While the Yale Bulldogs Men’s Basketball team currently sits #1 atop the Ivy League standings, their players are caught up in the middle of a controversy involving their former captain Jack Montague, and accusations of rape.
This morning, Jezebel wrote an article about various posters reading “I STAND WITH YALE WOMEN | END RAPE CULTURE | DON’T SUPPORT RAPISTS” and “YALE MEN’S BASKETBALL | STOP SUPPORTING A RAPIST” that had been placed around various bulletin boards and message boards around campus.
You can see a photo of some of the posters below:
These posters were taken down almost immediately by (Jezebel claims) members of the men’s basketball team. So what exactly are these posters talking about and why are the players defending their captain? Let’s dig a bit deeper.
Who Is Jack Montague?
Jack Montague is a senior and former captain of the Yale Bulldogs Men’s Basketball team. He wears the #4 and is nicknamed “Gucci.” Last week it was announced that he had withdrawn from Yale. He had missed four games previously, starting on February 12th. Initially at the time of his absence, the team claimed it was because of a “personal matter.” Then when he finally withdrew, no official reasons were given even as to why Jack had withdrawn. The sharpshooter was scheduled to graduate in May.
While no official statement had been made, some Yale students have commented on various articles relevant to the topic that the campus has been aware for some time now as to the real reason.
Jack Montague Photos: Must See Pictures of Yale Captain
The Team’s Response
The team’s response to Jack’s disappearance has been largely in support of their former captain. Last week, during their huge game against Harvard, the remaining Bulldogs team all wore shirts that read “Gucci #4” on the back and “ELAY” on the front (“Yale” spelled backwards).
You can see a photo of those shirts, which we believe was originally published in the Yale Daily News, at the top of the article. Here’s another picture of those shirts during the team’s warmups.
The inclusion of the name “Gucci” and “#4” are self-explanatory, but why spell Yale backwards? Forward Justin Sears ’16 explained to the Yale Daily News like this:
“‘Yale’ spelled backwards wasn’t to make a statement. It’s just because Yale is a brand and there was a copyright. It was just convenient, at the last minute. Everyone on the team supported it and wanted to show our support for Jack.”
The explanation of why they’d spell “Yale” backwards seems pretty solid to us. They knew they were entering an area of grey, so they wanted to cover themselves as much as possible.
Jezebel reports that there is a strong possibility that the team will stage a walkout during their game against Columbia on March 5th.
The Bulldogs are only half a game ahead of Princeton and have the opportunity to make their first NCAA March Madness appearance since 1962.
The Administration’s Response
Understandably, Yale’s administration hasn’t said much about the incident. Justin Sears did mention to the Yale Daily News that neither the team’s coaches nor the athletic director had any say in the team’s decision to wear the shirts. That being said, the Harvard game was the one and only time they donned the shirts.