Ohio State Player Threatened After Upset Loss In NCAA Tournament

COLUMBUS, OH — Threatening messages student-athletes receive are in the spotlight after Ohio State University basketball player E.J. Liddell shared a screenshot of a few comments made to him after the No. 2 seed Buckeyes' upset loss to No. 15 Oral Roberts University in the first round on the NCAA Tournament on Friday.

Ohio State officials have reached out to police about the threatening and insulting social media messages Liddell, a sophomore, received following the team's loss, The Associated Press reported Saturday.

The threatening messages Liddell received included racial slurs and direct threats to his life.

"Don't ever show your face at Ohio State," one of the tamest comments read. "We hate you."

Liddell's tweet sharing two separate message threads that included the statements had been retweeted more than 22,000 times as of Saturday afternoon.

"Honestly, what did I do to deserve this? I'm human," he wrote when sharing the messages.

"Comments don’t get to me but I just wanna know why. I’ve never done anything to anyone in my life to be approached like this."

Ohio State Athletic Director Gene Smith called the attacks "appalling" in a social media statement of his own.

"Hate and derision have no place in Buckeye Nation or in civil society," Smith wrote on Twitter. "If you cross the line and threaten our players, you will be hearing from the authorities."

Liddell said sharing the messages wasn't meant as an attack on Buckeye fans, though.

"I love you all dearly, and I’ve felt nothing but appreciated since the first day I stepped on campus."