THE DAILY BS: HOW MUCH CAN YOU HANDLE?

SPARE ME THE BS (I’ve got things to do).

• ESPN’s Pat McAfee blasted the University of Utah after its official social-media account promoted a video featuring students calling him “corny” and “creepy” ahead of Saturday’s College GameDay broadcast.
• McAfee brought up the 2025 killing of Charlie Kirk at another Utah college, questioning why a university would amplify hostility toward someone about to appear before thousands of spectators.
• Utah deleted the video and apologized, ESPN defended McAfee’s safety concerns, and critics accused the sports personality of overreacting to ordinary college humor.

LAY IT ON ME (I’ve got time).

Pat McAfee went to Utah to talk college football. He came home talking about Charlie Kirk’s assassination, an insulting university video and why he hopes never to return.

And now the University of Utah has apologized to the ESPN personality, while the network is defending his concerns about safety.

The controversy began before Saturday’s College GameDay broadcast in Salt Lake City, where Utah was preparing to host Houston.

Students featured in a video shared by the university’s official Instagram account were invited to imitate McAfee, the energetic former NFL punter whose television performances frequently involve shouting, elaborate celebrations and occasionally removing his shirt.

Some of the students weren’t especially impressed.

One described McAfee as “corny.” Another called him “creepy,” while a student jokingly asked him to keep his shirt on around college kids.

Not exactly the sort of reception most television personalities put on their promotional calendars.

McAfee saw the video shortly before going before thousands of students and football fans. He wasn’t amused.

Speaking on Monday’s edition of The Pat McAfee Show, he said he could have accepted the criticism if students had posted it on their personal accounts.

What bothered him was the university itself promoting the insults immediately before he was scheduled to appear on campus.

“The university puts that out as I’m about to go out and do an infomercial for this place?” he asked.

He described the experience as deeply uncomfortable, explaining that he already receives considerable public criticism and didn’t appreciate the school adding to it.

Then he raised a far more serious subject. “Has anything, like, really scary happened at a college gathering in the state of Utah recently?” McAfee asked. “Do we think we should be amplifying reasons for why people hate my guts, as a university?”

He was referring to the September 10, 2025, assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk during a speaking event at Utah Valley University in Orem. That campus is a different institution, approximately 40 miles from the University of Utah.

Kirk’s murder remains an exceptionally disturbing example of political violence at a public event, particularly one taking place before a large gathering of students.

McAfee’s reference quickly became the center of the controversy.

Some critics interpreted his comments as comparing being mocked by college students to Kirk’s assassination.

Others argued that the concern he articulated was narrower: A public figure walking into a massive crowd may reasonably be sensitive about an institution encouraging hostility toward him.

McAfee did not claim the students who criticized him were threatening violence. He did say the university’s decision to promote negative comments before his appearance affected how safe and welcome he felt.

And his reaction wasn’t subtle. “I hate this place. I hate this place,” he declared.

He later joked that he might suddenly develop COVID if College GameDay ever returned to the university. “I think I have COVID or something whenever GameDay goes back, if I’m still a part of GameDay,” he said.

That’s quite a review from a man whose job normally includes getting thousands of football fans excited about their university.

But the offending social-media video wasn’t his only complaint about the trip.

During the show’s popular field-goal kicking contest, a Utah student questioned why the available prize was $1 million when a student at rival BYU had recently received an opportunity to win $3 million.

That didn’t improve McAfee’s impression of the place.

He had praised his experience at BYU the previous weekend, making the contrast between the two Utah schools especially striking.

The University of Utah subsequently removed the student-impression video from its social-media accounts.

On Monday night, the school issued a formal apology. Officials explained that the video was intended to create lighthearted excitement about McAfee’s visit but acknowledged that the attempt had missed its mark.

The university accepted responsibility for approving and publishing the material. “We sincerely apologize for creating any perception that Pat was unsafe or unwelcome on our campus,” the university said.

Officials also contacted McAfee directly to express their appreciation and regret.

ESPN issued its own statement supporting the broadcaster. The network emphasized that its on-air personalities, production crews and fans must be able to work in a safe environment.

ESPN said it takes the threats faced by its personnel seriously and supported McAfee’s concerns about security.

That response did little to quiet the online argument.

Critics circulated clips of the original student video, mocking McAfee’s reaction and arguing that a man known for teasing others should be capable of handling a few jokes directed at himself.

The New York Post highlighted the deleted video, while The Hill reported that the controversy had sparked widespread mockery over McAfee’s reference to Kirk.

There is an obvious contrast between the two events. College students describing a television personality as corny is ordinary campus humor. The assassination of a political speaker is an act of extreme violence.

But McAfee’s actual complaint involved the university’s role in promoting the video and his uneasiness about stepping into a huge crowd after watching the school criticize him.

That distinction has been somewhat lost in the rush to produce the funniest social-media response.

And McAfee’s television persona complicates the argument further. His entire entertainment appeal is built around exaggerated reactions, colorful language and an occasionally combative style.

Fans who enjoy watching him dish it out naturally expect him to be able to take it.

But the University of Utah wasn’t simply another fan teasing him from the stands. Its official account helped circulate the material before a nationally televised appearance.

Utah’s administration has now acknowledged that distinction by apologizing and removing the video.

Meanwhile, the school’s football team did its part to improve the weekend, defeating Houston 21-13.

McAfee acknowledged that Utah has a good team and praised the fans who came out for College GameDay.

Unfortunately for the university, the game wasn’t what everybody ended up discussing Monday.

Instead, the headlines were about a deleted Instagram video, a television star’s anger and the lingering impact of Charlie Kirk’s assassination on how public figures think about appearing before large crowds.

For Utah, the episode is also a lesson in public relations: When you’re hosting a nationally televised show that promotes your university to millions of viewers, perhaps don’t use the official school account to insult one of its biggest personalities minutes before he walks onstage.

DBS WIRE SOURCES (I’ve got all day).

• The Hill — McAfee and Kirk reference
• OutKick / Fox — McAfee remarks
• KSL — Local reporting
• Los Angeles Times — Apology and ESPN response
• New York Post — Deleted video