Have You Seen This? Coach Prime duped by fake Cam Rising news, thanks to trolls

THE WILD TWITTER WEST — Trolls have always been a part of social media, but rarely do they breach the upper echelon of public figures.

Colorado head coach Deion "Coach Prime" Sanders posted about Utah quarterback Cam Rising Thursday on X in a fashion that took many by surprise.

"Praying for @Utah_Football Cam Rising. 🙏🏾 God bless u, your family & team. You're a awesome resilient young man. #CoachPrime," the NFL star turned celebrity college coach posted, seemingly out of nowhere after it was reported Rising's injury was not considered long-term.

Social media sleuths quickly connected the dots to a parody account that had posted false breaking news about Rising contracting tetanus from a cut on his hand.

Several Salt Lake City area sports media figures retweeted both the original troll post and the Sanders post, creating a snowball of misinformation surrounding the oft-injured Utah quarterback.

Sanders clarified the post about an hour later, saying, "I was really bothered by thinking this kid was hurt again. God bless the trolls. They're pretty good at what they do. Still God bless this young man & I do think he's awesome for what's he's endured. 🙏🏾"

The latest reporting has Rising "unlikely" to play at Utah State on Saturday — with Isaac Wilson instead getting the start — but he is expected to return next week against Oklahoma State.

Fans should instead turn their attention away from troll accounts and toward the wonderful content posted by Utah football's social media account Thursday featuring Aussie punter Jack Bouwmeester revealing the team's uniform combo against the Aggies.

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