Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence says White House fast-food meme is fake food news

No, Trevor Lawrence never said the following:

"President Trump got all our favorite foods, it was the best meal we ever had. Then we go see the coastal elite media trashing it for not being organic vegan. We're football players, not bloggers. This was a perfect blue collar party."

Instead, the Clemson freshman quarterback said of the White House celebration of the Tigers' College Football Playoff national championship (via TMZ Sports):

"It was awesome. We had McDonald's and everything. It was good!"

President Donald Trump greeted the Tigers on Monday night with a gourmet fast-food spread. He purchased McDonald's sandwiches, including Big Macs and Filet-O-Fish, and more options from Wendy's and Burger King, as well as pizzas from Domino's.

The president called the spread "great American food."

Players loaded white china plates with the meal, which was set on a table with gold candelabras and silver saucers filled with dipping condiments. A breakdown by the Washington Post estimated Trump spent $2,911.44 on the meal, half of it at McDonald’s.

And, at least for the Tigers, the entrées went down with rave reviews. Lawrence lauded the fare to Clemson fans standing outside the White House. Offensive lineman Matt Bockhorst, now an internet meme, lovingly stacked boxes of Big Macs on his plate.

“They loved it. They lined up,” South Carolina State Rep. Bruce Bannister told the State newspaper.

"They all grabbed several [burgers] off the table," Bannister said of the players. "They all recognized this was a chow line and they were lining up, filling it up."

But Tuesday afternoon, the fake quote attributed to Lawrence spread on social media. Pasted below a photo of Lawrence celebrating Clemson's national championship victory over Alabama, with the headline of "Clemson QB speaks out to defend America," it circulated mostly in far-right circles on Twitter.

Lawrence refuted the image in a tweet, saying he never made those remarks and the trip to the White House was "awesome."

Lawrence was one of the biggest stars of the Tigers' national championship run, throwing for 741 yards and six touchdowns in Clemson's two playoff wins.

"My man is a true freshman, he's got at least two more years to do work," former Tigers quarterback and current Houston Texans starter Deshaun Watson told ESPN. "He's going to be a legend. He already is. People know that now."

The 6-foot-6 Lawrence long seemed destined for stardom, and was one of the top-ranked quarterbacks coming out of high school in Georgia. ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit called him "a once-in-a-generation type of guy," and longtime Cowboys executive Gil Brandt described him as "the best true freshman QB I've ever seen."

Lawrence is still years away from the NFL, since league rules require players to be three years removed from high school in order to turn pro. But he’s already got a “fake news” controversy under his belt.