Jimmy John's Says That's Not Jimmy John Nude And Humping A Shark

On Monday, Florida football coach Jim McElwain said he was not the naked man photographed straddling a shark on a boat. Today, the Jimmy John’s sandwich chain told Deadspin that the nude shark humper also isn’t owner Jimmy John Liautaud.

Liautaud has a reputation for being a big-game hunter who enjoys posing with his trophies. He’s openly talked about his love of hunting and addressed those photos. From a 2015 :

An avid hunter, Liautaud acknowledges the biggest misconception about him is that people still connect him to 10-year-old photos of him posing with elephants, rhinos and other endangered animals he shot, photos which have prompted calls for boycotts in recent years. Just asking him about it makes his eyes well up with tears.

“I choose to hunt and I choose to fish,” he said. “Everything I’ve done has been totally legal. And the meat has been eaten, if not by me than by someone I’m with. I don’t hunt big African game anymore.”

Liautaud’s love of hunting and toothy smile made him a possibility for the identity of the butt-naked man hugging the shark. The photo, for context:

A closeup of the man’s face:

A spokesperson for Jimmy John’s told Deadspin that the man in the photo was absolutely not Liautaud, and had nothing to do with Jimmy John’s. The search continues.