Notre Dame's star linebacker had a made-up girlfriend who 'died'

If, like many folks who have read Deadspin’s startling story on Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o, your mind remains boggled over how the Heisman Trophy runner-up ended up having a fake girlfriend who died of leukemia, join the crowd. If true, it would be one of the most bizarre hoaxes ever. (Also, hasn't he seen “Catfish”?) Throughout this season, the story of the death of Te’o’s girlfriend, Lennay Kekua, from leukemia in September had been central to Teo’s rising profile — and the resurgence of Notre Dame football. Now, it appears that someone (possibly a friend of Te’o's, Deadspin suggests) conjured the doomed fake girlfriend. Te'o quickly released a statement claiming he was the victim of an "embarrassing" hoax. What he thought was a romantic online relationship turned into a "sick joke."

Ah, but the jokes have just begun. TV writer Michael Schur summed the situation perfectly on Twitter: "Te'o really took the 'my girlfriend lives in Canada' gambit to a whole new level." 'SNL' writer Seth Meyers urged restraint. "These Te'o jokes are all very funny but let's all try and remember that a person who never existed is dead." [Source]

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