From Twitter to news channels to the White House, there was no ignoring a landmark LGBT moment on Saturday after openly gay football player Michael Sam was been drafted into the NFL.

The St. Louis Rams used their 249th selection to choose Sam -- a star defensive lineman at the University of Missouri -- in the seventh round of the draft.

Sam鈥檚 reaction, captured on video by ESPN at a draft party, quickly went viral.

Sam gets the news on his cellphone and immediately breaks into tears. His boyfriend then comforts him and the two exchange an emotional kiss.

That second part didn鈥檛 make it into every clip, but the fact that a sports network aired it at all was enough to ignite Twitter.

Some loved it.

 

Some hated it.

 

 

Others tried to steer the conversation back to football, and encouraged fans to evaluate Sam based on his athletic abilities, not his orientation.

 

Even the President of the United States decided to chime in, with the White House releasing a statement on behalf of Barack Obama.

鈥淭he President congratulates Michael Sam, the Rams and the NFL for taking an important step forward in our Nation鈥檚 journey,鈥� said the statement, released Saturday. 鈥淔rom the playing field to the corporate boardroom, LGBT Americans prove everyday that you should be judged by what you do and not who you are.鈥�

Of course, getting drafted into the NFL is no guarantee Sam will ever play. He鈥檒l still have to earn a roster spot with the team at training camp.

But the Rams say they鈥檙e ready to welcome Sam with open arms.

"We're in an age of diversity. Players understand that, they know that," Coach Jeff Fisher said Saturday. "People will try to make it a distraction but it's not a distraction."