When Griffining spread online after Robert Griffin III’s first NFL touchdown, the trend had particular resonance at Baylor. Griffin had won the 2011 Heisman Trophy there, and students were following his early NFL career closely.
A student newspaper from September 12, 2012
An especially valuable primary source survives in the Baylor Lariat’s September 12, 2012 print issue (PDF). Page 3 contains a sports column by Krista Pirtle, under the heading “Griffining takes over week one.” It was published only three days after Washington defeated New Orleans.
The column reviews Griffin’s rookie debut from a Baylor perspective and treats Griffining as an already-recognizable term. It connects his NFL success to his college accomplishments and the excitement of his supporters in Waco.
The campus photo shared by the first Griffining account
The NFL’s September 11 account separately embeds a social post showing a Griffining recreation on Baylor’s campus. That 2012 social image and the Lariat article are distinct pieces of contemporary evidence. Neither establishes that the exact photo appeared on Griffining.com.
Why the original site had a Baylor category
The original Griffining.com included a dedicated Baylor photo category. The university was part of Griffin’s story, and its student newspaper and campus participation place Baylor in the earliest history of the meme. The restored category remains ready for original, properly attributed photo submissions as they are recovered.
Primary sources
The Baylor Lariat, September 12, 2012, page 3 (PDF); NFL.com, September 11, 2012; CBS Sports, September 10, 2012.