The narrative is falling apart.

Face it. The kid got tricked. He lied to his father about his internet girlfriend, which he shouldn't have done. Beyond that, the media firestorm has been dead wrong. Being a sucker who was drawn to a suffering woman is not nearly the same as purpotrating an elaborate hoax to prop up a nonexistent Heisman campaign.

Speaking of the Heisman thing, some of you fucking people are awfully stupid.  Take ten seconds and think shit through before you fill the internet with it.  Before the Michigan State game, Notre Dame had just squeaked by Purdue.  The quarterback had been benched.  The coach was being questioned from every angle.  Optimistic fans thought a 9-3 record might be attainable.  Self-described realists were thinking probably 8-4 or 7-5.  Te'o was not on a single major Heisman watch list.  Not one.  Nada.  He was not a Heisman candidate.  Oh, and he's a fucking linebacker.

Here's the Heismanpundit watch list - probably the most well rounded and respected of the bunch.  Where's Te'o?  Much like Lennay Kekua, he's not there.  Here's the SI list.  Te'o?  Not there, even though they have a specific category for defense.  They went with Jarvis Jones.  Next up we have Yahoo Sports, an organization that has been doing pretty solid reporting for a number of years now, in case people haven't noticed.  No Te'o to be found.  The Fox Sports list is a slideshow, but Te'o isn't on any of the slides.  And, even though you get my point by now, we can't move on without mentioning the World Wide Leader.  Again - twelve players listed, none of them named Te'o.

So, according to the genius of internet wisdom, this guy faked a girlfriend's death on the same day that his grandmother actually died in order to bolster a Heisman campaign that didn't exist.  Nevermind the fact that the ESPN cameras would have been there to discuss him playing on the day that his grandmother died anyway.  He's the star of the Notre Dame football team.  I get a chuckle out of all the butthurt hatred directed at the Irish, but I can certainly agree that they get a little too much media exposure at times.  You honestly think that people would have been saying, "Well, it's too bad that his grandma died, but that's not really a story.  Now, if he had a girlfriend who died on the same day we might have something to talk about."  Do people have any idea how fucking stupid this sounds?  Playing to honor his grandmother would have been the story of the week.

Now, after spewing venom and hatred at this kid for a few days, people are entering the rationalization phase.  Watch it happen before your eyes, if you're not already enlightened enough to accept that I'm right and just move along.  Here's Deadspin, the purveyor of the original hit piece, when it looked like Jeremy Schaap wouldn't get his interview with Te'o.

It's not clear whether ESPN landed and lost the interview, or if they never had it in the first place. But there are two decent reasons for Te'o to look elsewhere when he wants to tell his version of events. First, Jeremy Schaap fancies himself a hard-hitting interviewer, and wouldn't let this sit-down go by without asking specific, pointed questions that leave no wiggle room for non-answers. Te'o's statement contains facts that don't mesh with what's been reported, so it would be very easy for Schaap, if he wanted to, to pin Te'o down on a lie. Much better for Te'o to find another, softer interviewer. Like, say, Oprah.

So they were pretty sure that Schaap is a good reporter and that he would nail Te'o.  Then, after the interview happened, the narrative switched to one where Schaap didn't get any information and his whole interview was just a waste of time.  Why?  Te'o told the truth, had evidence to back him up, and Schaap believes him.

The overriding lesson here... I guess there are two.

1. Jumping to conclusions - yeah, you already know about that lesson.  But this is a good reminder.  It was pretty over-the-top.
2. This widespread eagerness to "bring down" somebody that we perceive as too good is a sign that we need to sort some shit out in our own lives.  Seriously.

Now for a prediction:  We'll see evidence trickling out over the next few days and weeks.  Maybe we'll even see the perpetrator give a tearful confession and beg for forgiveness.  The dug-in elements of our society, consumed by their venomous hatred of Te'o and/or Notre Dame, will find ways to explain away the evidence that shows they were wrong.  Those who were slightly less dug-in will simply shift their storylines.  A couple of days ago it was that Te'o was in on the hoax.  Now it will be that Notre Dame should have gone public sooner.  Even though their investigation showed that the situation didn't involve the university and Te'o had already graduated, they should have come forward and discussed a former student's private life publicly.  Why?  Well... just because.  That's why.

Journalism 101: When your narrative falls apart, it's not time to seek the correct narrative.  It's time to save face.