Michelle Beadle Criticizes Pat McAfee's Reaction to Utah Video as 'Soft'

Michelle Beadle, a former ESPN personality, has publicly criticized sports media figure Pat McAfee for what she described as a "soft" reaction to a social media video created by University of Utah students. The video, posted by the university before McAfee's "College GameDay" appearance, featured students making lighthearted jabs at him. McAfee stated on his show that he felt "very, very uncomfortable" and unsafe during his visit to the campus and alluded to the assassination of Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University in September 2025.

In response to McAfee's comments, Beadle, speaking on "The Dan Le Batard Show," suggested that women in sports media would not be able to exhibit such a reaction. "We are constantly told as women that we’re hysterical, we’re too emotional, we can’t handle things," Beadle said. "I can’t tell you how many death and rape threats I’ve gotten via social media since 2009 when we got on Twitter originally. I could never be that soft. Never."

Beadle, who departed ESPN in 2019, characterized McAfee's response as one of the "softest reactions to something that was so ridiculously unserious," noting that such sensitivity has been observed from others in prominent sports media roles. She expressed a degree of enjoyment in observing the fallout from afar, suggesting it might lead to introspection.

Following the incident, the University of Utah issued an apology. McAfee, in a lengthy social media post, detailed the security measures and concerns surrounding his visit, including advice from the FBI and various security groups about potential threats. He noted that the FBI had deployed snipers and that there was a significant police presence. McAfee also shared some of the threats he has received, describing the situation as "a weird time."