St. Louis Rams first-round draft pick Tavon Austin spoke to high school athletes at Nike’s “The Opening” on Monday, which is a football camp for the elite young players in the nation. Austin may only be 22 years old, but the former West Virginia star has already gained some valuable experience during his first NFL offseason.
Austin spoke to kids about building their personal brands, and in doing so he got to discussing the dangers of Twitter. Back in April, we called your attention to the fact that Austin began following what appeared to be a couple of strippers on Twitter. Did LBS help blow up his spot?
“Three strippers followed me, I followed them back,” Austin told the high schoolers, according to Taylor Holliday. “Next thing I know I’m in the GM’s office. Now I’m off Twitter.”
It looks like Austin is still active on Twitter, so I’m not sure what he means by that.
Twitter can be great for players and fans if used properly, but Austin has already learned a valuable lesson about what not to do if you’re looking for attention through social media. As this NFL cornerback could tell you, nothing good ever comes from professional athletes associating with strippers and strip clubs.
Back in May, Austin talked about how his phone doesn’t stop ringing with friends and family trying to hit him up for money. Peter King of Sports Illustrated also pointed out that some teams were afraid of drafting the wide receiver because of his past acquaintances.
Rams general manager Les Snead was likely just trying to stay ahead of the curve with Austin. Based on what we know, that’s probably a solid idea.
