Fake UCLA Twitter account stirs up trouble between the Bruins and USC
UCLA's Randall Goforth has a Twitter impersonator and he's getting the safety and the team in all sorts of trouble with its crosstown rival USC.
The fake account, which popped up last month and quickly gained 3,500 followers, started sending rivalry-based tweets Monday evening to USC receivers Marqise Lee and Robert Woods much to the ire of both UCLA and USC.
Of course at this point, no one knew the account was fake and Goforth was in a whole heap of hot water.
"I was in tutoring and some of my teammates just told me like, 'Bro, you're all over Twitter ramming at USC,'" Goforth said. "And I was like, 'Me? Nah, no way.'"
The first tweet from Goforth's account was aimed at Woods: "@HeismanWoods We will beat you guys on November 17th. Believe the hype."
[Forde-Yard Dash: College football coaches on the hot seat]
This, as you can imagine, started quite the debate between fake Goforth, Woods and Lee, who came to the defense of his teammate. After several heated exchanges, fake Goforth ended on this note:
"USC SUCKS!! WE WILL GET IT IN NOVEMBER 17TH. ALL ABOUT ACTION NO NEED TO BRAG JUST BE TUNED IN ON THE 17TH!!!!"
UCLA players tried to diffuse the situation by sending out mass tweets that the Goforth account was fake and even coach Jim Mora took to Twitter to calm down both fan bases.
"FYI … @RandallG300 is a fake. The real Randall Goforth is preparing for Washington State," Mora wrote.
On Tuesday, Mora was still indignant that someone would impersonate one of his players to stir up trouble between L.A.'s major schools. Mora was even more indignant that he had to spend part of his day trying to make the situation right.
"It is absolutely, 100 percent not Randall, " Mora said. "I talked to [USC coach] Lane Kiffin, he's talked to his guys, I've talked to my guys, it's a total non-issue. Some knuckleheads out there trying to stir it up. It's been shut down. Randall was in tutoring session when this idiot was tweeting. It's ridiculous. Power of social media is amazing and when it's used in a negative way like that, it's sickening.
"I think it's a fricken joke that somebody would do that. I think you're the lowest form of lifeform if you would portray yourself as an 18-year-old young man who's out here trying to do his best, trying to stir it up like that, attributing comments to him that aren't his -- I think he ought to go to jail. That's how I feel. I think you're a scumbag."
[Also: Mack Brown says the 'horns down' gesture is disrespectful]
Mora also had choice words about what he'd do if he ever found out who the impersonator was.
"Bring his ass out here," Mora said. "We won't put him to work. He won't make it very far with this team.
"He's a coward. That's what cowards do. Cowards hide behind print … I challenge that guy to come on out here. Whoever it is. He won't though, he's a coward."
Hmmm, wasn't Pete Carroll really proficient at using Twitter?
Regardless of who decided to create the account, it probably did little to change the already intense nature of the game. But nice try.
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