Notre Dame Scandal: Statement Analysis

Here are some quotes on the Notre Dame scandal with Statement Analysis in bold type: 

"We met just, um, just she knew my cousin."  
And kinda saw me there, so.  

Note the lack of commitment to his statement.  The word "just" is often used to compare downwards, as in minimizing something.  Why would he minimize knowing his own girlfriend?

Just kinda regular. 
But she saw me at the USC game of my sophomore year.  We were still just friends, we
were acquaintances. "

Here we have a change of language:  they went from "just friends" to "acquaintances" without any justification within the context.  Words do not change on their own.  Emotions have the most powerful impact upon words and cause change.  When language changes, and there is no justification in context, it may indicate the subject is not speaking from memory.  

"I think I'll never forget the time when I found out that, you know, my girlfriend passed away.  And the first person to run to my aid was my defensive coordinator, Coach Diaco, and, you know, he said something very profound to me, he said, 'this is where your faith is tested.' Right after that, I ran into the players' lounge and I got on the phone with my parents and I opened my eyes and my Head Coach was sitting right there. And so, you know, there are a hundred plus people on our team and the defensive coordinator and our Head Coach took time to just go get one (of those players).  You know I think that was the most meaningful to me.  


"I think I'll never forget the time when I found out that, you know, my girlfriend passed away.  

Note the lack of commitment here, with "think"; having your girlfriend die is not likely something that will need a trigger for your memory. 
He does not speak of her, but of the "time" he found out.  
Note, "my girlfriend" avoids using her name, which, given that she was supposed to have "passed away", is very unusual.  Death is something very close.  This unnatural use of "my girlfriend", without using her name with the title, seems to speak more to the need to emphasize, in a juvenile like manner, that she really was his "girlfriend."

And the first person to run to my aid was my defensive coordinator, Coach Diaco, and, you know, he said something very profound to me, he said, 'this is where your faith is tested.' Right after that, I ran into the players' lounge and I got on the phone with my parents and I opened my eyes and my Head Coach was sitting right there. 

Note body posture in all statements. 
Here, the first person "ran" to his aid. 
Next, he "ran" into the players' lounge. 
Then, he "opened" his eyes;
Head coach was "sitting"

This is indicative of not only tension, but story telling.  
Note that the phone call is likely to be significant to the deception. 


And so, you know, there are a hundred plus people on our team and the defensive coordinator and our Head Coach took time to just go get one (of those players).  You know I think that was the most meaningful to me.  

Note what was most meaningful to him was not the loss of his girlfriend, but that the defensive coordinator (he does not use the name here) and the Head Coach took time to get a player. 

I can think of things more meaningful when losing a girlfriend than 2 coaches getting a player for him. 

When asked how she died:

"It was just so sudden.  I don't know the details of it.  It was just a surprise. "

"

Note to college kid:

Deception is seen in language.