Every year, the number of Polynesian players increases as professional scouts and coaches realize the potential of some of our most promising sons. In this year’s NFL Scouting Combines another crop of outstanding athletes impressed the experts as college athletes got a chance to prove their stock ahead of the upcoming draft.
Last year (2008) may be the first year in several years that we have not had at least one player with ties to the Pacific in all seven rounds. This year, there are no less than three who may sign contracts before the two-day draft comes to a close.
Among this year’s notables of course are USC linebacker Rey Maualuga and his teammate, defensive lineman Fili Moala. Here’s a brief breakdown of PI players who were invited to this year’s NFL Scouting Combine:
Paul Fanaika, OG (6'5", 327) Milbrae, CA
College: Arizona State / High School: Mills
Was a member of a very explosive Sun Devil offensive line and is a former walk-on. Scouts are raving about his size, athleticism and strength but question his conditioning. He is great explosiveness at the point of attack but fades in space. He’s a three year starter at ASU and is projected to a right tackle despite playing at right guard during his collegiate career.
Ray Feinga, OL (6'4", 337) West Valley City, UT
College: BYU / High School: Hunter HS
Another gifted young offensive lineman who plays with the intensity of a defensive tackle. He’s a two-time first-team All-MWC selection for the Cougars. He has great hands, excellent foot work and works angles well in the trenches. He’s a mid-rounder with potential to move up if teams with a less than agile quarterback or pocket-passer are looking for a very aggressive pass protector. He’s had some injuries but his athleticism is a plus and he’s a quick study. Former Utah Mr. Football.
Kaluka Maiava, OLB (5'11", 229) Wailuku, HI
College: Southern Cal / High School: Baldwin
Played understudy to guys like Dallas Sartz, Keith Rivers, Brian Cushing and Rey Maualuga at USC and really only had one season to showcase his abilities to pro scouts. Maiava took advantage of his 2008-09 season culminating in defensive MVP honors in the Rose Bowl. He has natural football instincts, reads coverage well and attacks the football aggressively. He has a great motor and is a big hitter.
Marcus Mailei, FB (6'0", 248) Salt Lake City, UT
College: Weber State / High School: Highland
A surprise to everyone outside of Utah who hasn’t seen this powerful young runner blow-up linebackers in the Big Sky Conference. A rare find even though scouts consider him too short to play fullback in the NFL. He makes up for his lack of speed with his superior blocking skills and ability to run over defenders.
Rey Maualuga, ILB (6'2", 249) Eureka, CA
College: Southern Cal / High School: Eureka
There is no question that this guy is going to be an early selection despite pulling up with a ham-string strain in the combine. He is all-everything in the PAC-10 and everyone knows what this guy can do when he straps on his helmet.
Josh Mauga, OLB (6'1", 243) Fallon, NV
College: Nevada / High School: Churchill County
Another surprise to anyone who doesn’t follow WAC football but Mauga has been a consistent run stopper and a decent pass protector in short yardage situations. A local product, he led the Wolfpack defense and the WAC in tackles (11.7 TPG). He comes from football stock and knows the game inside out. He has excellent instincts and almost always finds his way to the ball. He could be this years Pago Togafau or Freddie Keiaho.
Roy Miller, DT (6'1", 310) Killeen, TX
College: Texas / High School: Shoemaker
An All-Big-12 Conference performer, scouts do not consider Miller a prototypical run-stopper because of his lack of size. But he is as mean as they come and he has posted significant numbers despite being undersized during his career at Texas as evidenced by his defensive MVP recognition against Ohio State in this year’s Fiesta Bowl. Scouts love Miller’s explosiveness off the ball and ultimately it will be his numbers and his motor that will determine his exit in the draft although he would probably do quite well as a free-agent.
Fili Moala, DT (6'4", 305) Buena Park, CA
College: Southern Cal / High School: Western
Moala is your prototypical Defensive Tackle in the mold of another physically imposing Polynesian tackle, Haloti Ngata. He is huge and often depends on that size and strength to overpower opponents ultimately leaving him exposed when he is properly engaged by offensive lineman with size and agility. With a little work on his burst and some pass rushing moves, Moala could become a complete package of size, strength, speed and football smarts.
Louis Murphy, WR (6'2", 203) St. Petersburg, FL
College: Florida / High School: Lakewood
Urban Meyer and Tim Tebow had so many offensive weapons at their disposal that its hard to say how impressive Murphy is but there’s no questioning his talent. Even with other talented receivers on the Gators’ roster he still averaged 38 catches and 6.5 TD’s in two seasons. He has the hands and the speed but lacks strength and needs to work on his blocking to be a complete receiver.
Fenuki Tupou, OT (6'5", 314) Elverta, CA
College: Oregon / High School: Center
Massive offensive lineman who was wooed by several Division I schools but ended up playing a couple of years in the Junior College ranks before moving to Oregon. He has a tremendous upside and has a lot of positives on his side. Of all the PI offensive linemen in this class he’s considered the quickest and naturally gifted but he needs to work on using his size as well as his quickness. Does not figure into the top rounds of the draft but he could be a surprise 6th or 7th rounder.
David Veikune, DE (6'2", 257) Wahiawa, HI
College: Hawaii / High School: Campbell
Veikune impressed scouts in the 40-yard-dash and was a top performer in that drill as well as the bench press and 3-cone-drill amongst defensive linemen. Coaches and fans raved about his performance against one of the most formidable offensive lines in the country, the Florida Gators. He’s slightly shorter than most pro teams would like in a defensive end but he covers ground well and has good pursuit in the open field and decent lateral movement. Could be better suited by increasing his speed to move into a middle linebacker role.
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