Former Texas Christian University football player Jacob Fields has been charged with aggravated assault following a locker room fight that led to his dismissal from the team.
Police records show the safety, who transferred to the Fort Worth, Texas, school from Louisiana Tech University in the offseason, is accused of striking wide receiver Dozie Ezukanma on August 13.
Fields was dismissed from the Horned Frogs two days later for a violation of team rules.
He turned himself in to police in Tarrant County, Texas, on Sunday morning. Bond had not been set at the time of publishing.
Media credentials revoked
The identity of the victim emerged days after the altercation, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, when Ezukanma posted about the incident on his Instagram account.
The local newspaper's reporting led the TCU athletic department to revoke the credentials of Steven Johnson, the beat writer covering the team for the Star-Telegram.
The university announced on Wednesday that it had rescinded the newspaper's credentials to cover athletics at the school, which competes in the Big 12 Conference.
Jim Barnes, the sports editor at the Star-Telegram, wrote in an article that a TCU athletics spokesman told him in a Sunday phone call that the credentials were pulled because the coverage resulted in threats to the victim.
Barnes stated that his newspaper did not identify the athlete in its reporting and that Ezukanma identified himself in a now-deleted Instagram video.
University disputes reporting
Mike Buddie, the TCU athletic director, issued a statement to the newspaper saying the school's primary focus was the health and wellbeing of its student athlete.
"Unfortunately, an unnamed source without first-hand knowledge of the incident provided inaccurate information cited in initial reporting by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, which we strongly disputed," Buddie said.
He added: "The inclusion of the misinformation advanced a narrative that endangered a student-athlete and resulted in threats to him and his family."
Buddie said these actions led to the decision to withhold media credentials until additional conversations could take place between the athletics department and the sports reporting team.
He added that the university remained dedicated to restoring its student to health and focusing on its upcoming game.
Barnes noted that university officials have not defined what criteria would need to be met to restore the newspaper's access.
Journalists condemn decision
The university's actions sparked outrage among fans and sports journalists on social media.
Scott Salomon, an NFL beat writer, said the team should have an empty press box. Fellow NFL writer Charean Williams posted: "Boycott covering anything about TCU. Anything."
Andrew Marchand, a media reporter for The Athletic, posted on X: "This seems embarrassing by TCU."
One fan on the platform wondered: "Genuinely what the f*** did TCU think would be the response to this."
Statements condemning the credential revocation were released by the presidents of both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Football Writers Association of America, two prominent national organisations representing sports journalists.
Season opener in Ireland
Johnson, the Star-Telegram reporter, was preparing to travel to Ireland for the team's first game of the season when the news broke.
Posting to X as he boarded his flight, Johnson thanked people for reaching out.
"It means a lot," Johnson wrote. "As for the situation, I don't have much to say aside from I look forward to continue covering TCU and believe the Frogs have a chance to be pretty good this year."
The Horned Frogs opened the college football season against the University of North Carolina. TCU lost the game to the Tar Heels 15 to 10.
