On January 10, 2010, Te'o was named the Hawaii State Defensive Player of the Decade (2000–2009) by the Honolulu Advertiser. Te'o was also named to the 2009 Parade All-American team as well.
He is only the third high school player from Hawaii to be named to the USA Today All-American team, after Pat Kesi in 1990 and Jason Ching in 1995 (Ching, too, is a Punahou and Notre Dame alumnus). USA Today named Te'o the national Defensive Player of the Year and a first-team All-American. He was also named the 2008 Sporting News High School Athlete of the Year, becoming the first person from the state of Hawaii and the first athlete of Polynesian descent to receive the award. In 2008, Te'o won the inaugural Butkus Award at the high school level, awarded to the best prep linebacker in the United States. He is regarded as one of the most highly recruited athletes, both in football and for any sport, in the history of the state of Hawaii. Te'o was such a force that The Honolulu Advertiser considered just naming him the overall state player of the year.
He received his second straight Gatorade state player of the year award for his play during the season and was named first-team all-state and the state defensive player of the year for the second straight season. He also returned a blocked punt for a touchdown. He also had three interceptions, returning one 49 yards for a touchdown. On offense at running back, Te'o rushed for 176 yards (5.3 yards per carry) and four touchdowns and had three receptions, two for touchdowns. He amassed 129 tackles, including 11 sacks, forced three fumbles, tipped four passes and totaled 19 quarterback hurries. During his senior year, Te'o helped lead Punahou to its first-ever state championship in football during the 2008 season. He received offers from over 30 college programs. Te'o came into his senior year as one of the most celebrated players and recruits both on the state and national levels, landing on a number of national top ten recruiting lists before the start of the season. Te'o drew considerable attention from colleges and recruiters in the process. He received first-team all-state honors while totaling 90 tackles and five sacks on defense and 400 rushing yards and ten touchdowns as a running back. Te'o began his varsity career in 2006 with stellar play that won him selection to the second-team all-state roster as a sophomore.Īs a junior in 2007, Te'o was named the state defensive player of the year by the Honolulu Advertiser and the Gatorade state player of the year.
Te'o played for Punahou School, a private co-ed institution in Honolulu, where he had also attended middle school. In 2012, Te'o became the victim of a major catfishing scandal when Naya Tuiasosopo created a fake online persona named Lennay Kekua with whom Te'o became romantically involved. He was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the second round of the 2013 NFL Draft, and played in the National Football League (NFL) until 2021. Te'o played college football at Notre Dame, where he was a consensus All-American and received eight national awards. Manti Malietau Louis Te'o ( / ˈ m æ n t aɪ ˈ t ɛ ʔ oʊ/ MAN-ty TEH-'oh born January 26, 1991) is a former American football linebacker.
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