Providence College athletics director Steve Napolillo apologized to BYU’s basketball team after an offensive chant broke out at Amica Mutual Pavilion on Tuesday night.
During the first half of BYU’s 83-64 loss to Providence, some fans started chanting “F--- the Mormons.” A video of the chant was posted to social media.
“I want to apologize to [BYU basketball], their coaches and institution for unacceptable chants by our student body tonight,” he wrote on social media. “Once it was brought to my attention, I went to the student body and had them stop. That does not represent who Providence College is and what we stand for. We are sorry.”
Providence College is a Catholic school in Rhode Island and a longtime fixture in the Big East.
Similar chants have occurred at BYU games in the past. Most recently, a chant broke out when BYU football visited Oregon in 2022. The Ducks’ administration issued an apology after the game. USC fans also did it in 2021.
