You’ve probably heard about the #FitzMagic phenomenon by now, but are you following Major Ryan Fitzpatrick’s dispatches from the front lines of the NFL circa 1862?
Months before the Tampa Bay Buccaneers backup-turned-temporary (but also maybe not temporary) starting quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick led his team to a 2-0 start, throwing for eight touchdowns and running for a ninth, some kind of crystal-ball Twitter sage created @MajorRyanFitz.
Capitalizing on Fitzpatrick’s 19th century-ish beard, the account turns the QB into a Civil War-era military officer who is fond of writing letters to his “dearest Liza.”
The account’s first tweet came all the way back on July 31, when Major Ryan Fitzpatrick announced the news that head coach Dirk Koetter would be naming him starter for week one against the Saints while Jameis Winston served out his suspension thusly:
"My Dearest Liza, I received favorable news from General Koetter last week. I have been promoted to lead the men in a battle to New Orleans. We have begun preparations. We have training skirmishes planned through the month. I will write more soon.
“Lovingly Yours, Ryan”
Now the 35-year-old Fitzpatrick’s unexpected success and postgame locker room jokes have made him one of the biggest stories in the NFL, and Major Ryan Fitzpatrick is quickly picking up followers, totaling more than 3,700 of them by this morning.
Whoever created this account had a good gimmick to begin with, but now they’ve got Twitter gold. (Okay, fine, so they ripped off the Captain Andrew Luck parody account, but you tell us, who has a more Civil War-esque beard?).
Here’s Major Fitzpatrick’s reaction to beating Philadelphia on Sunday.
And the Bucs' win a week earlier against the Saints.
And a few more good ones going back to preseason.