Parents of Michigan player want charges brought for tunnel fight

The family of Gemon Green, one of the Michigan players caught up in a brutal assault by Michigan State players in the tunnel following Michigan’s 29-7 win over the Spartans on Saturday, say they want to see opposing players face criminal charges. Green and teammate Ja’Den McBurrows both sustained injuries that required treatment in the attack.

While sports fans are accustomed to seeing scuffles on the field, and even on the sidelines on occasion, it’s rare to see a fight as vicious as the one in Ann Arbor last weekend:

ESPN’s Tom VanHarren spoke to the parents of Gemon Green, and the family says they want charges filed:

While the doctrine of implied consent means that football players voluntarily agree to subject themselves to blocking, tackling, and the like during games, that consent certainly doesn’t extend to getting jumped by a number of opposing players in the tunnel after the game. Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh says he expects criminal charges to be filed, as well.

“There needs to be accountability, there needs to be a full, thorough, timely investigation,” Harbaugh said. “I can’t imagine this will not result in criminal charges. The videos are bad, and it’s clear what transpired. It seems very open and shut. As they say, watch the tape.”

Michigan State suspended four players indefinitely on Sunday night. Tank Brown, Khary Crump, Angelo Grose, and Zion Young will not play pending the outcome of an investigation by law enforcement and the Big Ten. Meanwhile, Harbaugh says MSU head coach Mel Tucker, who issued a statement on the altercation Sunday, has still not reached out to him or apologized to him personally. Not that it would matter, according to Harbaugh.

“I come at this from the perspective of being a parent of these young men, who are entrusted to me by their families as a program and we have a responsibility to each player to treat them like our own and I take that responsibility very seriously,” Harbaugh said Monday. “An apology will not get the job done in this instance, there should be serious consequences for the many individuals who are culpable.”

Green has hired Atlanta attorney Tom Mars to represent him. Mars told CNN that his client was punched and hit with a helmet, sustaining facial lacerations and a concussion.