October 2, 2023
Meet Kennedy McDowell – Colorado State's Out and Proud Football Star
READ TIME: 4 MIN.
Kennedy McDowell is finding a place at Colorado State as a defensive end who is out and proud.
When Kennedy McDowell went to check out Colorado State as a school to attend, "he played a character on his first campus visits," reported the sports website The Athletic. The reason? He wasn't sure how "certain how college coaches would accept the idea of an openly gay player."
He told The Athletic: "Some colleges really didn't want a gay football player. And I understand that. ... It's a tough sport. Everybody has to be quote-unquote tough. But I was like, I want to be who I am, and I want to inspire other people to be who they are, too."
Colorado State turned out to be the right fit. Today McDowell is a defensive end for the team – and out amongst his teammates.
But the interview with The Athletic was the first national exposure for McDowell and "was a bit nerve-wracking for the athlete, as he didn't know what to expect from a football fanbase that extended past his local high school Frisco, Texas, community that knew he was gay," reports OutSports.
He need not to have worried. "What he's found from teammates and coaches before the article, as well as fans since, has been almost nothing but love and support," writes OutSports.
"McDowell hails from Frisco, Texas, and he enrolled at Colorado State University early to be able to participate in the spring 2023 practices," reports Instinct. "According to The Athletic, he has been out since eighth grade, and he even has a Pride flag draped around his shoulders in some of his official team photos."
But being out in the testosterone-driven sport has not been without issues. "McDowell isn't a stranger to opponents trying to somehow take advantage of his sexual orientation, offering not-so-subtle slurs and comments before the snap," adds OutSports.
"I've been called a faggot more times than I could count, in every high school football game I played. In college? There's not even time to talk shit. I'm out there huffing and puffing."
But he's come up with an easy solution that gets into his abusers' heads. "All I have to do is flirt with the guy in front of me and make him uncomfortable and that's that," he said. "'Hey you're cute, can I get your number after the game?'," reports Outsports. McDowell said that his response to slurs in high school made anyone spewing homophobic comments shut up.
He added that he "definitely didn't expect so much love out of that article" (The Athletic, where he was profiled with a half-dozen of his teammates). "I'm really grateful for that. I just want to inspire athletes around the country. My goal is to be an inspiration."
He does, though, acknowledge he's a slightly undersized freshman and needs to gain 10 – 20 pounds. As for his goals, he says: "Everybody at the college level is playing there for a reason," McDowell said, hinting at NFL aspirations. "We're all good football players. And I feel like there's a mutual respect."
