Pennsylvania

Two More Albright College Football Players Cut in Kneeling Controversy

Two more players were let go from the team after evidence arose that they didn't fully comply with the kneeling portion of the pre-game activities.

First, a backup quarterback at Albright College in Berks County got booted from the football team for kneeling during the national anthem.

Now, two more players have been kicked off Albright's team for not kneeling. Or in the words of the college president, "These players did not fully kneel."

The Division III school in Reading, Pennsylvani became embroiled in controversy earlier this week for kicking Gyree Durante off the team after last Saturday's game because he went against what the college has called a planned show of "team unity." That apparently involved kneeling during the coin toss before its match against Delaware Valley University, and then standing during the anthem.

On Friday, college President Jacquelyn Fetrow wrote on the school website that two more players were let go from the team after evidence arose that they didn't fully comply with the kneeling portion of the pre-game activities.

"Our ongoing investigation has uncovered additional evidence from last Saturday’s football game, which demonstrates two additional players chose not to follow the team’s shared commitment to unity. These players did not fully kneel when the team kneeled," Fetrow said in the statement posted online. "As before, these actions represent a failure to comply with team decision, actions which carry consequences."

The players were not identified. The Reading Eagle first reported the more recent cuts.

Durante, a Norristown native and sophomore at the school, told NBC10 earlier this week that he broke with his teammates because he felt it was time to take a stand.

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“At some point in life, there’s going to be a time when you’ve got to take a stand,” said Gyree Durante. “For me it just happened to be on Saturday afternoon.”

He said the kneeling was a protest against social injustices and racism in the country, echoing the sentiments of many professional players in the National Football League. Their kneeling has drawn the ire of President Donald Trump, who has feuded publicly in recent weeks with NFL players as well as athletes in other American professional sports leagues.

“I was just taught you fight for what you believe in and you don’t bow to anyone,” Durante said. “I believe heavily in this. So I decided to fight for it.”

The spokeswoman said kicking Durante off the team was recommended by the team’s leadership council, which is made up of 24 student-athletes selected annually by team members. She also said the players had an understanding that there may be consequences for anyone who chose not to support the team.

Fetrow also noted that the two additional players knew of the consequences.

She added that school administrators and athletic department officials will be tasked with examining school disciplinary policies pertaining to athletes' actions on and off the field.

"Examination of our current policies and practices show that their implementation do not fully align with our core values," Fetrow said. "We must be certain that this does not happen again."

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