today. From that standpoint our guys are going to continue to protect each other."
Was safety Kendarin Ray hurt in the fight?
"I'm not going to really comment on that part of it. I checked on K-Ray. I think he has probably some version of a concussion."
Is he being checked out?
"Yes."
Did you ever sense during the game something like you shouldn't bring these guys together?
"We kind of talked about it you know. I thought our guys did a good job from the standpoint, shook a few hands, and started to proceed off the field. From the official standpoint, yes it was chippy all day. I think those guys as soon as the whistle blew were gone."
Was something said or were you there?
"I was there. Again I've commented on the fight as much as I want to comment on it. Let's talk about the game itself."
Tulsa safety Christian Williams
On the end of the game...
"I just want to stay on the game topic. Whatever happened at the end of the game happened. Both teams went out and played hard all game."
Tulsa running back Corey Taylor
On the end of the game brawl...
"I have no clue or much about it. Things just played out. I wasn't in the middle of it. The number one goal is to keep our guys safe. I hope that's Mississippi State's goal too. I'm just glad to have our guys back in the locker room."
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