Avery Johnson’s father, brother apologize for viral fight at K-State loss in Dublin
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Avery Johnson’s father and brother apologized after viral postgame altercation.
- The family clash followed K-State’s 24-21 loss to Iowa State in Dublin, Ireland.
- Social media spread fight video widely, prompting global attention and scrutiny.
Avery Johnson’s father and older brother have both issued public apologies after they were caught on video fighting in the streets of Dublin following Kansas State’s 24-21 loss to Iowa State on Saturday at Aviva Stadium.
“We sincerely apologize for our actions following yesterday’s football game in Ireland,” Mark and Anthony Johnson said in a joint statement. “Senseless bickering escalated into an unnecessary fight. We have resolved our differences and take full responsibility for our actions.
“We have apologized to our immediate and extended family, and now extend our apologies to Kansas State University. We regret this incident, have learned from it, and are committed to ensuring it doesn’t happen again.”
The joint statement ended with these words: “Please accept our deepest apologies.”
Avery Johnson is the starting quarterback for the Kansas State Wildcats. He began his junior campaign with the Wildcats by throwing for 273 yards and two touchdowns in a losing effort against the Cyclones. He also ran for a touchdown in the game.
From purely a statistical point of view, it was one of the best outings of his college career.
But frustrations spilled into the streets for Mark Johnson (his father) and Anthony Johnson (his older brother) after Iowa State won the game with a series of clutch plays in the fourth quarter.
A video that went viral across multiple social media platforms in the immediate hours following the season opener for both teams showed show Mark Johnson engaged in a physical altercation with his eldest son.
The video appeared to show both family members grappling on a puddle-soaked street in Dublin, with Mark Johnson on top as K-State fans worked to separate the two. At least one punch was thrown in an extended version of the video.
Both could be heard yelling. They could also be seen pushing each other until purple-clad strangers lifted them to their feet and de-escalated the situation. They were later seen walking away from each other as K-State fans urged them to calm down.
Rumors began to spread about the physical altercation almost immediately after the game ended. It was the talk around Aviva Stadium on Saturday night and video quickly surfaced on the incident.
College football fans across the globe caught wind of it on social media and message boards. And then they wasted little time sharing it. Posts with the video have been viewed millions of times.
Heading into the game, Avery Johnson said his family was taking a two-week trip across Europe before they arrived in Dublin, with stops scheduled in Paris, Venice and Amsterdam.
His father and brother were both in attendance for the K-State pep rally on Friday in Dublin and the game on Saturday at Aviva Stadium. They appeared to be having a great time until things turned ugly after the game.
They will look to put this behind them now. And K-State will also try to bounce back when it next plays in a week against North Dakota at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.
This story was originally published August 24, 2025 at 5:27 PM with the headline "Avery Johnson’s father, brother apologize for viral fight at K-State loss in Dublin."