A video of 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel denying an autograph to a camper at his football camp in Spartanburg, South Carolina went viral Friday. On Saturday the story took a turn for the better as the 49ers wide receiver cleared the air on what happened with the young autograph-seeker.
Samuel took to Twitter to explain that his camp had over 400 kids in attendance which didn’t permit him to autograph personal items. The child in the video, Jeremy Lowe, was hoping for Samuel to sign a football with a 49ers logo. It turns out part of the camp was every attendee getting a picture with Samuel along with an autographed photo.
FlexWork Sports is proud of Deebo Samuel’s impact in youth sports. Deebo said “To provide structure, education & motivation to youth in my home state of SC is a daily reminder dreams do come true.” He was humbled to interact w/ Jeremy Lowe, sign a photo & take a picture w/ him. pic.twitter.com/IOtdUm20nI
— FlexWork Sports Mgt. (@FlexWorkSports) July 2, 2022
“Hosting a camp in my hometown this past week was a real blessing and the support was truly special,” Samuel wrote on Twitter. “Thank you to the campers, parents, coaches, support staff, Spartanburg HS and the city of Spartanburg. I am grateful for every single one of my fans. Unfortunately with over 400 campers I wasn’t able to autograph personal items, but every camper went home with a signed photo. Wishing everybody a happy and healthy 4th of July Weekend!”
Samuel, according to a football coach in Spartanburg named Mark Hodge, re-signed some of the photos and then invited players back the following day to get a round of free training in.
The 10 min unscheduled camp break was so he could RE-SIGN 150+ pics – due to a bad marker – ensuring the kids got their autographs. Unfortunately, as you all have done, sometimes you have to say no. The next day @19problemz invited our players to train for free. He loves kids… https://t.co/urU8CFCy8A pic.twitter.com/E7pJ377p5g
— Coach Mark Hodge (@REFINEDFB) July 2, 2022
The original video has been deleted, and this once sad story came to a much happier close.
