BUFFONE: How the Internet Could Cost Te’o Millions

by John Buffone

In the past, I’ve stressed the impact that the evolution of social media has had on the sports world. With information traveling millions of miles in that matter of seconds, athletes’ personal lives in addition to their performances are largely up to criticism. This has once again been proven with the development of the Manti Te’o situation. Just a quick refresher: Te’o was allegedly caught up in a hoax where apparently his girlfriend (whom he supposedly never met in person and had a strictly online relationship with) died of leukemia. Te’o’s story was regarded as one of the most inspiring sports stories of the year and helped keep him in the spotlight for the majority of the season. Whether Te’o was involved in the hoax or not, the spreading of the story and embarrassment it has brought down upon him could potentially cost the Heisman trophy runner-up millions of dollars. With his character and leadership qualities being considered his biggest attributes, NFL teams must now reanalyze Te’o come draft time in April. If he was involved in the hoax, teams will see Te’o as an elaborate liar who made up a terrible story for either publicity or because of some mental health issues. If he was not part of the scheme, he’s an overly gullible figure who “fell in love” with someone he never met and was strung along for a matter of years. Someone like that may not be mentally strong enough to handle the psychological hardships that come with being a high-profile professional athlete. Either way, the Internet has struck again.

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