Sports Analyst Roasted For Comparing Angel Reese To 'Cowardly' Cartoon Character

Emmanuel Acho, a sports analyst and former NFL player, is catching heat for his recent criticism of Louisiana State University forward Angel Reese.

On Tuesday’s broadcast of the Fox Sports 1 show “Speak,” Acho discussed Reese’s emotional remarks at a press conference the previous day, when the LSU Tigers lost 94-87 to the Iowa Hawkeyes in an Elite Eight game of the women’s NCAA Tournament.

Speaking about her comments — in which Reese said that she’s been sharply criticized online and received death threats — Acho said that he was giving a “gender-neutral, racially indifferent take” on the college basketball star, who is Black.

“You can’t be the big, bad wolf but then cry like Courage the Cowardly Dog,” he said, referencing the timorous Cartoon Network character.

“If you want to act grown, which she has, if you want to get paid like you’re grown, which you are, if you want to talk to grown folks like you’re grown, which you did… then post-game when you take an ‘L,’ you’ve just got to take it on the chin,” he said.

“What frustrated me is when you want to be the villain, but you want to hope for sympathy like a hero,” he added. Reese has spoken out about being labeled a villain for her competitive conduct on the court.

Acho’s co-hosts, LeSean McCoy and James Jones, agreed with some of his points. McCoy added that Reese shouldn’t have cried at the press conference, saying that she should’ve instead stood “10 toes down.”

But Acho, who shared a clip of his remarks about Reese on X, formerly Twitter, received swift backlash online.

Many people on social media called out the fact that Acho, who is also Black, was misguided in thinking he could analyze Reese’s experience while putting aside her identity as a Black woman.

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