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Mary Kate Cornett, an 18-year-old freshman at the University of Mississippi, has called out Pat McAfee and ESPN for allegedly spreading a false rumor against her.
The rumor claimed that she had an affair with her boyfriend's father. It reportedly stemmed from an anonymous social media platform, YikYak, which then went viral across X (formerly Twitter).
It was discussed on The Pat McAfee Show on February 26, 2025, according to a report in The Athletic. When show host Pat McAfee, a former NFL punter and sports commentator, asked his guest Adam Schefter, ESPN’s NFL insider, “Have you heard about Ole Miss?”
“Some Ole Miss frat bro, k? Had a K-D (Kappa Delta) girlfriend,”
McAfee then adds, "allegedly,” and continues,
“At this exact moment, this is what is being reported by … everybody on the internet: Dad had s*x with son’s girlfriend.”
He never stated her name explicitly; however, she was right at the center of this rumor. Multiple reports indicate that Mary Kate Cornett has decided to sue the ESPN star for amplifying a false rumor about her. How has she responded?
What did Mary Kate Cornett say in her response to Pat McAfee?
Mary Kate Cornett, who is reportedly a student at the University of Mississippi, has threatened Pat McAfee to take legal action against him for allegedly spreading false rumors against her.
According to a report in The Athletic, Cornett said:
“I would like people to be held accountable for what they’ve done. You’re ruining my life by talking about it on your show for nothing but attention, but here I am staying up until 5 in the morning, every night, throwing up, not eating because I’m so anxious about what’s going to happen for the rest of my life.”
Talking about how this situation affects her, she said,
“They don’t think it matters, because they don’t know who I am and they think that I deserve it. But I don’t.”
Monica Uddin, her Houston-based attorney, stated that in addition to McAfee and ESPN, her team is considering legal action against individuals who profited from the scandal, including those who launched a memecoin using Cornett's name. According to The Athletic, she said:
“This is just a Wild West version of a very familiar problem. It’s just that it’s even worse because it’s not a company. It’s an 18-year-old girl. They elevated a lie from the worst corners of (X) to millions of general sports fans just to get a few more clicks and ultimately a few more dollars. While they don’t have to deal with it after it airs, the lie is chained to Mary Kate for the rest of her life.”
Cornett also launched a GoFundMe campaign, titled Stand with Mary Kate Against Defamatory Cyber Attacks, to support victims of similar defamatory cyberattacks that have been organized by her father, Justin Cornett.
In her statement, she described herself as the victim of a deliberate and coordinated cyberattack involving fake AI-generated videos, manipulated photos, and edited screenshots, which were amplified by irresponsible social media influencers and fake accounts. It also reads,
Trending
“100% of the Proceeds from this fundraiser will be used to provide seed capital establishing a foundation focused on helping innocent victims of similar defamatory cyber-attacks.”
She mentioned that she has been pursuing legal action against those responsible for defaming her on social media.
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