Jason Kelce went into detail about an incident in which he smashed a fan’s phone onto the ground after a homophobic slur was used in his direction Saturday while outside Beaver Stadium before the Penn State-Ohio State game.
During the latest installment of his “New Heights” podcast, Kelce explained what led to him confronting a male fan, who called his brother Travis Kelce a “f—-t for dating Taylor Swift,” as seen in videos on social media.
“I’m not happy about the situation,” Kelce began. “Me reacting gave him the time of day and it also gave the situation notoriety. That’s what I regret. Alright. It didn’t deserve attention. It’s really stupid and if I just keep walking it’s a f–king nothing burger. Nobody sees it.
WARNING: GRAPHIC LANGUAGE
“Now it’s out there and it just perpetuates more hate. The thing that I regret the most is saying that word to be honest with you. That word he used its just f–king ridiculous, it takes it to another level. It’s just off the wall f–king over the line. As a human it got under my skin. And it illicited a reaction and in the heat of the moment.
“I thought ‘what can I say back to him I’m gonna throw that s–t right back in his face because f–k him.’ I know now I shouldn’t have done that because now there is a video out there with me saying that word, him saying that word and it’s not good for anybody. I think what I do regret is that now there is a video that is very hateful that is now online that has been seen by millions of people and I share fault in perpetuating it and having it out there.”
Travis applauded his big brother for how he handled the turmoil afterward, and called the heckler a “f–king clown” for speaking about their family.
“I know it’s weighing on you brother,” Travis said. “That s–t sucks. You shouldn’t feel this much — obviously the scrutiny and media view on it and everybody passing around the videos out there. That’s gonna make it a bigger situation than what I think what it really is.
“But the real situation is you had some f–king clown come up to you and talk about your family and you reacted in a way that was defending your family and you might’ve used some words that you regret using and that’s you just gotta kind of learn from and own and I think you owning it and speaking about it shows how sincere you are to a lot of people on this world and it shows what you said on Monday night. You don’t choose that. That’s just not who you are. I love you brother and I think you said that perfectly.”
Kelce went into detail after he addressed the incident on “Monday Night Football” ahead of the Chiefs’ victory against the Buccaneers in overtime at Arrowhead Stadium.
“Listen, I’m not happy with anything that took place. I’m not proud of it,” the former All-Pro Eagles center said Monday. “And in a heated moment, I chose to greet hate with hate, and I just don’t think that’s a productive thing — I really don’t. I think it leads to discourse… and in that moment, I fell down to a level that I shouldn’t have.
“… So the bottom line is, I try to live my life by the golden rule, that’s what I’ve always been taught. I try to treat people with common decency and respect, and I’m going to keep doing that moving forward, even though I fell short this week.”
Kelce, who was in State College to appear on ESPN’s “College GameDay,” was walking near an intersection outside Beaver Stadium when a fan walking behind him yelled a homophobic slur.
“Kelce, how does it feel that your brother is a f—-t for dating Taylor Swift?” they said.
The former Super Bowl champ — who was carrying a case of Garage Beer, the company him and Travis became primary investors in this year — turned around to confront the fan and smashed their phone on the ground.
One video showed Kelce using the slur back at the fan.
“Who’s the f—-t now?” Kelce was heard saying.
Penn State University Police and Public Safety are investigating the incident, a PSU police spokesperson told The Athletic on Tuesday.
A report of the incident on PSU police’s daily crime log lists criminal mischief and disorderly conduct as the offenses.
Per the report, an officer said they “observed a visitor damaging personal property” at an intersection outside Beaver Stadium on Saturday.
ESPN has no plans to punish Kelce as a result of the incident.
Kelce joined the network as an NFL analyst and personality across multiple shows in May, two months after he announced his NFL retirement following 13 seasons, all with the Eagles.
