Garth Brooks was slammed on social media after a photo of the country music star wearing a Barry Sanders football jersey was seen by some as an endorsement of Sen. Bernard Sanders.
The “Friends in Low Places” singer donned the jersey during a recent gig in Detroit, where the Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee spent 10 seasons as a running back for the Lions.
Mr. Brooks shared an image on Instagram afterward that showed him sporting the Sanders jersey, replete with the large number “20” that the athlete wore throughout his Lions career.
Many country fans outside the Motor City missed the reference, however, evidenced by an onslaught of negative comments posted on the musician’s Instagram account afterward.
Both “Garth Brooks” and “Barry Sanders” subsequently trended on Twitter early Friday as the singer’s poorly received Instagram post went viral.
Comments made by a number of Instagram users seemed to suggest they mistook the jersey as the singer showing his support for the senator’s 2020 Democratic presidential bid.
“Love you, hate the shirt. Trump2020,” wrote one Instagram user.
“I had no idea you were a big freaking liberal socialist,” wrote another. “I’ve listened to your songs for the last time!”
Other comments highlighted by The Detroit Free Press included Instagram users panning the singer for being “out of touch” and a “loser,” the newspaper reported.
“While just about everybody in Michigan knows what the ’Sanders 20’ jersey represents, not everyone outside the state knows about or remembers Sanders’ greatness on the football field,” the newspaper noted.
Mr. Sanders, a Vermont independent and self-described democratic socialist, is currently the front-runner to run against President Trump in November, according to recent polling.
Barry Sanders retired following his 1998 season with the Lions.
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.