A fake message board post had Clemson Tigers fans worried they’d be without their star quarterback just days before the start of the season. Even worse, the false rumor within the post spread so wide that quarterback Cade Klubnik’s own mother called her son in tears.
It all started via a message board post on the popular Clemson website Tigernet.com. The post claimed that Klubnik had been injured in a car accident and could not move his arm or shoulder, according to a report by Chris Hummer in CBS Sports. But it was all a ruse. Social media platforms have failed in recent years to slow down these kinds of fake posts from going viral, and apparently now the same problem extends to college football message boards.
On Wednesday, Klubnik addressed the twisted prank during a press conference.
Here was Cade Klubnik’s response to the message board post that claimed he’d been in a car accident (falsely).
He’s mostly laughing it off. But he wasn’t laughing at how the post worried his mom, who called to make sure he was OK.
Not cool, obviously. Weird world we live in. pic.twitter.com/Mkl1sePRaL
— Jon Blau (@Jon_Blau) August 27, 2025
“I don’t know who it was but, man, just shame on them for the pain that they had to put people that I love through. …It was just a messed up joke and, whatever, but, I’m okay,” the Tigers’ quarterback said.
The rumor gained steam after the popular social media account Message Board Genuises circulated a screenshot of the post on its account, which boasts over 100,000 followers on X.
🚨BREAKING 🚨
Sources with knowledge tell MBG that #Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik has been injured in a car accident. More to come… pic.twitter.com/hQTMFWMgqY— Message Board Geniuses (@BoardGeniuses) August 25, 2025
“My heart has not stopped racing since someone shared the story with me,” Cade’s mom Kim Klubnik told CBS Sports after identifying the hoax. “How can someone be so cruel?”
The entire incident is an important lesson in media literacy. Message boards aren’t typically known for the accuracy of their information. Nor are parody accounts on X. It is always best to wait for a legitimate report before jumping to conclusions.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.