# Manti Te'o's Fake, Dead Girlfriend **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [January 16, 2013, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424 "2013-01-16T22:06:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/141 "2013-01-17T21:19:54Z")
> [@Shinna\_Minna\_Ma](#): > > Why does anyone even care about this story? Slow news cycle. Also, it’s a big deal for a few internet people. It’s not a big deal for everybody. Why are sports a big deal to some people? Just is, and the lens of the internet magnifies it. It’s bizarre enough to be interesting for a few seconds and involves a highly prominent athlete who was probably going to be taken in the first round of the NFL draft. Also, the involvement of a major university adds some extra drama. The weirdness factor makes it absolutely fascinating to me. I can’t imagine getting duped in anything like the same fashion nor having an entire university cover for me. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/142 "2013-01-17T21:23:58Z")
> [@planetcory](#): > > So many people insistent that this was something they cooked up together, when Tuiasosopo has in fact been doing this for 4 or 5 years. And has likely become very good at it. That does seem the most likely theory. Someone else posted that he kept the scam going even after Lennay’s “death”, pretending to be her sister and coaxing a fan of Manti’s out to a football game to meet the sister and then showing up in her place. So even after ditching the Lennay personality, he seemed to be looking for another mark. So yea, this just being some weird hobby for Tuiasosopo that got out of hand when he targeted a minor celebrity seems pretty likely. ---
**Author:** ![CoolHandCox](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/coolhandcox/32/16233_2.png) [@CoolHandCox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoolHandCox)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/143 "2013-01-17T21:27:58Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > That does seem the most likely theory. Someone else posted that he kept the scam going even after Lennay’s “death”, pretending to be her sister and coaxing a fan of Manti’s out to a football game to meet the sister and then showing up in her place. So even after ditching the Lennay personality, he seemed to be looking for another mark. > > So yea, this just being some weird hobby for Tuiasosopo that got out of hand when he targeted a minor celebrity seems pretty likely. Per TMZ, that’s true. It’s weirder. After that Lennay came back to life and called Te’o on Dec. 6…she called _in character_. Tried to explain things and keep the relationship going. Naivete has to end somewhere, though. ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/144 "2013-01-17T21:30:59Z")
> [@DataX](#): > > Simpler would have probably been a better word than logical. No. “Idle speculation with no evidence” or “I’m completely guessing here” would be better words than logical. > [@DataX](#): > > Seems like this is either the worst friend ever - or something more than a “friend” You don’t see any other options? So anyone who isn’t your friend, must be your lover? Interesting life you must lead. > [@DataX](#): > > But if he was talking with her for hours and hours - it requires a girl as well as this “friend”. What is in it for her? A guy an a girl spending countless hours on a scam with no payoff that I can see. > > Or covering up a gay relationship. Again, there is a whole world of possibilities in this story that you are simply ignoring. Why is that? > [@DataX](#): > > If my reasons are silly - so be it. They are. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/145 "2013-01-17T21:33:32Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > So yea, this just being some weird hobby for Tuiasosopo that got out of hand when he targeted a minor celebrity seems pretty likely. The fact that the minor celebrity became a major celebrity (at least in the sports world) may well have been what caused it to get out of hand, if this theory is true. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/146 "2013-01-17T21:36:37Z")
> [@Hamlet](#): > > Again, there is a whole world of possibilities in this story that you are simply ignoring. Why is that? You’re angry **DataX** didn’t give a full listing of all possible theories? Pretty much everyone in this thread has tossed out one or two guesses. I don’t think anyone is pretending to be giving a complete list of every conceivable scenario. ---
**Author:** ![DataX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@DataX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DataX)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/147 "2013-01-17T21:40:47Z")
Dude - what’s your problem. I said there was other options - but no not where his friend is involved. If he did do this without Manti’s ok - he sucks as a friend. Never said my theory was right - stop twisting my words. I said I’m not sure - and it isn’t just me that thinks there are holes in his story. I have no idea what happend - I explained my reasons - and agree there are other legitimate theories. I really don’t give a crap if you think my theory is wrong, but I think you are twisting my words. ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/148 "2013-01-17T21:41:08Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > You’re angry **DataX** didn’t give a full listing of all possible theories? No, I’m angry that he/she is pretending that his/her conclusion is anything more than idle speculation and guessing. Calling this pet theory “logical” or “simple” is simply wrong, it’s just gossiping with no evidence whatsoever. ---
**Author:** ![planetcory](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/planetcory/32/1032_2.png) [@planetcory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/planetcory)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/149 "2013-01-17T21:44:34Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > That does seem the most likely theory. Someone else posted that he kept the scam going even after Lennay’s “death”, pretending to be her sister and coaxing a fan of Manti’s out to a football game to meet the sister and then showing up in her place. So even after ditching the Lennay personality, he seemed to be looking for another mark. > > So yea, this just being some weird hobby for Tuiasosopo that got out of hand when he targeted a minor celebrity seems pretty likely. I _do_ think Te’O embellished details of the relationship, though. Whether out of shame about being in love with someone he never met, or just being hyperbolic to pull at public heartstrings. I think he was actually pranked, but I don’t think he’s thoroughly innocent regarding the stories that spun out from the relationship. The hours and hours and hours on the phone, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/150 "2013-01-17T21:52:21Z")
> [@planetcory](#): > > I do think Te’O embellished details of the relationship, though. Whether out of shame about being in love with someone he never met, or just being hyperbolic to pull at public heartstrings. I think he was actually pranked, but I don’t think he’s thoroughly innocent regarding the stories that spun out from the relationship. The hours and hours and hours on the phone, etc. Yea, I don’t think there’s much question Manti was lying about _something_, whether he was just exaggerating his relationship (as college males are wont to do) or was in on the whole thing is hard to tell. > [@Hamlet](#): > > No, I’m angry that he/she is pretending that his/her conclusion is anything more than idle speculation and guessing. Calling this pet theory “logical” or “simple” is simply wrong, it’s just gossiping with no evidence whatsoever. There’s plenty of evidence for **DataX** ’s theory. Hardly conclusive, but just as far from “no evidence whatsoever”. And he’s hardly pretending that his theory is any more then what it is. You’re over-fixating on the word “logical” is silly, his full post stressed he was flipping back and forth between possible theories. You’re freaking out over the word “gay”, not “logical” ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/151 "2013-01-17T22:03:40Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > There’s plenty of evidence for **DataX** ’s theory. Really? Because all I’m seeing is “having a pretend girlfriend” = “covering up teh gay”. > [@Simplicio](#): > > You’re freaking out over the word “gay”, not “logical” As if this thread didn’t have enough bullshit speculation, you had to add one in a poor attempt to make me seem somehow homophobic? Stay classy. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/152 "2013-01-17T22:09:03Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Because he was embarrassed, and why would he tell the school? It didn’t involve them. As a member of the football team he’s a representative of Notre Dame. Even if he wasn’t originally in on the scam, he made no effort to stop any of the stories about the death of the girlfriend being reported by the media. Notre Dame should be concerned if he was involved in a public hoax as a high profile Notre Dame player. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/153 "2013-01-17T22:09:15Z")
I have no idea whether Manti Te’o is gay, gullible, or just very straaaaaange. But I will ask at this point… isn’t there an old saying in the journalism biz, “If your mother says she loves you, check it out”? Over the past few months, dozens of reporters have heard Teo’s tragic story and have reprinted it or rebroadcast it. Didn’t ANY of them make even the SLIGHTEST effort to make a few phone calls or surf the Web for a confirmation of his story? I suppose the standards for an ordinary college football beat reporter are a little more lax than those for political reporters, but still… shouldn’t even sportswriters be more than stenographers? Shouldn’t SOMEBODY have done just a LITTLE research, rather than just transcribing a good, soap operatic story? ---
**Author:** ![CoolHandCox](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/coolhandcox/32/16233_2.png) [@CoolHandCox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoolHandCox)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/154 "2013-01-17T22:17:43Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > I have no idea whether Manti Te’o is gay, gullible, or just very straaaaaange. > > But I will ask at this point… isn’t there an old saying in the journalism biz, “If your mother says she loves you, check it out”? > > Over the past few months, dozens of reporters have heard Teo’s tragic story and have reprinted it or rebroadcast it. Didn’t ANY of them make even the SLIGHTEST effort to make a few phone calls or surf the Web for a confirmation of his story? > > I suppose the standards for an ordinary college football beat reporter are a little more lax than those for political reporters, but still… shouldn’t even sportswriters be more than stenographers? Shouldn’t SOMEBODY have done just a LITTLE research, rather than just transcribing a good, soap operatic story? Pete Thamel at Sports Illustrated finally gets around to it. I do admire his honesty in how admits to missing red flags. His [Story](http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/college-football/news/20130117/manti-teo-girlfriend-hoax-quotes/?sct=hp_t11_a2#all). Wish they would fact check the Te’o hoax stories. > [@](#): > > … > > But in retrospect there were some red flags. When I checked Lexis Nexis to find out more about Kekua, I couldn’t find anything, though that’s not uncommon for a college-aged student. Nor was there anything on her supposed twin brother, Koa. I was unable to track down any obituaries or funeral notices, but that might be explained by the fact that she had three recent places she called home, or by her family not wanting publicity. > > I called Mike Eubanks at Stanford to check Kekua’s graduation year. Te’o wasn’t sure if it was 2010 or 2011. Eubanks is an assistant athletic director for football and he coordinates on-campus recruiting visits. He knew Te’o from Stanford recruiting him in 2008 and '09 – Stanford had gone after him hard. Eubanks, who directed Stanford’s football media relations this season, couldn’t find her in the alumni directory and thought it was odd that, on such a small campus, he’d never heard of a student dating Te’o. This was the most glaring sign I missed. I thought that maybe she didn’t graduate, so we took any reference to Stanford out of the story. > > We searched for details about the car crash. Brian Te’o told our fact checker and Manti told me that a drunk driver had hit her. We couldn’t find any articles about that accident and took the drunk driving reference out. It was just a car accident. > > … ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/155 "2013-01-17T23:20:41Z")
I found this exchange on the subject to be hilarious: > **[» The Lies He Told](http://grantland.com/features/malcolm-gladwell-chuck-klosterman-manti-teo/)** “… although it’s difficult to understand how Manti Te’o could travel to Hawaii to visit his “girlfriend” without actually seeing her, unless he’s just a profoundly confused person. Going to Hawaii to see a girl and then merely texting with her (the whole time you’re there) is the equivalent of taking the Wonderlic Test and scoring a negative 36.” ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/156 "2013-01-17T23:31:32Z")
> [@Accidental\_Martyr](#): > > As a member of the football team he’s a representative of Notre Dame. Even if he wasn’t originally in on the scam, he made no effort to stop any of the stories about the death of the girlfriend being reported by the media. Notre Dame should be concerned if he was involved in a public hoax as a high profile Notre Dame player. I don’t disagree with any of that. I was commenting on the reason he didn’t inform the school immediately after the hoax was supposedly revealed to him: he was embarrassed and it didn’t affect the school. The explanation that Swarbrick offered (that he wanted to talk to his parents first) doesn’t bother me either. So I can accept that he was fooled by two people, one of whom he knew, and that he maintained the lie in public at least for a while out of embarrassment or self-promotion, or both. That said, tomorrow we could learn something else and it could start to look like he helped create this hoax. > [@astorian](#): > > But I will ask at this point… isn’t there an old saying in the journalism biz, “If your mother says she loves you, check it out”? Yes. > [@](#): > > Over the past few months, dozens of reporters have heard Teo’s tragic story and have reprinted it or rebroadcast it. Didn’t ANY of them make even the SLIGHTEST effort to make a few phone calls or surf the Web for a confirmation of his story? It does sound like people didn’t make much of an effort to find out more about her or get in touch when she was alive or verify the details after she died. > [@](#): > > I suppose the standards for an ordinary college football beat reporter are a little more lax than those for political reporters, but still… shouldn’t even sportswriters be more than stenographers? Shouldn’t SOMEBODY have done just a LITTLE research, rather than just transcribing a good, soap operatic story? I think you’re operating with the benefit of a lot of hindsight here. There were suspicious elements, like the lack of an obituary, details about the car accident, or mentions of Kekua not in the context of dating Te’o. But none of those are proof positive that she was made up. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2013, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/157 "2013-01-17T23:43:36Z")
[Te’oing](http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/1996_10100312635453246_1282454659_n.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/158 "2013-01-18T00:11:10Z")
According to that SI interview, she was 22, graduated in 2011, after which she spent time working in multiple schools in New Zealand and traveling the world. Meanwhile, she simultaneously replaced her 50 year old father at his job as an executive at a construction company. All in the span of less than two years, many months of which she spent in the hospital dying from leukemia. How did this reporter not follow up on the fact that this math can’t possibly add up? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/159 "2013-01-18T00:16:10Z")
Te’o didn’t say she traveled the world, and if I were interviewing a college student I might’ve assumed the New Zealand thing was an Alternative Spring Break kind of thing. The bit about taking over for her dad at a construction company after _his_ tragic death is kind of an eye-roller. ---
**Author:** ![CoolHandCox](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/coolhandcox/32/16233_2.png) [@CoolHandCox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoolHandCox)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424/160 "2013-01-18T00:19:23Z")
SI’s Thamel explains himself on the [Dan Patrick Show](http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/video/ncaaf-video/20130117/manti-teo-girlfriend-hoax-dan-patrick-pete-thamel.sportsillustrated/?sct=hp_t11_a3&eref=si). Basically, he states he interviewed many people before he got to interview Te’o, and no one questioned, but reinforced, her existence. So her existence wasn’t in the reporting equation and the red flags just overlooked. But really, how did I or anyone fall for this. It embarrasses _me_ that I believed it because it’s absolutely preposterous in hindsight. I just didn’t think too much about it - feel good story, moving along. Can’t imagine how Te’o feels and I genuinely feel for him. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manti-teos-fake-dead-girlfriend/647424.md?page=9)