Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford had his roughest start of the season in his team’s loss to Minnesota over a week ago, but there is no on-field performance that would ever justify what he had to deal with after the game.
Clifford, who has led the Nittany Lions to a 9-1 record in his first season as the team’s starter, told reporters on Tuesday that he had to deactivate some of his social media accounts following Penn State’s loss to Minnesota on Nov. 9 because he was receiving death threats.
“It’s kind of sad to say, but you know how some fans get. It gets a little crazy. I was, kind of, sick and tired of getting death threats and some pretty explicit and pretty tough-to-read messages,” Clifford said, per Jonathan Bombulie of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
Clifford completed 23 of 43 passes for 340 yards, one touchdown and a season-high three interceptions in the 31-26 loss to the then-No. 17 Golden Gophers. The slip-up in what has otherwise been an outstanding season will make it more difficult for Penn State to make the College Football Playoff, but no player deserves death threats no matter how many times he turns the ball over.
Clifford said he appreciates the passion of Penn State fans but would rather avoid that type of negativity.
“I just try to stay away from it,” the quarterback added. “I appreciate all the positive people that are around, but there are also people that try to tear you down.”
Penn State coach James Franklin ripped the fans who would go to that extent to express their anger, calling it “concerning” and reflective of “behaviors in our society now that we accept that I don’t know why we’re accepting.”
“We’re ranked in the top 10, I think,” Franklin said. “We’ve had a pretty good year based on most people’s standards, and sometimes you go on social media and you wouldn’t feel that way.”
Again, it wouldn’t really matter if Penn State was the worst team in the country. Unfortunately, this is far from the first time we have heard of a college football player receiving death threats, and all you can hope for is that the people responsible are tracked down and held accountable. Clifford declined to say whether or not he informed the authorities, but it would not be a surprise if Penn State does on his behalf.
