Fili Moala

Fili Moala

refer to caption

Moala flashing the "Fight On" sign after a 2008 fall practice
No. -- Free agent
Position: Defensive end
Personal information
Date of birth: (1985-06-23) June 23, 1985
Place of birth: Buena Park, California
Height: 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight: 308 lb (140 kg)
Career information
High school: Anaheim (CA) Western
College: Southern California
NFL draft: 2009 / Round: 2 / Pick: 56
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2014
Tackles: 88
Quarterback sacks: 3.5
Pass deflections: 3
Forced fumbles: 0
Player stats at NFL.com

Siaosi Toutoupau'u "Fili" Moala (born June 23, 1985) is an American football defensive end who is currently a free agent. He played college football at Southern California, and was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the second round of the 2009 NFL Draft.

Early years

Moala was the only son in a five-child family and was not permitted by his mother to play football until high school; however he did participate in basketball and baseball.[1] Moala played high school football at Western High School in Anaheim, California, where he was teammates with Mike Iupati. 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.

College career

Moala celebrates a victory during the 2007 season

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 for and eventually won the starting spot, starting the last seven games and received All-Pac-10 honorable mention.[1] He finished the season with 20 tackles, 2½ sacks, and one fumble recovery. As a junior in 2007 he started all 13 games recording 33 tackles, 2½ sacks, and was an All-Pac-10 honorable mention.

With the departure of top-10 draft pick defensive tackle Sedrick Ellis, Moala was expected to step up on the Trojans' defensive line in the 2008 season.[2] In the off-season and into the beginning of the 2008 season, Moala suffered from back spasms that limited his time in practices; he did not register a tackle during the 52–7 rout against the Trojans' first opponent, Virginia, which ran a spread offense that did not emphasize the run.[3] Moala showed marked improvements in the following game against Ohio State, where he made a sack and contributed to a defensive line that had 6½ tackles for losses, including five sacks.[4] Moala had a strong game against Arizona State, where he made three tackles, recovered a fumble, and blocked two third-quarter field goal attempts, tying the NCAA record for blocked field goals in a quarter.[5]

Professional career

2009 NFL Draft

Entering his senior season, Moala began receiving heavy media attention as one of the best defensive linemen 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.[6][7][8][9]

He was considered one of the best defensive tackle prospects for the 2009 NFL Draft.[6][8][9] However, durability concerns let him slip to the second round.[10]

Pre-draft measurables
Ht Wt 40-yd dash 10-yd split 20-yd split 20-ss 3-cone Vert Broad BP
6 ft 4 in 305 lb 5.07 s 1.69 s 2.90 s 30 1⁄2 in 8 ft 4 in 25 reps
All values from NFL Combine (no 20-ss, 3-cone because of left groin strain).[11]

Moala was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the second round of the 2009 NFL Draft.

Indianapolis Colts

Moala re-signed with the Colts to a one-year contract on March 4, 2013.[12] He re-signed with the Colts again on March 10, 2014.[13]

Houston Texans

On August 19, 2015, Moala signed a one-year contract with the Houston Texans.[14]

Personal

Moala has been married to Jordan Moala since May 2009. The couple have a son, Litani, and they reside in Indianapolis.

Three of Moala's cousins have played at either Oregon State or Oregon: Tevita Moala (Oregon State, 1999–2000), Haloti Ngata (Oregon, 2002–2005), and Eric Moala (Oregon State, 2005–2006).[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Jonathan Kay, A Fili for his role, USCFootball.com, November 10, 2007, Accessed June 3, 2008.
  2. ↑ Gary Klein, Lofty predictions don't impress USC football player Fili Moala, Los Angeles Times, August 25, 2008, Accessed October 15, 2008.
  3. ↑ Gary Klein and David Wharton, Fili Moala ready to get physical, Los Angeles Times, September 11, 2008, Accessed October 15, 2008.
  4. ↑ Gary Klein, USC's defensive line steps up its production, Los Angeles Times, September 17, 2008, Accessed October 15, 2008.
  5. ↑ Gary Klein and David Wharton, USC's Fili Moala won't block this out of his memory, Los Angeles Times, October 12, 2008, Accessed October 15, 2008.
  6. 1 2 Tony Pauline, Never too early: Here's a dozen first-round prospects for '09 draft, Sports Illustrated, April 29, 2008, Accessed June 3, 2008.
  7. ↑ Matt Hayes, Ranking the BCS-conference players by position, Sporting News, June 2, 2008, Accessed June 3, 2008.
  8. 1 2 Rivals.com 2009 NFL Mock Draft, Rivals.com, April 29, 2008, Accessed June 3, 2008.
  9. 1 2 Todd McShay, Defenders earn four of top five spots in first 2009 mock draft, ESPN.com, April 29, 2008, Accessed June 3, 2008.
  10. ↑ http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/2009/draft/players/19675.html
  11. ↑ http://www.nfldraftscout.com/ratings/dsprofile.php?pyid=57023&draftyear=2009&genpos=DT
  12. ↑ Alper, Josh (March 4, 2013). "Colts re-sign Fili Moala". NBCSports.com. Retrieved 2013-11-28.
  13. ↑ Alper, Josh (March 10, 2014). "Colts Re-Sign DE Fili Moala". NBCSports.com. Retrieved 2014-03-10.
  14. ↑ Doughtery, Drew (August 19, 2015). "Texans add Quintin Demps and Fili Moala". houstontexans.com. Retrieved August 19, 2015.

External links

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