Just before kick-off of the 2020 SEC football season, the Florida Gators and the Ole Miss Rebels chose to kneel together as a sign of protest against the mistreatment of Black people in America.
Both Florida and Ole Miss took a knee before the game in a showing of unity. pic.twitter.com/ZskjG8mf81
— Unnecessary Roughness (@UnnecRoughness) September 26, 2020
The schools released a joint statement just prior to kickoff and chose to kneel as one in a show of unity against these issues. Both schools pledged to continue to support their student-athletes when it comes to the fight toward social justice as well as to support efforts across the SEC.
— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) September 26, 2020
Marty Smith of ESPN reported that the idea for the demonstration pregame came from head coaches Lane Kiffin and Dan Mullen as a way for both teams to come together and make their stance known before beginning the football season.
Previously during this college football season, student-athletes from Stephen F. Austin had protested during game action by taking a delay of game penalty while kneeling on the field together with their fists raised. Their statement and demonstration were far more overt than what we saw from Florida and Ole Miss, but as more schools get back on the football field, it seems possible that we see all sorts of demonstrations, protests, and statements coming from players and programs all across the country.
