Texas A&M football players on Monday seemed to suggest those critical of coach Jimbo Fisher for grabbing Tyrel Dodson’s facemask are grasping at straws. Fisher yanked the facemask while lecturing Dodson for almost getting into a fracas during a pivotal juncture of A&M’s 24-17 victory over Arkansas on Saturday. Fisher said he was concerned Dodson would get penalized or ejected.
“I just want everyone to know that coach Fisher was there for me at that time. He had my back,” Dodson said. “He was just telling me to stay focused and he needed me. I totally understand it. The media was making it look like more than it was.”
Video of the incident has gone viral. Some on social media even suggested Fishers should be fired. At the very least an apology was demanded. Fisher did not give one at his weekly press conference.
“I was trying to get a young man’s attention. That’s all we were doing,” Fisher said. “I didn’t grab it to jerk it. Football is an emotional game. He was caught up in the emotions of the game.”
Rey Romo, TexAgs
Dodson and his teammates were quick to show their support for Fisher despite the outside reaction.
Fisher clearly grabbed Dodson’s facemask and pushed him backward. He did not jerk the facemask from side to side or backward and forward.
“I was not trying to berate him,” Fisher said. "If you look at the film, when I did it I pushed him. I tapped him right on the head and said, 'Now we can’t have you out of here, buddy. We’ve got to keep you in this game.' Then, I turned and walked away. He understood that. That’s exactly what it was and all it was.”
Dodson’s teammates seemed to agree it was a minor issue.
“I don’t care about that stuff,” defensive end Kingsley Keke said. “We all know coach Fisher loves us. He has our back through anything. That’s just all love. He’s been an amazing coach for us. That’s nothing.”
Receiver Camron Buckley added, “It wasn’t that big of a deal. He didn’t mean no harm by it. He’s a great guy. He’s a great man. He’s a great coach. He has nothing but love for us. If a lineman grabs your facemask, is somebody going to blow up like this? No, they’re not. It was love. It was nothing that serious at all.”
Still, several NFL players and television analysts vehemently condemned Fisher’s actions.
“So we just gonna let Jimbo Fisher get away with treating his player like a rag doll?” tweeted ESPN’s Emmanuel Acho, a former Texas player.
Booger McFarland, another football analyst and former NFL player, added via twitter:
“When I grew up this was normal football however times have changed and just as rules of the game have evolved, so has how (you) treat players. Rod Marinelli is one of the toughest most demanding coaches on earth and he does it w/out touching players. Be better Jimbo .. (you're) paid to be.”
Texas A&M radio analyst Dave Elmendorf, a former NFL player who starred for the Aggies from 1968-70, said he was miffed that the incident has drawn so much attention.
“It’s ridiculous,” Elmendorf said. “(Fisher) was trying to keep the kid in the game. I don’t understand the outrage. I had coaches grab my facemask a lot. And every time they did they had a damned good reason.”
“I didn’t like how people were swaying our relationship. Me and coach Fisher have a special relationship. I wanted my voice to be heard about how I felt because I was the one in the situation.”
- A&M linebacker Tyrel Dodson
Dodson previously tweeted his support after the game on Saturday. He said he felt compelled to support Fisher after seeing numerous tweets attacking him.
“I didn’t like how people were swaying our relationship,” Dodson said. “Me and coach Fisher have a special relationship. So, I wanted everyone to know that. There were so many (tweets) I disagreed with I couldn’t tell you. Right after the game I saw those tweets. I wanted my voice to be heard about how I felt because I was the one in the situation.”
Dodson said his mother even supported the coach.
“She was like … 'that’s how you deal with my son,'” he said. “When I’m high emotionally that’s how you deal with me. I don’t get ticked off easily, but when I get ticked off, I get ticked off. She was fine with it.”
NOTES: Sophomore receiver Jhamon Ausbon sustained a broken foot on Saturday and had surgery Sunday. He’ll be out indefinitely.
