The Duke Blue Devils football player who drew criticism for swatting at a female staff member has issued a statement about the incident.
Cornerback Kimari Robinson issued the statement on social media and offered an apology for his actions. He wrote that he was emotional because of his concern for injured teammate DaShawn Stone, and that he had privately apologized to the staffer after the game.
“Immediately after the game, I apologized to her personally and checked to make sure she was okay,” Robinson wrote. “The injured player on the ground, DeShawn Stone, is like family to me, and I was scared he might be seriously hurt. But being worried about him does not excuse how I treated her. I should have controlled my emotions, and I didn’t.”
https://t.co/wHbfy4zhKP
— Kimari Robinson (@krobinson7__) October 19, 2026
Robinson drew widespread criticism for the viral video, in which he forcefully pushed the staff member after she brushed him aside to tend to Stone (video here). While most understood his concern for an injured teammate, they also felt that Robinson was out of line to react the way he did.
As for the game, Duke suffered a 24-20 loss to their ACC rivals Tar Heels, 24-20. The Blue Devils are now on a two-game losing streak and drop to 4-2 overall and 1-2 against ACC teams.
