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Cincinnati apologizes after anti-LDS chants break out again at BYU football game

Fans were heard chanting ‘F--- the Mormons’ during BYU’s win over the Bearcats.

(Emil T. Lippe | AP )Cincinnati head football coach Scott Satterfield answers questions from reporters at Big 12 media days in 2023.

(Emil T. Lippe | AP )Cincinnati head football coach Scott Satterfield answers questions from reporters at Big 12 media days in 2023.

Cincinnati • The University of Cincinnati has apologized for an offensive chant during its game against BYU on Saturday.

In the second half of BYU’s win over Cincinnati, fans were heard chanting “F--- the Mormons.”

“On behalf of the University of Cincinnati and Bearcats Athletics, I want to sincerely apologize to the BYU community and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” Cincinnati Athletic Director John Cunningham said in a statement Monday. “The use of offensive or religiously derogatory language by a group of fans during Saturday’s game was unacceptable and does not reflect our values.”

The anti-LDS refrain has become a somewhat common occurrence at BYU athletic events, particularly over the last two years.

This season, fans chanted the same thing when the BYU football team played at Colorado. The Big 12 conference fined the university $50,000 and the athletic department announced several security changes in the wake of the event.

Read more: The Salt Lake Tribune looked into why the chant occurs so often, with several religious scholars weighing in.

Former Utah star Britain Covey also spoke to The Tribune about his experience with the chant.

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