Don't buy this online-only story for a second.
What are the chances that the middle linebacker, a heisman candidate, for one of the most successful college football teams in the country needs to resort to an online relationship for romance?
And on top of it, you've got multiple stories citing that they physically met, the father saying that she'd go to Hawaii on vacation. Someone's pumping them this info. He's in love with enough to have these 8 hour conversations, but so ashamed of the fact that it's online only that he goes to great length to provide the South Bend Tribune fictionalized stories about how they met? Doesn't add up one bit.
So to me, there's 2 options. 1 increasingly more likely than the other.
1. Someone came up w/ the idea, and thought the attention that it'd bring him would significantly improve his draft stock. And they absolutely 100% would've been right if it wasn't for the people at DeadSpin.
2. He's gay. Lot less likely, but to me it's the only other reason you'd make up this imaginary girlfriend story. Extremely religious background, extremely religious school.