But the visitors' best opportunity had fallen to Saturday's hat-trick hero Vaz Te, the Portuguese firing wide from close range 10 minutes before the break.
They gave a rendition of one of Nicola's most famous songs - Es mas, te perdono.
The notion that today's sports journalism can be anything other than aggressive and tough-minded is now as fictional as Manti Te'o's imaginary girlfriend.
This human tendency toward believing is what allows not-so-true tales like Armstrong's and Te'o's to flourish.
His fellow All-American, Notre Dame's Manti Te'o, was still on the board.
Kekua was said to have died within hours of Te'o's real-life grandmother, who passed away on 11 September after a long illness.
And Te'o's heart-wrenching tale of determination on the face of two tragedies -- the death of his grandmother and his girlfriend -- had all the elements.
CNN: Te'os doubters wonder if Heisman Trophy a factor in hoax
And Te'o's heart-wrenching tale of determination in the face of two tragedies -- the death of his grandmother and his girlfriend within hours -- had all the elements.
The too-good-to-be-true story began with Te'o's incredible performances after learning his grandmother and what he believed was his girlfriend had died within hours of one another in September.
In the vote for the Heisman Trophy, given to college football's top player of any given season, Te'o was the runner-up.
After a two-and-a-half hour interview, veteran sports reporter Schaap said Te'o's story sounded convincing.
On Thursday Te'o appeared on Katie Couric's daytime talk show for his first on-air television interview.
Te'o took Notre Dame's advice, but this was no Lance Armstrong-with-Oprah Winfrey made for TV mea culpa.
The weirdest sub-drama of this year's combine is easily the circus surrounding the Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o, who is still recovering after a bizarre saga in which it was revealed his deceased girlfriend was an elaborate hoax.
WSJ: NFL Combine: Football Is Back! (Wait: Already?)��Jason Gay
Manti Te'o did what pundits said he had to do in Tuesday's Notre Dame pro-day workout for NFL scouts: improve his 40-yard dash.
WSJ: Heard on the Field: Manti Te'o Improves '40' Time at Notre Dame Pro Day
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