Trevor Lawrence denies 'quote' about White House visit; Clemson says it was made up

Tom Gatto

Trevor Lawrence denies 'quote' about White House visit; Clemson says it was made up image

Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence on Tuesday said he never made a comment that was attributed to him on the internet after his visit Monday to the White House. A university official called the quote, which was critical of "coastal elite media" and gained widespread exposure on Twitter, "fabricated."

Lawrence and the rest of the Tigers met with President Donald Trump on Monday and feasted on a buffet of fast food, which Trump said was a product of the ongoing partial government shutdown in Washington. The supposed quote — which contained Lawrence's Instagram handle — popped up online afterward and went viral:

Lawrence's denial was categorical.

Ross Taylor, assistant athletic director for Clemson football communications, told The Associated Press that Lawrence was shown the post on Tuesday. "Everything that is presented in that meme is fabricated," Taylor was quoted by the AP as saying.

BENDER: Lawrence's brilliance vs. Alabama only beginning of his Clemson legacy 

The original post has been deleted. The poster said he ran with the meme after getting it from another person.

Lawrence did comment on the spread as he was leaving the event, but he said none of what was in the meme.

"It was awesome. We had McDonald's and everything. It was good," he said in a video posted on TMZ.com.

He made another comment Tuesday — emojis, actually — as he replied to a tweet by rapper Quavo, who took a dim few of what Trump served his guests:

Lawrence also said in the TMZ video that he hopes to return to the White House multiple times as a national champion. Bet on the menus for those visits receiving scrutiny.

Tom Gatto

Tom Gatto Photo

Tom Gatto joined The Sporting News as a senior editor in 2000 after 12 years at The Herald-News in Passaic, N.J., where he served in a variety of roles including sports editor, and a brief spell at APBNews.com in New York, where he worked as a syndication editor. He is a 1986 graduate of the University of South Carolina.