CHATTANOOGA, Tennessee. – The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga fired an offensive line technician after a social media post disparaging the state of Georgia and Stacey Abrams.
In the now deleted tweet, whose screenshots were widely shared online, Chris Malone posted on Tuesday night: “Congratulations to the state GA and Fat Albert @staceyabrams because you really showed the United States the real works of cheating in an election, again !! ! Enjoy the Big Girl buffet !! You deserved it !!! I hope the money is good, you are not a governor yet! “
Malone’s entire Twitter account was deleted on Wednesday night.
UTC Chancellor Steve Angle posted a video on Thursday announcing his resignation and saying the tweet was “hateful, painful and fake”.
“Coach Malone is no longer part of this university,” said Angle in the video. “The university faculty and staff are expected to lead in order to achieve and maintain a respectful and tolerant civilian environment on campus.”
“The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga does not tolerate and unequivocally condemn discrimination and hatred in all ways,” concluded Angle.
Abrams is a former Democratic leader in the Georgia House of Representatives, a former candidate for governor of Georgia and a voting rights activist. She is widely credited for helping Democrats win the 2020 presidential election and Tuesday’s US Senate race in Georgia.
Chattanooga athletics director Mark Wharton released a statement on Thursday, saying the post was brought to his attention on Wednesday night.
“A totally inappropriate post on social media by a member of our football team was brought to my attention,” said Wharton. “The entire post was terrible.”
Football coach Rusty Wright referred to Malone as “that guy”, considered the post unacceptable and said he violated program standards.
Malone was no longer listed on the Chattanooga team’s website on Thursday morning. Chattanooga played a game in the 2020 season, a defeat in Western Kentucky.