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Oklahoma RB Joe Mixon apologizes for punching woman in the face

By The Sports Xchange

Oklahoma Sooners running back Joe Mixon says "it's never, never OK to retaliate and hit a woman" in his first public comments since a surveillance video surfaced a week ago of him punching a female student in the face in 2014.

Mixon held a news conference in Norman, Okla., on Friday afternoon and profusely apologized for the assault that left student Amelia Molitor with four fractured bones in her face.

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"It's never, never OK to retaliate and hit a woman the way I did," said Mixon, who also issued a formal apology last month. "I'm here to apologize to everybody that was affected."

The video from a sandwich shop's surveillance system shows the 6-foot-1, 226-pound Mixon delivering the punch to Molitor's face. Mixon was suspended by Oklahoma for the 2014 season and was charged with a misdemeanor. He received a one-year probation as part of a plea deal, and also was required to perform 100 hours of community service and undergo counseling.

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Molitor, 22, has filed a lawsuit against Mixon. In her lawsuit, Molitor said she had a heated discussion with Mixon outside the store and that Mixon started a second round of arguments inside the cafe. She said she pushed Mixon away in an attempt to end the conversation and that is when Mixon punched her.

Mixon directed his apology to Molitor at Friday's news conference as well as Sooners coach Bob Stoops, university president David Boren, athletic director Joe Castiglione, his teammates and "most of all, my family."

"I'm just here to apologize to Ms. Molitor," Mixon said. "I let a lot of people down.

"Honestly, it really don't matter what she did that night. It's all on me. The reason why I'm in this position right now. I take full responsibility on what happened that night. It's never OK to hit a woman. Never. I will preach that to anybody. It's never OK, and hopefully people around the world can learn from my mistake and I'm willing to teach."

The video was released on Dec. 16 after the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters sued for access. That maneuver prompted the Oklahoma Supreme Court to rule that the city of Norman should release the video.

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Stoops, who saw the surveillance video with Boren and Castiglione shortly after the incident, has been criticized for allowing Mixon to rejoin the team after the suspension.

Stoops told reporters Wednesday that Mixon would have been dismissed from the team had he assaulted a woman in 2016 rather than in 2014.

"Now, 2 1/2 years later, dismissal's really the only thing that's possible," Stoops said. "Having the opportunity to rehabilitate and to have some kind of discipline and come back from it is really not there anymore. There's no recovering from these incidents anymore.

"I hated it just as much as anybody did. I wish the video had been released immediately. The world is a different place 2 1/2 years later, and that's a positive."

Mixon, a sophomore, has put together back-to-back solid seasons since being reinstated. He averaged 7.0 yards per carry while rushing for a team-leading 1,183 yards and eight touchdowns in 2016.

The Sooners conclude their campaign by facing Auburn in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 2.

Mixon is a third-year sophomore who is eligible for the 2017 NFL Draft, but he has not made a decision yet whether to leave school early.

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"If I could go back, I would do whatever I could to change the outcome of that situation. Definitely would have walked or ran away," Mixon said Friday.

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