Story of Te'o girlfriend death apparently a hoax
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) - Notre Dame said a story that star Manti Te'o's girlfriend had died of leukemia - a loss he said inspired him all season and helped him lead the Irish to the BCS title game - turned out to be a hoax apparently perpetrated against the linebacker.
The university issued a statement about a hoax Wednesday after Deadspin.com said it could find no record that Lennay Kekua ever existed.
By Te'o's own account, she was an "online" girlfriend.
"This is incredibly embarrassing to talk about, but over an extended period of time, I developed an emotional relationship with a woman I met online. We maintained what I thought to be an authentic relationship by communicating frequently online and on the phone, and I grew to care deeply about her," he said in statement.
"To realize that I was the victim of what was apparently someone's sick joke and constant lies was, and is, painful and humiliating."
"In retrospect, I obviously should have been much more cautious. If anything good comes of this, I hope it is that others will be far more guarded when they engage with people online than I was."
The university said its coaches were informed by Te'o and his parents on Dec. 26 that Te'o had been the victim of what appeared to be a hoax.
Someone using a fictitious name "apparently ingratiated herself with Manti and then conspired with others to lead him to believe she had tragically died of leukemia," the school said.
The university said "the proper authorities" are investigating a "very cruel deception to entertain its perpetrators." Notre Dame would not exactly who was investigating the case.
The week before Notre Dame played Michigan State on Sept. 15, coach Brian Kelly told reporters that Te'o's grandmother and a friend had died. Te'o didn't miss the game. He said Kekua had told him not to miss a game if she died. Te'o turned in one of his best performances of the season in the 20-3 victory in East Lansing, and his playing through heartache became a prominent theme during the Irish's undefeated regular season.
The linebacker's father, Brian Te'o, said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press in early October that he and his wife had never met Kekua, saying they were hoping to meet her at the Wake Forest game in November. The father said he believed the relationship was just beginning to get serious when she died.
Te'o went on the become a Heisman Trophy finalist, finishing second in the voting, and leading Notre Dame to its first appearance in the BCS championship.
Te'o and the Irish lost the title game to Alabama, 42-14 on Jan. 7. He has graduated and was set to begin preparing for the NFL combine and draft at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., this week.
Four days ago Te'o posted on his Twitter account: "Can't wait to start training with the guys! Workin to be the best! The grind continues! (hash)Future"
Te'o's statement also said: "It further pains me that the grief I felt and the sympathies expressed to me at the time of my grandmother's death in September were in any way deepened by what I believed to be another significant loss in my life.
"I am enormously grateful for the support of my family, friends and Notre Dame fans throughout this year. To think that I shared with them my happiness about my relationship and details that I thought to be true about her just makes me sick. I hope that people can understand how trying and confusing this whole experience has been.
"Fortunately, I have many wonderful things in my life, and I'm looking forward to putting this painful experience behind me as I focus on preparing for the NFL Draft."
A CBS News story about Te'o from the day of the national championship game:
The university issued a statement about a hoax Wednesday after Deadspin.com said it could find no record that Lennay Kekua ever existed.
By Te'o's own account, she was an "online" girlfriend.
"This is incredibly embarrassing to talk about, but over an extended period of time, I developed an emotional relationship with a woman I met online. We maintained what I thought to be an authentic relationship by communicating frequently online and on the phone, and I grew to care deeply about her," he said in statement.
"To realize that I was the victim of what was apparently someone's sick joke and constant lies was, and is, painful and humiliating."
"In retrospect, I obviously should have been much more cautious. If anything good comes of this, I hope it is that others will be far more guarded when they engage with people online than I was."
The university said its coaches were informed by Te'o and his parents on Dec. 26 that Te'o had been the victim of what appeared to be a hoax.
Someone using a fictitious name "apparently ingratiated herself with Manti and then conspired with others to lead him to believe she had tragically died of leukemia," the school said.
The university said "the proper authorities" are investigating a "very cruel deception to entertain its perpetrators." Notre Dame would not exactly who was investigating the case.
The week before Notre Dame played Michigan State on Sept. 15, coach Brian Kelly told reporters that Te'o's grandmother and a friend had died. Te'o didn't miss the game. He said Kekua had told him not to miss a game if she died. Te'o turned in one of his best performances of the season in the 20-3 victory in East Lansing, and his playing through heartache became a prominent theme during the Irish's undefeated regular season.
The linebacker's father, Brian Te'o, said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press in early October that he and his wife had never met Kekua, saying they were hoping to meet her at the Wake Forest game in November. The father said he believed the relationship was just beginning to get serious when she died.
Te'o went on the become a Heisman Trophy finalist, finishing second in the voting, and leading Notre Dame to its first appearance in the BCS championship.
Te'o and the Irish lost the title game to Alabama, 42-14 on Jan. 7. He has graduated and was set to begin preparing for the NFL combine and draft at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., this week.
Four days ago Te'o posted on his Twitter account: "Can't wait to start training with the guys! Workin to be the best! The grind continues! (hash)Future"
Te'o's statement also said: "It further pains me that the grief I felt and the sympathies expressed to me at the time of my grandmother's death in September were in any way deepened by what I believed to be another significant loss in my life.
"I am enormously grateful for the support of my family, friends and Notre Dame fans throughout this year. To think that I shared with them my happiness about my relationship and details that I thought to be true about her just makes me sick. I hope that people can understand how trying and confusing this whole experience has been.
"Fortunately, I have many wonderful things in my life, and I'm looking forward to putting this painful experience behind me as I focus on preparing for the NFL Draft."
A CBS News story about Te'o from the day of the national championship game:
It really comes down to integrity.......... He really should have attended his fake girlfriends funeral.
"Faith," he told ESPN, "is believing in something that you most likely can't see, but you believe to be true. You feel in your heart, and in your soul, that it's true, but you still take that leap."
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but of course, it works for other thingys !
Big bird and Mr. Snuffleupagus ??
Read the entire Dead Spin article, and there's really only one conculsion anyone with an ounce of common sense can derive: Manti and his cousin concocted this whole farce to create another Rudy-esque story of inspiration. It's extremely weird on so many levels. I mean, here's a guy who could have his pick of any hottie on the Notre Dame campus, and apparently, never goes out, because he has a "girlfriend?" I'll throw one more twist into this story, it's the one where Te'o is eventually outed for being gay-o (uhhh..not that there's anything WRONG with that..no..no of course not.) No one is that naive, and that utterly stupid. He supposedly met her after the Stanford game, and they spent time together in Hawaii, but then he says she was an online, and that he was duped. But then it comes out that his cousin was involved, and helped to concoct the story, but we're all supposed to believe Te'o, and that he was "catfished?"
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No thanks. Not falling for that. Seriously, this guy is one sick pud. How the mighty fall. And as obnoxious as Golic and his wife were on Mike n Mike when KSU and Oregon lost, and everyday leading up to ND's total ____ kicking in the faux national title game, to see ND with complete egg on it's face because of this is really pretty satisfying. Of course, like Schlereth and Mort both said on Mike n Mike this morning. All that matters is Te'o's 40 time. But if I'm an NFL GM, I don't go anywhere near this knob. Seriously, team chemistry is everything. How can anyone in an NFL lockerroom, especially those who's lives have been impacted by a family member or friend who had cancer, look this guy in the eye and have his back on the field, in the lockerroom, or anywhere else for that matter. Wow. This is why Idolatry is never a good idea.
Like the Alabama game wasn't bad enough... Geez...
Such a weird story. Not even Hollywood would believe it.
ND"s faith not changed one Te'ota.