Start of Cal Game Delayed by Protesters

About a dozen people sat at midfield just before kickoff in a strike reportedly to reinstate a professor

The start of Cal's home game against USC was delayed for several minutes because of a protest on the middle of the field.

Shortly after the coin toss, about a dozen people, presumably students, ran onto the field and sat down on the Cal logo at midfield.  They remained seated there as security guards and police surrounded them without making any moves.

The protesters remained seated for about 12 minutes until they were led off in handcuffs.

According to KTVU Fox2 TV network, the protesters were yelling, "Justice for Ivonne." The students reportedly were striking to reinstate professor Ivonne del Valle, who was suspended for stalking.

The San Francisco Chronicle reported these details:

Students had been planning to disrupt the game to protest the suspension of Professor Ivonne del Valle, KQED reported. Records obtained by KQED revealed del Valle had been suspended after three investigations found she harassed and stalked a UC Davis professor.

In an interview with KQED, del Valle admitted to some of the actions outlined in the investigation — including keying the professor’s car and leaving messages outside his mother’s home — but maintained she was trying to get help after, she said, the professor hacked her electronic devices. A 2019 investigation found no evidence of hacking by the professor, KQED reported.

In August and September, UC Berkeley students, alumni and staff staged protests on campus to support del Valle, the Daily Californian reported. Del Valle had been an associate professor in the Spanish and Portuguese department since 2009, according to her biography on the university website.

The University police department provided this report about the situation:

At 1:06 p.m. today, 15 individuals rushed the football field (including several wearing “Justice for Ivonne” T-Shirts) and staged a sit-in. UCPD admonished them and when they refused to leave they were arrested for PC 602(o): Trespassing. They were on the field for about 10 minutes total and delayed the game.

14 adult subjects were transported to Alameda County Jail for booking. And 1 juvenile was transported to UCPD for processing.

Affiliation: 13 of the 15 are UC Berkeley students.

The game then started without further problems.

The USC vs Cal game is delayed due to a protest at the 50-yard line pic.twitter.com/2XQ8IQlVXB

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) October 28, 2023