JuJu Smith-Schuster touched a nerve by dancing on opponents’ logos.
His mother ended up paying a price on social media.
The Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver did the ritual part of his pre-game warm-ups, dancing and tipping balls at the 50-yard line while someone recorded the routine and set it to music for his TikTok fans.
Unsurprisingly, the opponents took offense.
Opponents strike back JuJu
The Dallas Cowboys foiled his efforts to recreate the routine in the game after scoring a touchdown in November. Cincinnati Bengal’s safety Vonn Bell promised before a matchup in Week 15 that Smith-Schuster would be paid a physical tribute – and prevailed.
Meanwhile, Smith-Schuster painted the apparent act of disrespect simply as an expression of being himself and sharing a moment with his social media followers.
JuJu Smith-Schuster’s dance angered opponents and triggered death threats against his mother. (Shelley Lipton / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Social media went to JuJu’s mother
When his dance coincided with a three-game loss for the Steelers, the routine and associated drama closed down on the internet – in the worst possible way.
Smith-Schuster’s mother, Sammy Toa-Schuster, posted on Instagram on Sunday that she had received death threats. She didn’t specifically state that they were prompted by Juju’s dance routine, but it’s not difficult to connect the dots from her post.
She posted the Instagram story on Sunday after Smith-Schuster scored a touchdown in Pittsburgh’s win over the Indianapolis Colts.
“After weeks of so many death threats hate speech … I can’t help but cry when my baby scored his TD,” Toa-Schuster wrote. “They love him when we win, but hate him when we lose.”
She wrote “#Corvette #Corvette,” a defiant nod to the song that inspired Smith-Schuster’s dance route.
Instagram
Dance routine is ready
After the ritual inspired Bell’s monstrous hit that brought Pittsburgh’s defeat to Cincinnati to a halt, head coach Mike Tomlin promised to speak to his star recipient. Smith-Schuster has since vowed to cut the routine.
Now we know that the backlash to his dance extended beyond the soccer field and to his family.
The story goes on
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