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Mizzou Athletics Comments on Michael Sam Announcement
HEAD COACH GARY PINKEL
On Michael Sam’s announcement
“We’re
really happy for Michael that he’s made the decision to announce this,
and we’re proud of him and how he represents Mizzou. Michael is a
great example of just how important it is to be respectful of others,
he’s taught a lot of people here first-hand that it doesn’t matter what
your background is, or your personal orientation, we’re all on the same
team and we all support each other. If Michael doesn’t have the
support of his teammates like he did this past year, I don’t think
there’s any way he has the type of season he put together.
We
talk all the time here in our program about how one of our core values
is to respect the cultural differences of others, and this certainly
applies. We view ourselves as one big family that has a very
diverse collection of people from all walks of life, and if you’re part
of our family, we support you.
Looking back, I take
great pride in how Michael and everyone in our program handled his
situation. This past August, Michael was very direct with the
team when he decided to let everyone know that he is gay. We
discussed how to deal with that from a public standpoint, and
ultimately Michael decided that he didn’t want that to be the focal
point of the season. He wanted to focus on football and not do
anything to add pressure for him or for his teammates, and I think
that’s a great example of the kind of person he is. We left it
that whenever he felt the time was right, however he wanted to make the
announcement, that we had his back and we’d be right there with him.
We’re
very proud of Michael and the courage he has displayed for coming
out. We look forward to following his career, and the success
he’s going to have.”
DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS MIKE ALDEN
On Michael Sam’s announcement
“We
are so proud of Michael for what he has accomplished at Mizzou
academically, socially and competitively. This is a young man who
earned his degree from MU, was a unanimous All-American on the football
field and now he’s being a leader in his personal life. He
continues to display great character, courage and compassion. We
are proud of him on every level.
We work very hard at the
University of Missouri to provide an environment that is respectful and
inclusive of all people. We’re pleased with the strides we’ve
made over the years with our student-athletes, coaches and staff about
respecting and celebrating our differences. We continue to grow
every day. We talk all the time about our core value of respect,
and we emphasize that in a number of ways, whether it’s through
individual actions, team settings, public efforts such as our ‘If You
Can Play, You Can Play’ video, and even our Men-for-Men and
Women-for-Women programs.
The University’s theme is called
‘One Mizzou.’ What that theme represents is that we are all
family, we are all Tigers, and we should all respect and appreciate
each other.
We wish Michael all the best in all that he does.”
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