Utah’s Sunia Tauteoli, one of the oldest players in college football, isn't slowing down

Sunia Tauteoli jokingly flexes both of his arms while telling the story of how last year, after suffering a fracture in his back, he was suited up and hollering out the defensive play-calls in a week or so.

He said his healing factor isn’t slowed by the years at 26 — the oldest player on Utah’s roster and one of the oldest in college football in 2017.

Not one bit.

“I feel like my body is just like that,” he said.

Yes, he’s older. And yes, he’s now commanding a defense with true freshmen as much as eight years younger than him. But Tauteoli is firmly in his element, happy to turn back the clock every time he straps up his helmet for practice or crashes into an opposing running back heading up the gut.

The versatile, undersized, yet big-hitting Tauteoli is indeed on the wrong side of his 20s in his second year as Utah’s starting middle linebacker, but that hasn’t affected his impact since earning that role as a centerpiece of the Utes defense. His 18 tackles in three games leads the defense thus far.

“Twenty-six is still pretty young,” Utah coach Kyle Whittingham deadpanned after practice this week.

And he’s not wrong. In college football years, however, it is — let’s say — a rarity.

According to the NCAA, the three oldest players in FBS this year are a trio of punters. Western Michigan’s Derrick Mitchell, 30, played 10 seasons of minor league baseball after being drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in 2005. Colorado punter James Stefanou, also 30, is a fellow Pac-12 Australian punter like Utah’s Mitch Wishnowsky. Maryland punter Wade Lees is 29.

Utah defensive end Kylie Fitts was stunned when informed this week of Tauteoli’s age. His eyes widened and he chuckled. Defensive tackle Filipo Mokofisi said Tauteoli is the lightning rod of the defense, the first to challenge a teammate to forget about a mistake, the first to inspire to dig a bit deeper when an opposing offense has the Utes backpedaling too often.

“You don’t even think he’s 26 the way he runs around and the speed he goes at,” Mokofisi said. “We do give him flak, but he doesn’t care. He acts like a little kid a lot of the times, even younger than us. It’s awesome to have that kind of seniority around us.”

There is a switch in Tauteoli, one he felt when in the final months of his LDS Church mission. After returning from his mission in Houston, he had some pent up anger, accompanying stress and needed a release. Six months before coming home, he realized he wanted to achieve his potential in football after struggling with grades at East High that hampered recruiting as a prep athlete.

He enrolled at Snow College, and the phone rang after his first spring camp with the Badgers in 2013. It was Kalani Sitake. The former Utah defensive coordinator, now coach at BYU, noticed Tauteoli’s speed and aggressiveness spike on film. One of his closest friends growing up at East, former Utes defensive tackle Stevie Tu’ikolovatu, swayed him to join.

Tauteoli’s recruitment wave suddenly heightened, and he eventually signed with Utah State in 2014. A change of heart led him back toward Utah, and after sitting out year, he finally stepped onto the field in familiar red in 2015. Utah linebackers coach Justin Ena credits Tauteoli with slowly transforming from a fringe backup to part of the nucleus of a notable defense.

“You don’t have to worry about him too much,” Ena said. “He knows what to do and what he’s all about.”

Sophomore defensive back Julian Blackmon says it’s Tauteoli who is his usual in-game rallying point, the voice that is heard on the sidelines or in the huddle. And while teammates may toss a joke his way occasionally, they know of the switch.

“We make fun of him sometimes, but not the DBs too much because he’s bigger than all of us,” Blackmon said. “We’re a little scared of him.”

When youngsters are shocked to see Tauteoli’s energy level in practice, pregame warmups or when the lights come on, he says it’s his way of teaching the next generation to not only find another gear, but to relish the scarcity of such moments. After all, he knows better than most.

“They notice that even though I’m older,” he said, “I don’t show it.”

Whittingham said he hasn’t seen Tauteoli slow down at all as the starts and hits and big plays made have increased for his 26-year-old starting middle linebacker. Tauteoli had one of his best games to date in Utah’s 54-16 win over San Jose State, Utah’s coach said. And age, Whittingham added, is a bit overblown, “until you maybe hit 30.”

Utah’s resident senior has heard it all. That’s fine. There’s more to be done, Tauteoli said. Even at 26.

“Just the old guy over here on the team,” he said, “just chilling, having fun.”