On Monday evening, Ottawa Redblacks quarterback Jeremiah Masoli called out the CFL and the Saskatchewan Roughriders for how the suspension of defensive lineman Garrett Marino has been handled.
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Marino was given the longest suspension ever implemented by the CFL, totalling four games after a low hit on the quarterback, racial comments made about Masoli’s heritage and a reckless tackle of a player earlier in the game.
Wednesday, both Marino and the Roughriders issued apologies on Twitter.
Mariano said he will not be appealing his suspension and wanted to apologize personally to Masoli.
“I want to apologize for my actions that day, as I understand that they have no place in the game of football,” Marino said.
“I know I play the game with an edge, and during the game I made an insensitive and culturally stereotypical remark. I now understand this was hurtful to my peers and I hope I can be forgiven for that misunderstanding.”
The Roughriders also apologized to Masoli, stating the comments and actions of Marino do not represent who the Roughriders are as an organization or the work they do in the community.
The Roughriders said they would donate to the Redblacks Mentorship Program in Masoli’s name.
These comments come a day after Masoli took to Twitter to criticize how the situation has been handled by the league and the Roughriders. In particular, he said the punishment for the comments was nothing more than a slap on the wrist.
“I’ve seen the poor and uninformed excuses given by Saskatchewan’s head coach and no apology from Garrett Marino, coach Dickenson, or any executive from Saskatchewan,” Masoli said.
Some of the insensitive comments came from Roughriders head coach Craig Dickenson, who has been heavily criticized for his handling of the situation by both Masoli and the community.
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On July 11, Dickenson responded to a CFL account on Twitter, stating his comments in defence of Marino were racially insensitive.
“I attempted to defend his character amid accusations that he said something racially or culturally insensitive by pointing out that he has many close friends who are black and a long term girlfriend who is black,” Dickenson write.
“I realize this comment is insensitive and irrelevant to the conversation. I apologize for this comment.”
He went on to clarify that while the comments were insensitive, he still believes Marino’s punishment to be unfair.
“That being said, I stand by my belief that Garrett is being unfairly characterized and punished for his actions in the game against (Ottawa).”
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