Fili Moala
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| USC Trojans — No. 75 | |
| Defensive tackle | Senior |
| Major: Sociology | |
| Date of Birth: June 23, 1985 | |
| Place of Birth: Buena Park, California | |
| Height: 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | Weight: 295 lb (134 kg) |
| Career History | |
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| High school: Western High School, Anaheim, California |
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College(s):
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| Career Highlights and Awards | |
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| Bowl Games | |
| Stats at ESPN.com | |
Fili Moala (born June 23, 1985 in Buena Park, California) is an American football defensive tackles for the USC Trojans. He is considered one of the best defensive tackle prospects for the 2009 NFL Draft.[1][2][3]
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[edit] Early years
Moala was the only son in a six-child family and was not permitted by his mother to play football until high school; however he did participate in basketball and baseball.[4] Moala played high school football at Western High School in Anaheim, California. As a senior in 2002 he was a Super Prep All-Farwest, Prep Star All-West, Tom Lemming All-West and Tacoma News Tribune Western 100 selection.
[edit] College career
Moala originally signed with the University of Southern California in 2003, but did not qualify for admission. He attended Cypress College for one year, but did not play football there, before transferring into USC. During his first year at USC in 2004 he was redshirted. In 2005 he started two games for the Trojans recording eight tackles.
During his sophomore season in 2006, Moala pushed and eventually won the starting spot, starting the last seven games and received All-Pac-10 honorable mention.[4] He finished the season with 20 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and one fumble recovery. As a junior in 2007 he started all 13 games recording 33 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and was an All-Pac-10 honorable mention.
Entering the 2008 season, Moala began receiving heavy media attention as one of the best defensive back going into the season and a potential top-2009 NFL Draft pick in early mock drafts, with ESPN's draft expert Todd McShay naming him a possible first pick.[1][5][3][2]
[edit] Personal
Three cousins have played at either Oregon State or Oregon, including Baltimore Ravens defensive lineman Haloti Ngata.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ a b Tony Pauline, Never too early: Here's a dozen first-round prospects for '09 draft, Sports Illustrated, April 29, 2008, Accessed June 3, 2008.
- ^ a b Todd McShay, Defenders earn four of top five spots in first 2009 mock draft, ESPN.com, April 29, 2008, Accessed June 3, 2008.
- ^ a b Rivals.com 2009 NFL Mock Draft, Rivals.com, April 29, 2008, Accessed June 3, 2008.
- ^ a b c Jonathan Kay, A Fili for his role, USCFootball.com, November 10, 2007, Accessed June 3, 2008.
- ^ Matt Hayes, Ranking the BCS-conference players by position, Sporting News, June 2, 2008, Accessed June 3, 2008.
