The line between collegiate athletics and professional athletics has increasingly blurred with the introduction of Name, Image, and Likeness into the collegiate landscape. However, certain actions remain unacceptable at either level, as was the case when Michigan baseball star Mitchell Voit tore down the third base line, sliding headfirst into the bag and mimicking the act of snorting a line of cocaine.
Subsequently, Voit issued an apology, as reported by the New York Post. “I would like to apologize for my actions on third base yesterday,” he stated. “I made an immature decision in the heat of the moment. The gesture I made does not reflect my character, the household I was raised in, or the block M that I represent in any kind of way. I take full responsibility for what I did, and I am truly sorry to all those who I have negatively impacted by doing this.”
Fans had mixed reactions to both the act and the apology on social media. One fan tweeted, “That’s a hilarious celebration; he loses points for apologizing,” while another remarked, “This would have simply been funny and then forgotten 15 years ago. Now we’re a nation of dumb woke prudes.” A third fan expressed disbelief, saying, “So a kid has to apologize for pretending to snort cocaine, while the famous artist Hunter Biden actually snorts cocaine in the White House? Makes sense.”
It will be intriguing to see if the NCAA decides to take action and impose any punishment on Voit.
