He had a record-setting rookie year in the NFL but he's not quite Elvis Presley yet.
The King still owns the most-forged signature among celebrities and historical figures, but Ezekiel Elliott has quickly become a favorite of merchandise hucksters. It's been two years since Ohio State instructed its athletes to personalize their autographs to guard against sharks out to make money off them, but some of those sharks don't appear to have gotten the memo:
if it doesn't read:
— Momma, Mom & Mommy (@itz_mizdee) February 28, 2015
TO >INSERT NAME HERE<
GO BUCKS!
Ezekiel
E.
Elliott #15
it is NOT his signature! her personalizes ALL autographs!
So, pretty much like this:
Not like this:
hey @StacyB42... is this JT's signature on this pic, because I know that's not Ezekiel's. smh https://t.co/puyRuc3kaP
— Momma, Mom & Mommy (@itz_mizdee) February 15, 2017
Fake Zeke autographs have become so pervasive people are asking his mom to validate their authenticity. Sometimes they get bad news.
@JustBDailey2004 @EzekielElliott unfortunately, that is NOT his signature. he personalizes everything he signs also.
— Momma, Mom & Mommy (@itz_mizdee) April 15, 2015
REALLY close, but that's not his signature. you ALMOST got it to look like his signature! https://t.co/TEuiSNOiI8
— Momma, Mom & Mommy (@itz_mizdee) May 18, 2015
I promise you that's NOT his signature, but sell away all the phonies. https://t.co/tNArci7Wv9
— Momma, Mom & Mommy (@itz_mizdee) October 2, 2015
But sometimes, it's good!
that's his autograph https://t.co/g4MBpQtivN
— Momma, Mom & Mommy (@itz_mizdee) February 11, 2017
now THIS is Ezekiel's signature!!! pic.twitter.com/RTvNP1c9LJ
— Momma, Mom & Mommy (@itz_mizdee) February 4, 2017
Zeke dropped Ohio State's personalization mandate when he entered the NFL for some of his items, so there are some Dallas Cowboys - and a few Ohio State items - that are authentic but not personalized. Sometimes what he's asked to sign doesn't offer him enough real estate to do it anyway.
"He just had to write REALLY skinny on that one," Dawn Elliott told Eleven Warriors about one particular item we ran by her for this story (that we were convinced wasn't authentic. It was). "Buyers need to make sure there's a letter - or a certificate - of authenticity," Elliott said. "Otherwise, they're taking a chance of buying a fake."
Sage advice. It makes the purveyors much easier to spot:
every Ezekiel Elliott autograph i've seen on https://t.co/0TpET10PjY is NOT his autograph. https://t.co/lvxu2ArzIb
— Momma, Mom & Mommy (@itz_mizdee) February 12, 2017
So to recap, this play really happened:
But this autograph on a still-frame from the middle of that play did not:
And neither did this one, according to Ezekiel Elliott handwriting expert Ezekiel Elliott.
Nahhhhh https://t.co/JULBf1OPAx
— Ezekiel Elliott (@EzekielElliott) February 10, 2017
On a lighter note, Eleven Warriors can independently confirm with absolute certainty that this fan's Zeke autograph is 100% genuine:
Lucky fan! #ProBowl pic.twitter.com/8f2i5pCUq4
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) January 29, 2017
Buyer beware. Before you pay money for a Zeke autograph, make sure it's actually Zeke's autograph.
