'09 HI LB Manti Te'o (Notre Dame Man)

[NDPhilly]

You can get a Navy Blue Te'o jersey for $100 on NFL.com. If you want a powder blue one you could get a custom one with Te'o on the back for $150

 

[IrishLion]

Having my powder blue (waddup Philly) Tomlinson jersey restitched to a Manti one. It's cheaper

Doing this with my authentic Chad "OchoCinco" jersey for Eifert... already has the 85 on it, and spent an hour unstitching the nameplate. Now I just need to order the stitched "Eifert" nameplate and sew it on. Saving a good $80.

 

[STLDomer]

Saw a tweet a couple days ago saying he would be wearing #50.

Apparently because Hawaii is the 50th state

Dude I have a powder blue LT jersey to. I don't want to restich it though. Liked LT way to much and it might be worth something in 30+ years.

Lucky for me I asked for a LT jersey for Christmas years ago and my parents got me an authentic one and my aunt a normal one. So I'll still have a LT one, only two football jerseys I own.

 

[ShawneeIrish]

Off topic but only football jersey I own is a Chiefs Derrick Thomas jersey. If it was not the Chargers (or Raiders, Broncos, or Cowboys) I would really consider getting a Manti jersey.

 

[peoriairish]

Waiting on the Manti Pro Bowl Jersey...

 

[ShawneeIrish]

Waiting on the Manti Pro Bowl Jersey...

If Manti makes the Pro Bowl and its still held in Hawaii that would be epic.

 

[ShawneeIrish]

Also did anyone see that Maxim listed Lennay Kekua in the Hot 100? Eff those guys the joke is really played out, not to mention having Miley #1 and Selena Gomez #2 is pretty weak.

 

[peoriairish]

That shits makes me feel far older than it should... I'm only 26 for God's sake.

 

[KPENN]

Also did anyone see that Maxim listed Lennay Kekua in the Hot 100? Eff those guys the joke is really played out, not to mention having Miley #1 and Selena Gomez #2 is pretty weak.

 

[PLACforever]

Also did anyone see that Maxim listed Lennay Kekua in the Hot 100? Eff those guys the joke is really played out, not to mention having Miley #1 and Selena Gomez #2 is pretty weak.

Manti Te'o's Girlfriend Continues Remarkable Year with Maxim 'Hot 100' List | Bleacher Report

I really hope Manti is at the point where he laughs at this. And I hope he has a career that makes everyone think of the hoax second.

 

[irishog77]

Also did anyone see that Maxim listed Lennay Kekua in the Hot 100? Eff those guys the joke is really played out, not to mention having Miley #1 and Selena Gomez #2 is pretty weak.

Definitely on #1.

But #2? She's pretty f*&@in' hot.

 

[GoldenIsThyFame]

First day of mini camp for the Bolts...

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>McCoy said Te'o was the leader on defense. Happy with how vocal he was. Said he has a presence out there. Ran the huddle.</p>— Ricky Henne (@ChargersRHenne) <a href="https://twitter.com/ChargersRHenne/status/332933412870574080">May 10, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[AllGoldEverything]

First day of mini camp for the Bolts...

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>McCoy said Te'o was the leader on defense. Happy with how vocal he was. Said he has a presence out there. Ran the huddle.</p>— Ricky Henne (@ChargersRHenne) <a href="https://twitter.com/ChargersRHenne/status/332933412870574080">May 10, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Glad to hear it, kick some *** Teo!

Tinted visor looks sick.

 

[STLDomer]

God he looks so sick in that visor

Another cartoon, this time a little more controversial....

 

[Cackalacky]

God he looks so sick in that visor

Another cartoon, this time a little more controversial....

Obama got catfished by republicans.

 

[IrishLax]

Is it too early to start voting Te'o for pro bowl?

 

[dshans]

Obama got catfished by republicans.

Better than being gatored by a Cackalacky???

 

[Cackalacky]

This is rookies only right?

 

[Cackalacky]

Better than being gatored by a Cackalacky???

I told you I am the butcher, only.

 

[dublinirish]

This is rookies only right?

yep signed draft picks, udfa's and try out players.

As you can guess its pretty common to hear coaches and GM's rave about how great their high draft picks looked running around with guys who are just there to make up the numbers

 

[GoldenIsThyFame]

Manti Te'o's NFL life in earnest begins today in San Diego - NFL - Peter King - SI.com

 

[tadman95]

If Manti is anything, he's smart....

Manti Teo Invited to Maxim Party Because of Fake GF (Photo) | Robert Littal Presents BlackSportsOnline

 

[PANDFAN]

He may have been invited as a joke after his fake girlfriend was named to Maxim's Hot 100 list, but Manti Te'o didn't waste the opportunity to hang out at a party filled with potential real ones.

The new Chargers linebacker made an appearance at the event earlier this week in Hollywood and reportedly seemed to be having a great time.

Te'o's fake girlfriend, Lennay Kekua, who was often cited by Te'o in interviews and later revealed to be a malicious "Catfish" scheme, came in at No. 69 on the list.

"It seems like he has a good sense of humor about the whole thing which i think is the best way to handle a situation like that," said Maxim's editor-in-chief, Dan Bova, who said he was "pleasantly surprised" that Te'o showed up.

Bova added when he thanked Te'o for coming out, the linebacker grinned and said "Are you kidding me? This is great."

Another partygoer told ThePostGame that Te'o arrived to the party with fellow NFL-ers Justin Hunter and Tyler Wilson and spent a lot of time chatting with Kendra Wilkinson (rumormongers, down -- she's still married).

And it seems like his days of Internet dating may be over.

"He definitely had girls all over him," the partygoer said.

 

[clashmore_mike]

Y! SPORTS

The San Diego Chargers have done their best to keep rookie linebacker Manti Te'o from the media as he tries to get his feet under him as an NFL player and avoid ceaseless talk of the well-known catfishing scandal. The "Te'obargo," as Pro Football Talk termed it, has left the local and national scribes relatively unsure of Te'o's NFL progress, but Chargers veterans seem impressed by the efforts of the second-round pick. Some seemed sure that Te'o would be put through his paces and hazed mercilessly regarding the Lennay Kekua story (which you can review here, if you've been on Jupiter for the last six months). But that hasn't happened, and if Te'o keeps doing what he's been doing in his first pro practices, it shouldn't over time.
“I don’t think there will be anything like hazing,” fullback Le'ron McClain recently told Alex Marvez and Jim Miller on SiriusXM NFL Radio. “The guy came in, and he’s been working since he stepped on the field, stepped [up] in the weight room. He’s caught everybody’s eye to see that he’s a great player.
“I just think him handling this situation, everything that was down on him, he was still showing faith. He just wants to play football and be the best player he could be. I don’t even think about the [hoax] no more.”
At the 2013 scouting combine in February, Te'o talked about the idea that he might face an unusual amount of blowback from his new NFL teammates.
"I think I’ve learned the difference between the things I can control and the things I can’t control," he said. "And hopefully by doing the things I can control, I’ll have more favor in the other category. Whatever team I go to, I’m just going to be me, I’m going to work hard, and I’m going to do my best to help the team win. And whatever happens, happens."
McClain said that Te'o's new teammates have gone to unusual lengths to make the rookie feel comfortable -- he told Marvez and Miller that a recent verbal exchange with Te'o had nothing to do with the catfishing scandal, and that subject appears to be off-limits for the most part. It would seem that the Chargers are taking the best possible approach at this time -- remove as many pressures as possible, let the kid go, and see what you get. So far, the results have impressed those who are not always easy to impress.
“The sky’s the limit for [Te’o],” McClain said. “I’m looking forward to seeing him on Sundays.”

 

[KPENN]

Manti Te'o: Media hiatus has helped me improve - NFL.com

San Diego Chargers rookie linebacker Manti Te'o finally ended his silence Tuesday, telling reporters he's definitely "reaped the benefits" of his media hiatus.

"I've had the time to focus on the plays and focus on what goes on on the field," Te'o said, "and that has definitely helped me improve."


While Te'o failed to regale the media throng with anything particularly enlightening, we discovered Tuesday that the former Notre Dame star has already exceeded expectations on the field.

Kevin Acee of UT-San Diego -- the most trusted voice on the Chargers' beat -- places Te'o in the company of defensive lineman Kendall Reyes and former outside linebacker Shawne Merriman as the most NFL-ready players drafted by the Charges in the past nine years.

The Bolts are "thrilled" with Te'o's on-field progress to date, ESPN.com's AFC West blogger Bill Williamson adds.

The analysis of those covering the team echoes that of veteran fullback Le'Ron McClain, who said two weeks ago that Te'o had "caught everybody's eye to see that he's a great player."

The early returns suggest the Chargers might have lucked into a second-round steal after Te'o's fake-girlfriend scandal and pedestrian 2013 NFL Scouting Combine performance sabotaged his draft value.

 

[STLDomer]

His Own Man | Monday Morning Quarterback

 

[KPENN]

Sink or swim? Chargers' top rookies bonding | UTSanDiego.com

D.J. Fluker had never swum. He was too traumatized to try.

Once, around age 4, the Chargers right tackle fell and sank to the bottom of a 12-foot swimming pool. His mother jumped in after him, tightly wrapping her arms around her first-born and pulling him to safety.

No problem, Manti Te’o told Fluker last month.

Whatever trust must exist between two teammates was present this summer between the top selections of the Chargers’ rookie class, as Te’o (the second-round draft pick) helped first-rounder Fluker overcome a childhood fear of drowning. They were together at the NFL Rookie Symposium in Ohio, the linebacker swimming laps for a workout while the 340-pound Fluker stood in the shallow end, paralyzed from wandering any deeper.

“I was terrified of water,” Fluker said. “He was like, ‘Man, relax. I got you.’ ”

Te’o said he began the lesson the only way he knew how — the way his father taught him.

The first step is getting comfortable with the face being underwater. Fluker wore contact lenses and couldn’t see underwater, but nonetheless grew OK with it. From there, they graduated to buoyancy and form.

“Dad just held me up in the water,” Te’o recalled.

While lifting Fluker’s stomach to keep the lineman parallel, Te’o instructed Fluker to simultaneously kick his legs and dig his hands into the water. So Fluker kept kicking and digging, kicking and digging, his size-22 feet and 10½-inch hands creating a sizable splash.

Te’o decided it was time.

“He said, ‘All right, I’m going to let you go,’ ” Fluker said. “I’m like, ‘Let me go? No, no, no, no, no.’ I just sank.”

“His head was still above the water,” Te’o said. “He just wasn’t as flat as he should have been.”

On the second attempt, Fluker made it a few feet. Attempts three and four were better. Ultimately, Fluker got it.

The link that connected Fluker and Te’o when the Chargers drafted them in April was the field they shared to conclude their college careers. But beyond that BCS National Championship game between Alabama and Notre Dame, there are stronger commonalities between the 22-year-olds.

Both love football. Both want to be leaders.

Fluker might already be the most vocal player on the 90-man roster, chattering throughout stretches and breaking down teammates, something veterans say they embrace. His greatest challenge is channeling that energy into controlled chaos that will fit offensive line coach Joe D’Alessandris’ scheme.

The rookie’s results so far have resembled his first swim. He has often sunk, but everyone can see he’s still kicking and digging.

“I’m still trying to find myself,” Fluker said. “I’m still trying to find a (rhythm) on the offensive line. I’m competing. ... (Saturday) was probably my best practice, where I’m finally understanding technique and finally understanding what I have to do. Coach keeps reiterating to me what to do, and eventually it starts to click a little bit. It’s coming slowly.”

Te’o has been a quiet workman. His approach to training, on and off the practice field, has earned him respect in the Chargers’ locker room. While deferring the vocal role to such veterans as inside linebacker Donald Butler, he’ll talk to teammates with the goal of bringing people together.

He celebrates with players after they make a play. When they miss, he insists that the next one will be different. He has told Butler that he’s right behind his teammate, lending support.

Just as he was for Fluker.

“Don’t ask me how to surf, though,” Te’o said. “I don’t know how to do that.”

 

[AdmiralBackhand]

Awesome article, thanks.

 

[Irishnuke]

Wait, Manti doesn't know how to surf?

 

[ShawneeIrish]

I don't think the Chargers will ever regret taking Manti