NC State player ejected for ‘spitting on an opponent.’ Dabo, Clemson players react

Saturday’s Clemson-N.C. State game included something you don’t see often in college football: An ejection for spitting on another player.

Late in the second quarter of the Tigers’ 59-35 win at Memorial Stadium, Wolfpack starting left tackle Anthony Belton was ejected for, in the words of the referees, “spitting on an opponent” following a sack by Clemson’s T.J. Parker.

The ejection at the 1:05 mark of the second quarter was a small moment within an ACC blowout — Clemson was already leading 42-7 at that point — but drew attention on social media and the national ABC broadcast of the game.

Parker told reporters after the game that he saw Belton spit on Tré Williams, another Tigers defensive lineman, after the sack. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney also said postgame that Williams told him Belton had spit on him.

“And that’s what the ref said,” Swinney said. “So I was proud of Tré for walking away and not retaliating. But yeah, they just said that their player spit on him.”

N.C. State coach Dave Doeren said he was “disappointed” in Belton but added another wrinkle to the altercation. Doeren said Belton told him that Williams, the Clemson defensive lineman, spit on Belton first “and he spit back at him.”

“Our guys know when you retaliate, you’re the one that gets the flag,” Doeren said. “I don’t know if that happened or didn’t happen, and it really doesn’t matter if it did. We can’t respond that way.”

The incident came after Parker, a star Clemson defensive end who was lined up against Belton, came off the edge and sacked N.C. State quarterback CJ Bailey for a loss of 11 yards on third and 8 in Wolfpack territory.

According to a camera shot from the ABC broadcast, Parker and Belton started jawing with each other after that play and Belton lightly shoved Parker. Then, Williams, Parker’s Clemson’s teammate, got in Belton’s face.

Although it’s unclear if Williams spit on Belton, the ABC broadcast appeared to show Belton spitting toward Williams’ facemask area as he walked away.

Parker, who finished Saturday’s game with five tackles, two sacks and a forced fumble, said postgame that Belton was “already heated” in the first half and had been “trying to fight somebody” earlier.

Parker said Belton “was talking crazy, saying (stuff). All I needed for him was to swing on me. And he swung on me, and I let him hit me. ... And then from there, we knew what time it was. He had to leave.”

Parker added that N.C. State players had been “talking trash and expecting to win” early in the game between the ACC rivals, who play for the Textile Bowl trophy, and he relished a chance to beat the Wolfpack because of that chippiness.

“It’s all about playing in their head, you know?” Parker said. “You making plays and stuff like that, they don’t like that when they’re already hotheaded. So (Belton) did what he had to do, and it turned out bad for him.”

ESPN/ABC sideline reporter Molly McGrath said on the broadcast that she saw a Clemson defender step on N.C. State quarterback Bailey’s head with a cleat, which prompted Belton’s interaction. McGrath said she felt like the referees missed that part of the altercation while reviewing the incident.

A replay shows Parker made contact and slightly shoved Bailey, the quarterback, on his way up after recording the sack but did not directly step on Bailey’s helmet (though he did step near it, which could have looked like contact from a sideline vantage point).

Belton, a veteran player, was making his 25th consecutive start at left tackle for the Wolfpack before his ejection on the unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for spitting. He was able to remain on the N.C. State sideline.

“We have to respond as a mature adult,” Doeren said of the incident. “Walk away from the situation, tell the head coach that this happened, let me tell the ref and then get the guy later in the game for something.

“So Anthony’s disappointed in himself. Obviously, I was disappointed in him. He’ll learn a lot from that, but that’s not him. And that was a bad response on his part.”

After the penalty, Clemson scored on its final drive of the half to go up 45-7 at the break. The game was chippy in the first half but calmed down significantly in the second half as the Tigers played a number of second- and third-string players.

Parker said postgame that N.C. State players were “giving compliments” by the end of the game after talking trash to Clemson players earlier in the contest and scoffed at Belton’s penalty.

“That’s embarrassing for that offensive lineman,” Parker said.

Next Clemson game

Who: Stanford (2-1, 1-0 ACC) at No. 21 Clemson (2-1, 1-0 ACC)

When: 7 p.m. Sept. 28

Where: Memorial Stadium in Clemson

TV: ESPN