Former ESPN commentator and Indiana resident Dan Dakich was quick to react to the news that Mark Sanchez was involved in an altercation in Indianapolis last weekend.
Sanchez, a former NFL quarterback and current FOX Sports broadcaster, was stabbed in downtown Indianapolis on Oct. 4. Dakich made a post about Indianapolis on X not long after the news broke.
“Sanchez or anyone being stabbed [in] downtown Indy should not be a surprise. We have a ton of fatherless and armed African American kids descending on downtown Indy every weekend,“ Dan Dakich posted. ”If that offends you [expletive] off as the chief of police Bailey and Rev Harrison have told you this!!”
Dakich was criticized immediately after the post, including by James Boyd, who covers the Indianapolis Colts for The Athletic.
“This is racist, which isn’t surprising since a racist shared it,“ Boyd posted on X. ”The weak part — beyond being racist, of course — is that whenever you call racists like these racist, they get offended. Why all of the push back? The only thing worse than a racist is a spineless racist.”
Another user on X commented to Dakich: “You’re clueless. And extremely racist.”
Later on, news broke that Mark Sanchez was being charged for the incident and was the aggressor, according to police. Clearly, what police say happened is not what Dakich assumed happened.
The Associated Press reports that Mark Sanchez faces a felony battery charge, along with several misdemeanor charges, after getting in a fight with a truck driver over a parking spot at a hotel.
Sanchez is accused of entering the driver’s truck without permission, blocking him and pushing him. The driver then reportedly sprayed Sanchez with pepper spray, before Sanchez allegedly continued going after him. The driver then stabbed Sanchez to defend himself, according to police.
Mark Sanchez spent 10 years in the NFL, with his best years coming with the New York Jets. He got into broadcasting at the conclusion of his NFL career and has been with FOX Sports since 2021.
As for Dan Dakich, he was a longtime assistant for Indiana basketball and eventually was named the interim head coach of the Hoosiers. He also later got into broadcasting, working at ESPN from 2010 until 2021 when he left the network to join OutKick.