Michael Rose-Ivey Received Racist Comments, Threats for National Anthem Protest

Protests during the national anthem have become widespread in recent weeks, but so has the backlash that has followed.

On Monday, Nebraska Cornhuskers linebacker Michael Rose-Ivey described the responses he has received since kneeling for the national anthem, per ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg:

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Some believe DaiShon, Mohamed and myself should be kicked off the team or suspended, while some said we deserved to be lynched or shot like the other black people who have died recently. Another believed that since we didn't want to stand for the anthem that we should be hung before the anthem at the next game.

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Rose-Ivey spoke at length about the threats on Tuesday, per Jordan Heck of Sporting News (video contains sensitive language):

Rose-Ivey and teammates Mohamed Barry and DaiShon Neal dropped to one knee during the national anthem before Saturday's game against the Northwestern Wildcats.

Darren Rovell of ESPN provided a picture of the trio during the pregame ceremony:

The senior explained his reasoning in an extended message on Twitter:

Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts called the protest "disgraceful" and "disrespectful" on his weekly radio show (via Graham Watson of Yahoo Sports), prompting Rose-Ivey to reach out on Tuesday and try to meet with him, getting a response:

Rose-Ivey is following the example set forth by San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who first began his protest during the NFL preseason. Kaepernick explained in August that he was "not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color," per Steve Wyche of NFL.com.

Rose-Ivey had two tackles in his team's 24-13 win over Northwestern as the Cornhuskers improved to 4-0 on the season.