Calgary Stampeders quarterback, Henry Burris says his team will turn things around despite their slow start and disappointing loss to Edmonton on Saturday. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntoshJeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press
The Calgary Stampeders vow to get to the bottom of a tweet that landed quarterback Henry Burris in hot water.
A message re-tweeted on Burris' Twitter account Tuesday contained content about oral sex.
The tweet was deleted and Burris later posted: "I got word some weird tweet was on my page! If anyone saw that, I don't know where that came from and I'd never tweet that! Apologies!"
Stampeders president Lyle Bauer and head coach John Hufnagel met with Burris about the tweet on Wednesday morning. While Bauer says Burris didn't have an explanation for how the message appeared on his account, Bauer was satisfied the player named the Canadian Football League's most outstanding player last season was not responsible for the crude post.
Bauer says the club will try to find out if Burris's Twitter account was hacked and if so, how.
"Henry denies making that tweet and we believe Henry," Bauer said. "Henry is a great ambassador for the football team, the community, as well as the CFL and we certainly owe him that consideration.
"We will be doing our own review of what was posted, how it was done etcetera and find out if we can get to the bottom of what and how. One thing I want to say is we take this very seriously."
It's not the first time Burris has been embarrassed on-line. Photos of him shirtless and wearing a bra while standing next to a woman also in a bra circulated last September. Burris said then wearing the bra was a birthday prank.
The 36-year-old is in his seventh season as Calgary's starting quarterback and led the club to a Grey Cup in 2008. Burris has almost 4,000 followers on Twitter.
A Stampeders spokesman said neither Hufnagel nor the players would comment on the latest controversy. When asked about the matter Wednesday during a scrum with reporters, Burris said he had more important matters on his mind and added he would not stop tweeting.
About 15 Stampeders have Twitter accounts, including Burris, running back Nik Lewis, linebacker Juwan Simpson and punter Burke Dales.
Bauer said instituting a ban on players participating in social media isn't the answer, despite the risk of someone impersonating team personnel.
"Everything has its good and not so good," Bauer said. "Social media is an unbelievable marketing tool. It's a great tool to communicate with our fans, to be in touch with supporters and it is the expectations of today.
"I don't think necessarily banning is the answer."
Bauer said when he left the Winnipeg Blue Bombers organization for Calgary in January 2010, two people created Facebook pages impersonating him, "and made some extremely derogatory remarks about others."
The Stampeders have a team policy on how they are to conduct themselves off the field and are informed of it when they arrive at training camp, Bauer added.
"The line we draw is we expect our players, our staff and anyone associated with the football team to handle themselves in a professional and respectful manner and not do anything that would embarrass the club or community," he said.
"They know the expectations we have as a club and a community. But trust me, John Hufnagel verses them well in what is expected and the consequences associated."