A day after being observed throwing cheap shots at two different West Virginia players during the Liberty Bowl, Texas A&M student assistant Michael Richardson is no longer a part of the Aggies program.
A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin announced the decision in a statement released on Tuesday.
“Upon returning to College Station last night, I had the opportunity to gather and information and watch clips of one of our student assistant coaches initiating physical contact on two separate occasions with a West Virginia player,” Sumlin’s statement said. “I am extremely disappointed and embarrassed, as his behavior reflected poorly on our program.”
Richardson threw an elbow at WVU’s Andrew Buie when he was pushed out of bounds. Additionally, Richardson threw a punch at the back of the head of cornerback Darryl Worley as he backpedaled out of bounds.
When clips of the incidents surfaced from the television broadcast, Sumlin received word at halftime and told Richardson to remain in the locker room for the second half.
Tuesday, Sumlin offered an apology to the West Virginia program.
“On behalf of the Texas A&M football program, I want to apologize to Darryl Worley and to Andrew Buie as well as to Coach Holgorsen and the West Virginia family for the inexcusable actions of the student assistant,” Sumlin said. “I removed him from the sideline at halftime of yesterday’s game after being informed of the incidents and, after further review, have permanently dismissed him from our football program.”
Richardson played linebacker for the Aggies in 2012 but he broke his neck during a game and has been a student assistant since then.
Richardson issued an apology on Twitter earlier on Tuesday. Evidently it was not enough for him to remain a part of Sumlin’s program.
The Aggies beat the Mountaineers 45-37.
For more Texas A&M news, visit AggieYell.com.
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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
