Mississippi State University Student Arrested, Withdraws From School After Antisemitic Rant at Dave Portnoy
by Shiryn Ghermezian
Barstool Sports founder and online pizza reviewer Dave Portnoy outside a Starkville, Mississippi pizza shop on Nov. 7, 2025. Photo: Screenshot
A Mississippi State University student was arrested on Monday and charged by police for shouting an antisemitic slur at Barstool Sports founder and online pizza reviewer Dave Portnoy during one of his reviews outside a restaurant in Starkville, Mississippi, officials said.
Patrick McClintock, 20, was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of disturbing the peace after being caught on video yelling “F–k the Jews” at Portnoy, who is Jewish, and then throwing coins at him outside a pizza shop on Nov. 7, according to the Starkville Police Department. The department launched an investigation following the incident last week and issued a warrant over the weekend. McClintock was processed and later released.
“Every person has the right to feel safe and respected in our community,” said the police department. “Offensive speech may be protected, but actions that risk harm are not. When actions cross the line from expression to disruption or that threatens peace and safety, we will respond to safeguard those who live, work, and visit our community.”
Mississippi State University told Fox News that McClintock voluntarily withdrew from the university on Monday afternoon. He was a junior studying mechanical engineering, according to the school’s student newspaper The Reflector.
Portnoy was filming one of his “One Bite” pizza reviews outside Boardtown Pizza & Pints when McClintock shouted in the background, “Hey, f–k the Jews, f–k you, Dave” and threw coins at him.
Portnoy replied, “Why don’t you come in the camera, buddy?”
McClintock then approached Portnoy, and during their brief confrontation, McClintock shouted, “Get the f–k out of Starkville.” Witnesses then asked Portnoy what had happened.
“He said ‘F–k the Jews’ and threw s–t at me,” Portnoy replied.
On Monday, Portnoy posted online the video of his pizza review outside Boardtown Pizza & Pints and it included footage of the antisemitic encounter with McClintock. Portnoy also shared McClintock’s mugshot, calling him an “antisemitic piece of s–t” and a “f–king loser.” He added that the incident “did not ruin” his trip to Starkville and thanked locals for their support.
“I’ll never judge one asshole for the entire city,” Portnoy said. “Everyone was super nice and actually bending over backwards during the course of the weekend, being like, ‘We’re so sorry, that’s so mortifying. We wish that didn’t happen.’ And I don’t want simply your apologies. I want outrage and I had it, and that makes me feel good that people were like, ‘This is crazy.’ Thank you for everyone in Starkville who rose up and got [my] back. I do appreciate it.”
A few days before posting his pizza review of Boardtown Pizza & Pints, Portnoy shared on Instagram a review of the Mississippi State University bookstore and gave it a rating of 9.3 out of 10.
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Portnoy addressed the global rise in antisemitic incidents in an interview with “CBS Sunday Morning” that will air over the weekend. In a teaser for the interview, Portnoy talked about his personal experience with antisemitism.
“I’ve seen in my own experience, just being Barstool, the difference between how much hate I get,” Portnoy said. “I mean, occasionally you get a k—k or Jew or whatever. It’s every day now. Like there’s a definitive shift in what’s going on. So yes, now, for me, being a Jewish person, you’ve got to step up. You’re kind of someone people look up to in the Jewish community. You have to be like, ‘Alright, this is not normal.’ People are coming in with real hate.”
Portnoy also revealed that he now has round-the-clock security at his house because of the antisemitic hatred that he has faced.
