Former Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o has refused to blame his poor performance during the BCS national title game on the stress resulting from the knowledge that, inevitably, the story of his fake dead girlfriend would be exposed.
On Monday, Te’o blamed his poor performance during the 40-yard dash on the overall stress of the Scouting Combine.
“I was running near a 4.6, a 4.5,” Te’o told NFL Network after officially clocking a 4.82-second 40-yard dash. “Today was just a long, long day.”
Te’o called the Combine a “very exhausting process,” explaining that he got to bed late and got up early, with roughly four hours of sleep per night.
Of course, Te’o experienced plenty of mental stress, too. He met with 20 teams individually, and he endured a packed-house press conference on Saturday.
He promises to have an improved showing at the Notre Dame Pro Day workout. “[People can expect] better numbers,” Te’o said. “[I will be] rested. One day you hit it hard and then you are done.”
Rested or not, Te’o will have even more pressure on him when it’s time to run again.