Iowa football players put fans on notice: Support their movement or don't support the Hawkeyes
Current Iowa football players have now made it clear to fans that they will not tolerate those who don't support their message off of the field on the heels of allegations against strength and conditioning coach Chris Doyle. Sophomore defensive back Kaevon Merriweather took to Twitter on Monday to deliver the message that fans who don't support the team's decision to kneel during the national anthem shouldn't bother cheering for them moving forward.
"If you can not support us right now with this movement and with our team taking a knee during the national anthem, DO NOT support us during the football season," he wrote. "DO NOT watch our games on TV. DO NOT come up to us when you want photos. DO NOT ask us to give your kids autographs. DON'T COME TO US EXPECTING US TO DO FOR YOU WHEN YOU CAN'T SUPPORT THE BLACK ATHLETES ON THIS TEAM AND THE DECISIONS WE MAKE AS A TEAM. I would rather play in front of 1,000 fans who care about us as people outside of football and what we are standing for, than 70,000 fans who only care about us when we are in uniform and on the field entertaining them."
Scott Dochterman of The Athletic pointed out that several current Iowa players have posted the same statement on Instagram.
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