Michigan legend who saved Wolverines flag during wild brawl identified as nine-year NFL veteran
A wild brawl broke out between Michigan and Ohio State players when the Wolverines planted their flag at midfield following a stunning 13-10 upset on Saturday. The second-ranked Buckeyes took offence to the incident that unfolded on their home turf, and did what they could to stop it, leading to violence on the field. Michigan players tried to plant their flag after beating Ohio State on SaturdayGetty The huge scuffle lasted around five minutes, with players and coaches from both sides left bloodied. Eventually, the police resorted to pepper spray to break things up. Amid all the chaos, the Michigan flag was ripped down by Buckeyes defensive end Jack Sawyer, and a video shows a lone man quickly wrestling it back from a number of furious players. Naturally, his actions soon went viral, with many praising him as a Wolverines hero. “Give bro a raise. He guarded that flag with his life,” one person wrote on X, responding to the footage. “I feared for that dude’s life for real,” another said. “Much respect to my dude. One vs everyone, and just focused on his flag,” a third wrote. “Not the hero we deserved, but the hero we needed,” a fourth concluded. The footage has been viewed more than a million times across social media in less than 24 hours, leading to many questioning exactly who it was that rescued the flag. Well, the person has been identified as none other than nine-year NFL veteran Jason Avant. The flag-planting incident sparked a mass brawl on the fieldGetty And he was Michigan hero long before Saturday’s events played out, having starred for the team at wide receiver from 2002 to 2005. He caught 169 passes for 2,247 yards and 13 touchdowns with two second team All-Big Ten selections during his college career. Avant was then drafted in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles, and spent eight seasons with the team. In 2014, he signed with the Carolina Panthers, but was released a few weeks into the season, before joining the Kansas City Chiefs. He retired a year later having played 148 regular-season games in the NFL, scoring 13 touchdowns. Avant is now a sideline reporter for the Michigan football radio broadcasts, and further cemented himself as a school legend with his flag-saving actions on Saturday. Avant played 10 seasons in the NFLGetty The Michigan hero has been identified as a former NFL starx: @UMGoBlog Former Eagles star Jason Avant has been identified as the Michigan herox: @markmalkoskie Avant is now a sideline reporter for Michiganx: @JonJansen7 The brawl, which broke out at Ohio Stadium after the Wolverines won their fourth-straight game against the Buckeyes, was one of the wildest in recent memory. “Following the game, officers from multiple law enforcement agencies assisted in breaking up an on-field altercation,” Ohio State University police said in a statement. “During the scuffle, multiple officers representing Ohio and Michigan deployed pepper spray. OSUPD is the lead agency for games and will continue to investigate.” The result cost the Buckeyes (10-2 overall, 7-2 Big Ten) a spot in the conference title game.
A wild brawl broke out between Michigan and Ohio State players when the Wolverines planted their flag at midfield following a stunning 13-10 upset on Saturday.
The second-ranked Buckeyes took offence to the incident that unfolded on their home turf, and did what they could to stop it, leading to violence on the field.
The huge scuffle lasted around five minutes, with players and coaches from both sides left bloodied.
Eventually, the police resorted to pepper spray to break things up.
Amid all the chaos, the Michigan flag was ripped down by Buckeyes defensive end Jack Sawyer, and a video shows a lone man quickly wrestling it back from a number of furious players.
Naturally, his actions soon went viral, with many praising him as a Wolverines hero.
“Give bro a raise. He guarded that flag with his life,” one person wrote on X, responding to the footage.
“I feared for that dude’s life for real,” another said.
“Much respect to my dude. One vs everyone, and just focused on his flag,” a third wrote.
“Not the hero we deserved, but the hero we needed,” a fourth concluded.
The footage has been viewed more than a million times across social media in less than 24 hours, leading to many questioning exactly who it was that rescued the flag.
Well, the person has been identified as none other than nine-year NFL veteran Jason Avant.
And he was Michigan hero long before Saturday’s events played out, having starred for the team at wide receiver from 2002 to 2005.
He caught 169 passes for 2,247 yards and 13 touchdowns with two second team All-Big Ten selections during his college career.
Avant was then drafted in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles, and spent eight seasons with the team.
In 2014, he signed with the Carolina Panthers, but was released a few weeks into the season, before joining the Kansas City Chiefs.
He retired a year later having played 148 regular-season games in the NFL, scoring 13 touchdowns.
Avant is now a sideline reporter for the Michigan football radio broadcasts, and further cemented himself as a school legend with his flag-saving actions on Saturday.
The brawl, which broke out at Ohio Stadium after the Wolverines won their fourth-straight game against the Buckeyes, was one of the wildest in recent memory.
“Following the game, officers from multiple law enforcement agencies assisted in breaking up an on-field altercation,” Ohio State University police said in a statement.
“During the scuffle, multiple officers representing Ohio and Michigan deployed pepper spray. OSUPD is the lead agency for games and will continue to investigate.”
The result cost the Buckeyes (10-2 overall, 7-2 Big Ten) a spot in the conference title game.
