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7:00pm EST
ND
PITT0
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9:00pm EST
W.Virginia
Kansas St0
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Illinois St68
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Marist
Rider63
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GreenBay
Ytown71
54 -
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Milwaukee
Cleveland67
88 -
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Ohio St
Wisconsin49
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Louisville
S. Florida59
41 -
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Arizona
Utah68
64 -
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Penn St.
Michigan71
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Miami
Clemson45
43
Cam Newton slams followers accusing him of being in a gang
- Updated: September 5, 2015
@cameron1newton via InstagramCarolina Panthers QB Cam Newton posted a photo on Instagram with his friends and some of his followers accused him of throwing up gang signs.
Moral of the story: Don’t judge a picture by its wardrobe.
Cam Newton, celebrated quarterback of the Carolina Panthers, was forced to address a picture he shared on Instagram after being hit with an onslaught of negative comments accusing him of being in a gang.
The photo in question, posted Thursday afternoon, was taken during his birthday trip to Mexico in May, according to the Charlotte Observer.
Grant Halverson/Getty ImagesCam Newton of the Carolina Panthers was accused of being in a gang by some of his Instagram followers after posting a picture from a recent vacation in Mexico.
Streeter Lecka/Getty Images
Cam Newton of the Carolina Panthers was accused of being in a gang by some of his Instagram followers after posting a picture from a recent vacation in Mexico.
Newton, 26, posed in the center wearing a flashy silk shirt, dark sunglasses and a scarf that was tied like a headband.
The star athlete was flanked in the image by a group of men who also sported scarves that were tied around their faces, while pointing at the camera.
“Different father, different mother, same struggle we hustle them my brothas,” he captioned the picture.
“Is this the ‘Panthers Crips, or Bloods?” wrote one of his accusers.
The player’s followers clashed in the comment section and many of them jumped to his defense.
“All these negative comments are apparently people who pay no attention to detail,” wrote another user. “[They] clearly just rode ATVs and dirt bikes.”
The next day, Newton shared another image of the same group of men wearing suits to silence his haters.
@cameron1newton via InstagramCam Newton responded to the backlash with a picture of his friends dressed up in suits, announcing that they all have college degrees.
He began with a quote by Muhammad Ali: “I know where I’m going and I know the truth, and I don’t have to be what you want me to be. I’m free to be what I want.”
He then took a more direct approach in dismantling the racial stereotype against his group of friends.
“Everyone in the previous post has a degree and is WELL educated. Do/are you? I am who I am, and why are you so [judgmental] in ‘2015.’ Are you afraid of what you don’t understand? If you don’t understand why throw shade (speaking on something you do not know about, for people who don’t understand the meaning of throwing ‘shade.’).”
Newton pointed out the subjects of both pictures were the same.
“Is this picture better for you simple-minded people who are quick to judge something/someone, when you are no better than the next person?” he wrote.
Newton, who recently signed on for a five-year extension worth $ 103.8 million extension, graduated from Auburn University with a bachelor’s degree in sociology in June.
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