It's yet another sign of the extent to which Twitter has infiltrated the world's greatest sport.
On Monday, the Jets said that someone hacked receiver David Clowney's Twitter account. Today, the Texans have issued an announcement that a Twitter account supposedly belonging to linebacker Brian Cushing -- a leading candidate for defensive rookie of the year -- is a fake.
"It has come to the attention of the Houston Texans that an individual has posted tweets on the Twitter account 'BrianCushing56' posing as Texans rookie linebacker Brian Cushing," the statement reads. "That account is not affiliated with Brian or with anyone associated with the Houston Texans organization."
The fake Cushing account has 5,185 followers.
But here's the kicker. The supposedly fake Twitter account makes repeated reference to Cushing's official web site, BrianCushing56.com, which appears to truly be Cushing's web site.
Naturally, the official Cushing web site includes a Twitter feed.
And it's the same Twitter feed that supposedly is fake -- BrianCushing56.
So, basically, none of this makes any sense to us.
Texans say Cushing's Twitter account is a fake, but is it?
Posted by Mike Florio on November 24, 2009 8:33 PM ET
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41 Comments
Latest stories in: Houston Texans, Latest News and Rumors, NFL Mobile Exclusives - Rumors, Top Stories
Just more proof that the NFL and teams are wasting their time trying to control this. Let the players speak, last I checked this isn't Nazi Germany, this is America.
I hate Vince Young!
You've got to be kidding me Florio. This is such a giant leap. GIVE IT UP. YOU ARE PATHETIC.
Who. the. fukc. cares?
Twitter is for twits. and losers with nothing to do all day. Even the name is ridiculous. "Twitter"?!
You think Ray Nitschke would be caught dead "tweeting"?
I just don't get the mass appeal of twitter. Or American Idol, or People Magazine, or Oprah, for that matter.
I agree with you. The blog says it's "certified pro athlete" and then he says on there to follow him on twitter and voila you are back to the "fake" twitter account, hah! I think they're trying to distance him from his remarks about officiating in last night's game.
@ Notorious
The appeal is that people want to be famous so the lives of famous people interest them to a point of obsession. It is sad to be honest. All of the nations top newspapers are going under but things like US Weekly are thriving. America needs to look at its priorities.
I love how people bitch and moan about the media making stories out of something that really isnt or just whining about someones reporting/writing style.
These same people continue to go to the same website and pitch the same bitches, if it's so bad then why frequent the site???
It's the same thing here in Green Bay with the local newspaper (greenbaypressgazette.com) where the same people complain about the reporting day in and day out yet continue to read the articles.
stop making fun of the writers, they are smarter than u will ever be about sports and they are doing their job u f@aggot
Roids do crazy things to the brain.
weird, the link to the twitter account has somehow gone missing off of his page..
well mainly i dont think ray nitschke would be twattering/twatting/tweetering because he doesnt know how to use a computer. the guy is like 190 years old. this is the 21st century. this isnt ancient rome. computers are necessary for everyone that is in touch with the world. personally, i think its pretty funny. apparently you must have a pretty awesome job, cause all i do at my desk is look up what chad ochochinco posts on his twitter account. also some NBA player are pretty entertaining on there. im surprised some of them can spell 150 characters worth of tweets correctly. i really dont know what the big deal is here, florio does his job, then you guys who try to ride on his coat tails and say something funny try to trash his work. give brian cushing and florio a break.
but you probably are the type of person that understands the mass appeal of nascar arent you Notorious V.I.C? makes sense.....
Friedrich Nietzsche wouldn't be caught dead "tweeting" either, because he IS dead.
The twitter feed had a tweet criticizing the refs last game. Maybe they're just trying for some proactive deniability when the league comes down on him.
hmm coach Carroll seems to think its legit
Follow my twitter. It is #grownupsdon'tusetwitter
You'll read up-to-date information about my bowel movements and grocery store trips.
"So, basically, none of this makes any sense difference to us."
Fixed this for you.
This is the last time I tell my friends to visit this site. IT'S TWITTER. Better yet, IT'S CUSHING! Who f-in' cares?
I guess in Lord Florio's perfect lil world, he doesn't have a clue about hacking twitter or a web site......
hint, it ain't all that hard........
Slow news day or what?
Hey for all of us who refuse to get a twitter what did it actually say for the texans to release this statement?
Once again Florio, the true football genius shines through. Keep up the bad work!
Mike sheepishly posts:
So, basically, none of this makes any sense to us.
/
That's what we have been trying to tell you all along. Twitter is lame. Remember when you and Rich Eisen tweeted, and you had to tell us about it? That was ugly. Twitter is the dead horse in your driveway, Florio. Stop beating it.
Any NFL player that "tweets" should be disqualified from winning any kind of award. Nothing says I'm a self absorbed douche bag than twittering.
Was there a controversial "tweet" from this account that caused the Texans to issue this statement? Who really cares?
Very strange... maybe the Texans asked Brian if it was his account and he panicked. Or the Texans front office has no idea how the internet works.
The Notorious V.I.C. ,
Hating on Twitter is so last week. We get it, you're too cool for something so stupid. Yet here you are posting your opinions on a football blog. It's 2009, you ancient alpha-male. Ray Nitschke is dead. Keep his legacy alive by tossing the pigskin, grilling, and hauling goods in your Ford F-150. Nice username, though.
Do you think Brian Cushing has anything to do with his "official" website?
Terry Tate: Office Linebacker
Brian Cushing: Secret Webmaster
Odds are the company that was contracted to handle his website didn't do sufficient due diligence when it came to the twitter account.
I prefer "twatting" myself .
Whas he tweeting about his steroid use?
It's a hell of a lot more likely than Ray Nitschke being caught alive tweeting.
@ Rex Grossman
That is so Fn classic dude. Great post
RT@sevenwords "I prefer twatting myself."
# Choirdrunk says: November 24, 2009 10:38 PM
Do you think Brian Cushing has anything to do with his "official" website?
Terry Tate: Office Linebacker
Brian Cushing: Secret Webmaster
Odds are the company that was contracted to handle his website didn't do sufficient due diligence when it came to the twitter account.
____________________________
Excellent point. I looked a little closer myself and saw the site is done by
http://www.playerpress.com/
which seems to mean he allowed them to do it authorized his name.
However, it is his fault for not doing an approval and making sure everything is correct.
I've never twitterd (SP?). I didn't really know what it was until I read this thread. I'm still not totally sure. it sounds like something that 12 year old girls have supplanted note passing with. I thought this was pre football talk. Who gives a s**t about the players personal lives? I have my own life (wife, kids, mortgage, career etc...)to worry about. I care about the game. yeah I have my favorite players but only in as much as they are a part of the game. Real life may not be as glamorous as that of a pro football player, but you guy's should try to live in it.
guyfromahs says:
November 24, 2009 9:54 PM
This is the last time I tell my friends to visit this site. IT'S TWITTER. Better yet, IT'S CUSHING! Who f-in' cares?
--------
Florio and NBC just smiled hearing that you have been using word of mouth to spread this site. The most legit and trusting way for a site like this to gain cred. Thanks for doing the hard marketing work for them!
Twitter is here to stay. Part of our lives. Most of the time it's going to add some flavour to our lives. Sometimes it's going to get us in trouble and we're going to have to claim that somebody hacked our accounts.
Me and my girl were on Twitter for a short month. Did it just for us so we could keep in touch without the constant calls and emails.
Man that place is a haven for hackers and stalkers. And the people in charge don't offer any way to contact them for support. You're on your own. The safety of you and your loved ones means nothing to them.
Both of us used Twitter's blocking option so only she and I could see our posts. Problem was IT DOESN'T WORK! Just about every day some creep would appear as a "follower" of her or me.
The "follower" would post links to sites that would try to download viruses. Or they would post links to porn sites.
And who in the world with an ounce of common sense would provide the world with information about where you are and what you're doing 24/7? Some girl with a pretty pic posts that she's going out for a drink at a local bar and gives the name of it. What she doesn't know is one of her followers is stalking her and slips out to that bar.
Twitter is for teenage girls.
Good job with the story Florio, really. I am sick of everyone jumping on you about stories they think are bad. Personally I like hearing about how crazy some of these athletes are cause some of them have little sense of reality. This story isnt one of those cases, but many of them are.
Either way, I think the fact that these guys are too man or whatever to use twitter is a joke. These are probably the same guys that log onto their facebook account immediately after checking out what Florio has for us today. Half of these guys are overweight 30-40 something year-olds that still dont have a wife cause they would rather spend time on a website posting on a sports article rather than finding a significant other, starting a family, and spending time with their wife and kids. So way-to-go everyone who A) thinks they are too man for social media which this also is or B) trashes Florios work as if they could do better.
That was my first thought...Its on his website! I really like this player but it kinda makes me mad that he would lie to save his butt. If you read the tweets on the account it would make you believe it was him! I think he should man up and say he was wrong and take the fine that i am sure is coming. Everything he said was true the refs were terrible but those are the rules.