The University of Michigan Catfished Student-Athletes to Show Them How They Could Be Victims of a Hoax Like Manti Te'o

Brilliant plan.

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Imagine meeting a hot girl online. Then, imagine that, after a few months, you find out that that hot girl isn't actually a hot girl at all. Instead, "she" is actually a guy. But, wait, it gets worse. It's not just any guy. It's…it's…the guy who interns at your school's athletic department?!?

Embarrasing? Of course. But, according to University of Michigan athletic director David Brandon (pictured here), that's the point. The school is taking a proactive approach to teaching student-athletes about the dangers of "catfishing" in light of the recent Manti Te'o scandal. So, rather than simply bringing student-athletes into a room and speaking to them about how they can ruin their lives–—and the reputation of their school—by engaging in relationships online, Brandon and his team have been catfishing student-athletes for the last month or so to show them just how susceptible they may be to online hoaxes.

Pretty genius, right? Er, yeah. Except if you're the guy who just spent the last three weeks sending bathroom shots of yourself to some dude who works with the AD.

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[via The Big Lead]

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