Uani 'Unga

Last updated

Uani Unga
Southern Utah Thunderbirds
Position: Linebackers coach
Personal information
Born: (1987-12-28) December 28, 1987 (age 36)
Pomona, California, U.S.
Height:6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:233 lb (106 kg)
Career information
High school: Kahuku (HI)
College: Brigham Young
Undrafted: 2014
Career history
As a player:
As a coach:
Career NFL statistics
Total tackles:59
Forced fumbles:2
Pass deflections:4
Interceptions:2

Uani "Devin" Unga (born December 28, 1987) is an American football linebacker coach at Southern Utah University, and a former linebacker himself. He played college football at Oregon State in 2009 and 2010 before transferring to Brigham Young in 2012 and led the nation in tackles his final season in 2013. He served a two-year Mormon mission to Guatemala City Central after high school.

Contents

He was undrafted in 2014, and played his entire professional career with the New York Giants.

Professional career

New York Giants

Unga was not drafted in the 2014 NFL draft after suffering a serious knee injury on the final play in his college career.

Unga was signed by the New York Giants on December 23, 2014, as a member of the practice squad, up until that point he spent the season rehabbing a knee injury. On September 5, 2015, Unga made the final 53-man roster for the New York Giants [1] On September 13, 2015, Unga would get his first career start against the Dallas Cowboys where he recorded his first career interception against Tony Romo in a 27-26 loss. [2] Unga recorded his second interception in a September 24, 2015, game against the Redskins.

On May 10, 2016, Unga was waived/injured by the Giants and was placed on injured reserve. [3]

On February 8, 2017, Unga was released by the Giants. [4]

Coaching career

It was announced that Unga will be a Defensive administrative assistant at Utah State University beginning for the 2017 football season. [5] On February 12, 2018 'Unga was added as a full-time coach at Utah State University to coach the outside linebackers, ending his playing career. On August 25, 2019, Unga joined Southern Utah coaching staff as their Linebackers coach. [6]

Personal life

His older brothers, Paul and J.J. Unga, were also football players. Paul, a defensive end at Arizona State and J.J. an offensive guard at Midwestern State. He also has a twin brother Feti who played linebacker at Oregon State. His younger brother Metuisela played tight end for the University of Hawaii and his other younger brother Chris played defensive tackle for Utah State. He is the cousin of former NFL running backs Harvey Unga, Reno Mahe, and Naufahu Tahi.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Nugent</span> American football player (born 1982)

Michael Nugent is an American former football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes, where he won the Lou Groza Award in 2004, and was twice recognized as a consensus All-American. He was selected by the New York Jets in the second round of the 2005 NFL draft, and also played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Arizona Cardinals, the Cincinnati Bengals, the Dallas Cowboys, the Chicago Bears, the Oakland Raiders, and the New England Patriots during his 16-year career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Duke Ihenacho</span> American football player (born 1989)

Duke Uba Ihenacho is a former American football safety. He played college football at San Jose State. He signed with the Denver Broncos as an undrafted free agent following the 2012 NFL draft. He was also a member of the Washington Redskins and New York Giants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leon McFadden (American football)</span> American football player (born 1990)

Leon McFadden Jr. is a former American football cornerback. He was selected by the Cleveland Browns in the third round of the 2013 NFL draft. He played college football at San Diego State.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J. J. Unga</span> American football player (born 1987)

Joseph J. Unga is a former American football offensive guard. He played college football at Mt. San Antonio College and Midwestern State. He is the brother of former New York Giants linebacker Uani 'Unga and cousin of former running back Harvey Unga.

Eric Pinkins is a former American football linebacker and safety. He was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the sixth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at San Diego State.

James Morris is a former American football linebacker who was signed as an undrafted free agent by the New England Patriots in 2014. He played college football for the University of Iowa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Davon Coleman</span> American gridiron football player (born 1991)

Davon Coleman is an American gridiron football defensive tackle who is a free agent. He most recently played for the Ottawa Redblacks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). In college, he first enrolled at Fort Scott Community College before transferring to Arizona State University. He has also been a member of four National Football League (NFL) teams and three other CFL teams.

Nikita Nehemiah Whitlock is a former American American football & Canadian football fullback and defensive tackle. He was signed by the Cincinnati Bengals as an undrafted free agent in 2014. Whitlock has also been a member of the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants in the National Football League (NFL), the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the Canadian Football League (CFL), and the Tampa Bay Vipers in the XFL. He played college football at Wake Forest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeremy Cash</span> American football player (born 1992)

Jeremy Cash is a former American football linebacker. He played college football at Duke, and was signed by the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Darian Thompson</span> American football player

Darian Thompson is a former American football safety who is currently an assistant linebackers coach and quality control coach for the Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at Boise State University, and was selected by the New York Giants in third round of the 2016 NFL draft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kyler Fackrell</span> American football player (born 1991)

Kyler Bruce Fackrell is an American football linebacker who is a free agent. He played high school football at Mesa High School in Mesa, Arizona, before attending Utah State and playing for their football team on a scholarship. At Utah State, he was a four-year starter at linebacker where he was named to multiple All-Conference teams. He was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the third round of the 2016 NFL draft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steven Daniels</span> American football player (born 1992)

Steven Wayne Daniels is a former American football linebacker. He played college football at Boston College, and was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the seventh round of the 2016 NFL draft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Cowser</span> American football player (born 1990)

James Cowser is a former American football outside linebacker and current college football coach. He is the defensive ends coach for Weber State University, a position he has held since 2024. He played college football at Southern Utah. Cowser was Football Championship Subdivision Defensive Player of the Year (2015). He holds the FCS record for career sacks (59) and tackles for loss (80).

Ishaq Williams is a former American football defensive end. He played college football at the University of Notre Dame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Calvin Munson</span> American football player (born 1994)

Calvin Christopher Munson is an American football linebacker who is a free agent. He played college football at San Diego State, and was signed by the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent in 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avery Moss</span> American football player (born 1994)

Avery Moss is a former American football linebacker. He played college football at Nebraska and Youngstown State, and was selected by the New York Giants in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL Draft.

Ifeadikachukwu Anthony Odenigbo is an American football linebacker who is a free agent. He played college football at Northwestern and was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round of the 2017 NFL draft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trent Harris (American football)</span> American football player (born 1995)

Trent Harris is a former American football linebacker who is the assistant outside linebackers coach for the Illinois Fighting Illini. He played college football for Miami. He signed with the New England Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quincy Roche</span> American football player (born 1998)

Quincy Roche is an American football linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Temple Owls and the Miami Hurricanes, and has previously played in the NFL for the New York Giants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tae Crowder</span> American football player (born 1997)

Dequartavous "Tae" Crowder is an American football linebacker who is a free agent. He played college football at Georgia. He was selected by the New York Giants with the final pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, making him that draft's Mr. Irrelevant.

References

  1. ↑ Eisen, Michael (September 5, 2015). "New York Giants announce 53-man roster". Giants.com. Archived from the original on September 25, 2015. Retrieved September 5, 2015.
  2. ↑ "Giants fall to Cowboys; Postgame Stats and Notes". Michael Eisen. September 13, 2015. Archived from the original on September 25, 2015. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  3. ↑ Kratch, James (May 10, 2016). "More Giants roster moves: Uani Unga waived/injured, Matt Smalley signs". NJ.com . Retrieved August 17, 2016.
  4. ↑ Valentine, Ed (February 8, 2017). "Uani Unga waived by New York Giants". BigBlueView.com. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
  5. ↑ "Uani Unga Utah State Bio". April 18, 2017.
  6. ↑ Drew, Jay (August 25, 2019). "Southern Utah football looking to recover after dismal showing in 2018". St. Louis Tribune. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.