Eli Manning trolls Peyton Manning after Ole Miss-Tennessee golf ball fiasco
Tennessee fans erupted in the waning minutes of a home contest with Ole Miss Saturday, throwing various objects onto the field — most notably, a golf ball — and Eli Manning took to social media Tuesday to point out the culprit.
Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin appeared to have been struck on the elbow with a golf ball late in the fourth quarter, as Tennessee fans hurled trash at the Rebels bench, and the ball made its rounds on both Kiffin’s interviews and social media. On Tuesday, Manning jokingly accused his brother, Peyton, a Tennessee alumnus, of throwing the golf ball onto the field.
Eli, a product of Ole Miss, had fun with his brother Peyton all week ahead of a matchup between their alma maters. He first said Peyton “wimped out” on airing an alternate ESPN2 Manning Cast for the game, which the brothers have done for Monday Night Football this season; then, days later, he told his Twitter-less brother — on Twitter, of course — that if Ole Miss wins, Peyton has to wear an Ole Miss jersey on the next Manning Cast.
Eli might not let his fellow Manning brother hear the end of this loss.
Manning references Tennessee saga, fines, arrests
Manning was calling out his brother for Saturday’s dilemma, which saw Tennessee fans throw trash and delay the game for roughly 25 minutes before it was declared safe to play.
Tennessee on Saturday was facing fourth-and-24 late in the fourth quarter, when quarterback Hendon Hooker completed a pass to Jacob Warren close to the first-down mark. The referees’ mark spotted Warren less than a yard short of the first down, and in protest of the call, chaos ensued from Tennessee fans.
Trash was thrown onto the field, primarily from the student section, some of which was aimed at the Ole Miss sideline. Former Tennessee head coach Lane Kiffin, who made his return to Neyland Stadium as the Ole Miss head coach, seemed to be hit with a golf ball in the tirade, which was caught on the ESPN broadcast and referenced by Manning.
Tennessee cheerleaders were escorted to the locker room to avoid injury, and the Volunteers’ marching band soon followed suit. Ole Miss players, including Kiffin, vacated the bench and took to the playing field, where they were out of the stands’ range. The game was delayed for roughly 20 minutes, and a forfeit warning was issued at Neyland Stadium before play finally resumed.
As of Monday afternoon, the University of Tennessee Police Department had arrested 18 fans, while ejecting 47 more from Saturday’s game. Tennessee was also dealt a myriad of penalties by the SEC, including a $250,000 fine.