USATSI
Every league is a copycat league these days, and that includes social media marketing. When three-star wide receiver recruit Ernest Campbell tweeted out a graphic touting Auburn’s proximity to Buc-ee’s, he had no idea what he was starting.
As part of their recruiting pitch to Campbell, Auburn wanted the young wideout to know that he would not be far from Buc-ee’s, a popular gas and convenience store chain throughout SEC country. Campbell grew up in Texas, where there are numerous Buc-ee’s locations, but Auburn is the only SEC town that the beaver calls home.
Campbell tweeted out the recruiting graphic that the Tigers sent him, and a number of other teams followed suit.
One of the first to jump on the trend was Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin, who noted that Oxford is the only SEC school with a nearby Chevron that sells chicken on a stick.
After that, it was a free-for-all. USF head coach Alex Golesh boasted about the on-campus Publix, Memphis bragged about the Bass Pro Shops pyramid, and South Carolina wanted recruits to know that they could get postgame meals at Waffle House and Bojangle’s. Even the MLB’s Seattle Mariners got in on the act.
USF Bulls
Memphis Tigers
South Carolina Gamecocks
Ohio Bobcats
Seattle Mariners
There have been many copycats, and there will likely be more. However, Auburn deserves credit for being first to the punch.
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