The luck of the Irish was not on the side of Notre Dame Linebacker, Manti Te’o when it was exposed that he was the victim of a fake online relationship. At first, the only thing the public knew about Te’o’s girlfriend was that she died the exact same day his grandmother died. His fraud girlfriend went by the name of “Lannay Kekua” and her death was part of a major story during Te’o’s road to the possiblity of a Heisman and National Championship.
A lot of people speculate that Te’o was in on the scam for publicity reasons, but when he sat down with ESPN on Jan.18 he claims that he had no idea. Many people wonder how anyone could be that gullible.
It’s an understatement to say this kid was popular. With almost 198,000 followers on Twitter and millions across the U.S. knowing his name, Te’o has come into the spotlight in the collegiate football world. It is a wonder how he didn’t suspect that anyone might be scamming him.
In an interview with Associated Press college football writer, Ralph Russo, Te’o said, “I even knew that it was crazy that I was with somebody that I didn’t meet, and that alone people find out that this girl who died I was so invested in, and I didn’t meet her as well. So I kind of tailored my stories to have people think that, yeah, he met her before she passed away. So people wouldn’t think that I was some crazy dude.”
The deception all started to unravel when Notre Dame started a full investigation into the matter after Te’o received a phone call from his supposedly dead girlfriend. Deadspin broke the story and the perpetrator, Te’o’s friend Ronaiah Tuiasosopo, apologized to Te’o and his family.
“I hope he learns,” Te’o told ESPN. “I hope he understands what he’s done. I don’t wish an ill thing to somebody. I just hope he learns. I think embarrassment is big enough.”
That’s just it, there was no crime, no legal action being pursued yet, no team or NCAA rules violated, but there was a great embarrassment for this great player, his family and the school. This scandal will be linked to his name for as long as he is in the spotlight as a player. Who knows if he was involved, but if he was, it’s easy to say he has learned a valuable lesson in the negative side of fame. If he wasn’t involved, hopefully he learns to be more careful in his position and becomes an advocate for online safety. This situation is a great example to young people to beware the dangers of internet relationships and fake profiles.