FAYETTEVILLE — ESPN confirmed Thursday that video footage of a sideline incident with Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema and Alabama offensive lineman Cam Robinson was taken by a third-party contractor in violation of ESPN policy last Saturday in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
ESPN issued a statement admitting the error made by the man holding a parabolic microphone on the sideline. The statement reads: “After a thorough investigation, we determined the conduct of the individual contracted to operate a parab during the Arkansas-Alabama game was unacceptable and in violation of ESPN policy and our rights holder agreements. He has been contacted by our legal department to surrender all footage he improperly obtained and remove any and all posts containing it. We have reviewed and revised existing protocol to protect against this happening in the future.” The SEC office is also looking into the origin of the video. The video shows Bielema intervening between Robinson and Arkansas defensive end JaMichael Winston at the end of an interception return by Santos Ramirez in the second quarter. Robinson was penalized 12 yards for unsportsmanlike conduct for shoving Winston and pushing Bielema’s arm away. Bielema lurched back slightly during the incident, which led to accusations that the coach flopped in an effort to draw a penalty.
Arkansas capitalized on the turnover and penalty to score a touchdown for a 7-3 lead in what became a 27-14 loss to the No. 8 Crimson Tide.
ESPN also said in its release that an individual seen in another video standing behind Bielema and using hand signals while holding a parabolic microphone was performing the “normal course of his task” while relating to other crew members that his equipment was working properly.