Spectators Banned After Racist Comments at South Dakota Football Game

Spectators who allegedly hurled racist insults at an opposing football team during a Nov. 13 game against South Dakota School of Mines and Technology have been permanently banned from attending all Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference events, the conference’s commissioner announced this week. “These comments were abhorrent and stand in complete contradiction to the values and policies of the RMAC and its institutions,” RMAC commissioner Chris Graham said in a statement on Wednesday.

In comments made to the Rapid City Journal, SD Mines athletic communications coordinator Josh Van Valkenburg-Gernert said they couldn’t specifically comment on the incident as there was still an active investigation. None of the statements from the athletic commission or school provided information about the individuals, whether they were students or other spectators, or how many were involved.

“My sincerest apologies go out to the members of Colorado Mesa's football team and staff that witnessed and were involved in completely unacceptable behavior while on our campus,” SD Mines athletic director Joel Lueken said in a separate statement. The school’s president also stated that there is “zero tolerance for racism” at SD Mines.