OT - Manti Te'o Lied About Girlfriend?

[ge1974]

If this is true, Te'o and Notre Dame will be taken to the woodshed. See attached:

http://deadspin.com/5976517/manti-teos-dead-girlfriend-the-most-heartbreaking-and-inspirational-story-of-the-college-football-season-is-a-hoax?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl2%7Csec1_lnk3%26pLid%3D258082#13 583765111702&{"type":"iframeUpdated","height":1325}

[TheSultan]

Can't really blame Notre Dame here. But now Te'o claims he's the victim of fraud? After claiming that he met her in person? One sick dude.

[MKE_GoldenEagleFan]

Oh boy... This could end up real ugly for him, now that it's out there people are going to dig deeper into this and all facts will come out real quick I'd imagine.

[IWB]

He's claiming he had an e-mail/phone relationship with someone pretending to be her. If true, it would be easy to back up with e-mail & phone records.

[pbiflyer]

This is pretty funny (http://3432-boston.voxcdn.com/files/2013/01/ND_angle-NAVY_Green-480x480.jpg)

[MKE_GoldenEagleFan]

Now someone claiming she is real...http://www.thebiglead.com/index.php/2013/01/16/lennay-kekua-manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend-was-real-says-arizona-cardinals-fullback-reagan-mauia-who-claims-to-have-met-her/

This is going to be interesting to watch, I find it convenient that ND is doing an investigation but won't make the results public. They also said they won't be involving the police and will leave that up to Manti... Seems fishy

[IrwinFletcher]

I don't remember a teary eyed Jack Swarbrick at a press conference discussing the rape/sexual assault allegations against football players a year + ago like I did yesterday. I hope Te'o and ND are telling the truth this time around, because if they aren't, someone is going to find out and they will look twice as bad as they do now.

[ge1974]

ND's reputation is taking a hit. The press conference last night was a total joke, IMO and Jack Swarbrick looked like an idiot. Read this acount by Mark Blaudshun:

http://ajerseyguy.com/?p=4793#more-4793

By the way, isn't Irish WR Robbie Toma from Hawaii, Manti's best friend? Don't you think he wold have known if it was a hoax? I am an Irish football fan but something smells rotten about Te'o never admitting to anyone that he never met her in person.

[TheSultan]

I thought the press release was very good. I thought the press conference was incredibly dumb.

[BLT]

I thought the press release was very good. I thought the press conference was incredibly dumb.
So UND knew about this since Dec. 28 but didn't release anything officially or worse unofficially until Deadspin published this, but they let the buzz continue on? I know they are spinning "they are conducting an investigation" line but come on Black Jack. A couple of alleged sexual assaults, a QB assaulting a cop and a student manager death have made it a tough period for him. Totally bizarre press conference is right, but par for the course for him.

[TheSultan]

So UND knew about this since Dec. 28 but didn't release anything officially or worse unofficially until Deadspin published this, but they let the buzz continue on? I know they are spinning "they are conducting an investigation" line but come on Black Jack. A couple of alleged sexual assaults, a QB assaulting a cop and a student manager death have made it a tough period for him. Totally bizarre press conference is right, but par for the course for him.

Eh. There is no reason to issue a public statement embarrassing one of their students about an issue that isn't public yet.

[IWB]

Yeah there is - get out in front of it - stop it dead before they abuse you. Now they are getting abused by everyone. Don't get me wrong, they would get abused regardless, but if you get out in front and report it first, you 'control the damage', the damage doesn't control you.

[MKE_GoldenEagleFan]

Doesn't matter how this ends, Te'o while he could end up the "victim" still won't come out looking pretty because he embellished or lied about certain points of their "relationship" as did his family. His dad was even quoted in the South Bend Tribute that they had met her in Hawaii and that her and Manti would often meet up there when he came home... Manti portrayed things very differently than they really were, the question is did he do set up the whole thing? Or did he just embellish things once he was duped.

[CaribouJim]

Seems like a good chunk of the ND community - at least on their chat room - are in a "Lance Armstrong supporters" type of denial:

http://www.ndnation.com/boards/index.php?football

[MayorBeluga]

Will St. Oprah forgive him? If so, he is rehabilitated in the eyes of America.

[TheSultan]

Yeah there is - get out in front of it - stop it dead before they abuse you. Now they are getting abused by everyone. Don't get me wrong, they would get abused regardless, but if you get out in front and report it first, you 'control the damage', the damage doesn't control you.


While I understand doing that, my guess is that if Te'o is telling the truth here, UND really shouldn't be saying anything without Te'o's permission.

[IWB]

Agree Sultan, it is a student so they can't, unless he agrees to it.

Hamostradamus had e-mailed me a couple of quoted tweets, I think the best was from SNL's Seth Meyers...

@sethmeyers21
These Te'o jokes are all very funny but let's all try and remember that a person who never existed is dead.

[IWB]

But when it really comes down to it about Te'o......


http://youtu.be/RFZrzg62Zj0

[GOMU1104]

This is a pretty significant story, IWB. As a member of the media and someone who runs a website, I'm surprised you would say "who cares."

[MKE_GoldenEagleFan]

These are all good:


AJ McCarron's girlfriend will be featured in an SI Swimsuit issue. Manti Te'o's girlfriend will be featured on Myth Busters.

Manti Te'o will meet even faker girls once he's an NFL millionaire

@DelvonRoe10: This Manti Teo story brings new meaning to the term "fantasy football". #SadButTrue

“@colewhirled: Clay Aiken "Invisible" #mantiteoplaylist”

@jmatusik: love this one...haha "Manti Te'o's girlfriend is Miss January in the 2013 Mayan calendar."

@danmoser1961: @GottliebShow @RoFloESPN "Just My Imagination" #mantiteoplaylist

[Alan Bykowski, "brewcity77"]

This may well be the best news story ever. Probably my favorite since Michael McGee's extortion racket, though that one had its share of disappointment for me as well because I worked in the news at the time and Michael McGee was by far my favorite local politician. Just stick a microphone in front of him and let him go.

[IWB]

This is a pretty significant story, IWB. As a member of the media and someone who runs a website, I'm surprised you would say "who cares."

I saw someone post that on Facebook as a response and thought it was spot on.

I know it is a significant story.

[mufansince72]

You know there would be the requisite Hitler take on all of this, here is is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWP-zIOp3P0

[MKE_GoldenEagleFan]

The stuff people have put out there on this is just hilarious...

[MKE_GoldenEagleFan]

I live in the state and don't know him.

[CaribouJim]

You know there would be the requisite Hitler take on all of this, here is is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWP-zIOp3P0

I don't think I've ever seen a bad version of the Hitler video - first one I saw was on the Cubs, but my favorite still remains the Vander Blue one. The "real" video was actually a pretty good movie.