Vandy whistler Jeff Pack, facing son's ALS diagnosis, deals with hoax reports of his own death

ARLINGTON, Texas — Jeff Pack started getting texts while he was in a meeting.

"Call me when you can."

"Are you OK?"

A tweet was going around from a parody Twitter account that claimed Pack, one of two "Vandy whistlers," had died. The tweet was completely false.

Pack, along with Preacher Franklin, attend Vanderbilt baseball games and whistle while other fans clap along. But just before the Commodores began play at the College Baseball Showdown, the tweet was posted. While the account associated with the tweet has made several false reports in the past, many in the college baseball community took the news for true.

Pack usually ignores what people say about him on Twitter. But many of those around him were taken in by the tweet and reached out to make sure he was fine. Pack's nephew, an SEC umpire, had gotten calls from people expressing their condolences.

On some level, Pack is used to getting hate from other fanbases. False statements that he had died − and celebrations from some opposing fans on social media − was a new level. To make matters worse, Pack's son, also named Jeff, was recently diagnosed with ALS. It was a devastating diagnosis for the whole family, as the younger Pack is just 43 with seven children.

"For that to come out, with Jeff Pack has died, that was that's rubbing salt in a wound," Pack said. "Because some people might not have known which Jeff Pack."

"That's been devastating to our family," Pack continued. "And, you know, it's hard to understand. He's 43 years old with seven children. So it's really, really been tough. So ... I'd never look at any of this stuff. Because I've been saying it for years. I never looked at this stuff very much, but I've got five kids myself."

Shortly before the death hoax, Pack found out that Vanderbilt would be raising money for ALS research in its games against Belmont and Lipscomb at First Horizon Park in March. Though coincidental to the Packs' situation, it was still meaningful. He was looking forward to the team's banquet and the start of the season. But after the false report, he had friends, family and people within the program concerned for his safety.

"What other people think is not in my business so to speak," Pack said. " ... But my family still sees it."

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This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Vandy whistler death reports false as he deals with son's ALS diagnosis