Notre Dame is Home for Manti Te'o
Notre Dame is home to many and former Irish linebacker great Manti Te’o made the trip back to South Bend over the weekend.
Te’o had been back a few times since left for the NFL and for him, the fact Notre Dame and the people around the university remain the same makes each trip back special.
“It's still the same because this is always home,” Te’o stated. “Home always treated me well. Home always greeted me with love and a bunch of support. It's always been the same and that's the great thing about my Notre Dame family. It's been the same since the beginning."
On this trip, Te’o returned with his wife, Jovi and his daughter, Hiromi. It was the first time Te’o was able to show his family where he went to college, but also became a national name.
While touring the campus, Te’o did notice a few changes, including the new indoor practice facility.
“The Gug is really where I spent most of my time working out, practicing, and studying film,” said Te’o. “I just ran into Tim McDonnell, he's with the Giants now, his office used to be where I sat in after class for hours and watched film. Now, I think they did construction on the room and it's a big media room. It's just going down memory lane.
"I don't think there isn't a place that's not special for me. I just saw that new indoor field they have. I've never seen it before and it was my first time touring it. That place is amazing.”
There has been one significant change around Notre Dame since Te’o was last at the school.
Marcus Freeman is now the head coach and he quickly reminded Te’o of one of his former coaches he had during his time in South Bend.
"I love him,” explained Te’o. ”I told everybody he reminds me of a coach I had. Everyone remembers Coach (Bob) Diaco. He's just a guy that you will do anything for. I think that's what pushed us to where we were at in 2012. We had the No. 1 defense in the country because not only did we play for each other on the field, but we trusted our coaches - not only Coach Diaco, but Coach (Brian) Kelly, Coach (Mike) Elston and Coach (Kerry) Cooks. We were all a huge family."
Friday afternoon provided a chance for Te’o to speak to the current Notre Dame team. At the time, Notre Dame was 0-2 and the message he delivered centered around family.
"My message to the team was about family and honing in on that feeling and that they understand the importance of family,” stated Te’o. “How much power comes with that word. If we actually play as a family, good things happen."
Te’o has been keeping busy since leaving the NFL as he now owns a real estate and trucking business while also supporting his wife as she finishes nursing school.
In addition to family life, Te’o and Netflix recently released a documentary on his senior year at Notre Dame where he was catfished. It wasn’t something Te’o was necessarily looking for as he had found closure and peace, but the Hawaii native did want to present facts for those who stuck by him.
"With the opportunity Netflix presented where they were going to tell the full story,” Te’o explained. “I said great as long as they did that. The main thing I wanted to make sure of was there were a lot of you that supported me over a long period of time that I didn't give the facts to back everybody up. It was my attempt at saying thank you for all your support and standing by me.
"I'm the same guy I was here regardless of what people have said over the last 10 years. It's good for people and for me to be reminded of that. I thought it was well done and it was exactly what I wanted it to be."
The documentary has been well-received by most around the country and it’s allowed the narrative to change for Te’o reputation.
"It's a little different because the narrative has changed now,” said Te’o. “With the truth and facts coming out and everyone seeing it, it was almost like people said, ' See, I told you he was a good dude.'
"It was cool for me to experience that love and reception and the love and respect that I didn't have for a while. Again, every time I came back home to Notre Dame, there was always love for me."
And as Te’o said, Notre Dame always loved him and stood by him. Notre Dame has truly become a forever home for Te’o.
"It's the people that make this place,” Te’o said. “I really tried to think for myself when I was done here - what truly makes Notre Dame special and there is a spirit about it. You come here and there's a look about it and a feel.
"There's a guy that bought me and my family's meal last night. He didn't have to do that. He didn't say anything about it, he came by our table and said, 'You have a beautiful family,' and walked off. When the tab came, the waitress said the guy paid for our bill. It's that.
"That's what I take from it. That's what I want everyone to understand. Every student-athlete, every student or anyone who comes to this university, give it everything you got. If you do, Notre Dame will return the favor tenfold. I am eternally in debut to this school and these people. Whatever this school needs me to do, I'll do."
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