Northern Colorado coach, brother of Christian McCaffrey, strikes fan with clipboard
University of Northern Colorado assistant football coach Max McCaffrey broke a clipboard and threw it into the stands, hitting a fan of the opposing team.
The Bears’ offensive coordinator, a former Duke wide receiver and the brother of Carolina Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey, has been “reprimanded” after throwing the clipboard during Northern Colorado’s 40-7 loss to Montana State, the school said in a statement.
According to the statement, the Northern Colorado athletic department, along with Montana State athletics and the Big Sky Conference, reviewed the incident from the Oct. 2 game via statements and video and said that McCaffrey tossed a “piece of broken clipboard to a fan who requested the souvenir” but it wasn’t done with “malicious intent.”
A witness told The Denver Post that the incident happened after they taunted McCaffrey about the size of his pants.
“I said, ‘Hey coach, maybe you should focus on how small your pants are, rather than breaking a clipboard,” witness Max Demarais told the newspaper.
Demarais added that he regrets that his comments caused an escalation.
“I was very surprised he tried throwing it at me,” Demarais said. “I was one of the only people standing in my section when I said it. I’m guessing he tried throwing it at me. Everyone around me freaked out, and I was just dumbfounded.”
Northern Colorado director of athletics Darren Dunn said in the statement that McCaffrey is embarrassed by his actions.
“While Coach Max McCaffrey’s tossing of a souvenir into the stands showed poor judgment, it was clear there was no intent to harm nor was the action fueled by anger. Max is embarrassed by the incident and is working privately to apologize to the fan hit by the errant toss,“ Dunn said. “After visiting with Max and the entire football staff, I am confident we will have no further engagement with fans of our opponents.”
Max McCaffrey is the son of Northern Colorado head coach and former NFL wide receiver Ed McCaffrey, and the older brother of Northern Colorado quarterback Dylan McCaffrey, who threw three interceptions during the loss to Montana State.
The Denver Post reported that the victim received brief medical attention.
This story was originally published October 6, 2021 at 9:56 AM with the headline "Northern Colorado coach, brother of Christian McCaffrey, strikes fan with clipboard."