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Chattanooga: Faatiliga a big presence at UTC

By: John Frierson
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Rodney Allison

The question has popped up again and again inside McKenzie Arena recently: Have you seen Doug?

For now, “Doug who?” would be an understandable response for those who don’t closely follow University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football. But there’s a good chance that by the middle of the fall, linebacker Doug Faatiliga will have made his presence felt on campus and in the Southern Conference.

Then again, standing 6-foot-3 and weighing about 250 well-proportioned pounds, he does that merely by walking down a hallway.

“I’ve always been a big guy,” Faatiliga said, citing Samoan roots on his father’s side. “It comes naturally to me, but I also feel like I’ve got pretty good speed, too.”

The San Francisco native spent the past two seasons at Sacramento City College, and his arrival put big smiles on the faces of defensive coordinator Dick Hopkins and linebackers coach Kurt Corbin, although neither was on UTC’s staff when Faatiliga signed with the Mocs.

They had seen video of him but said they were still a little surprised by his size when they met in person, late last month when Faatiliga arrived in town to begin working out in preparation for the 2008 season.

“I can’t wait to see what he can do out on the field,” Hopkins said. “With his size, playing in the middle of our defense, he can be a real effective player for us.”

Stout fullback Brent Hayes usually got the better of the Mocs’ linebackers in head-to-head drills during spring practice, but Corbin said the 6-2 Hayes, who has slimmed down to about 250 pounds, could have his hands full with Faatiliga.

“I was teasing Hayes about that,” Corbin said, “saying that we finally got somebody that can take him on, because (Brent) knocked us around pretty good in the spring.”

Faatiliga, who was third among California junior college players with 107 tackles last season, planned to enroll at UTC in January. However, he came up a class short of graduating, which meant he had to remain in Sacramento and miss the Mocs’ spring practice.

Two other signees from two-year schools — defensive tackle B.J. Taylor of Northeast Mississippi Community College and Georgia Military College linebacker Josh Beard — arrived in Chattanooga last week and have begun their summer workouts.

Faatiliga said it was hard not only because of the practice time he missed, but also because it’s much easier to stay dedicated to a workout routine when you’re doing it with teammates.

“I hated not being here, but I had to finish up out there,” he said. “That’s part of the reason I was so eager to get here as early as I could this summer and get to work.”

Faatiliga said his weight got up to around 280 at one point this spring, but he’s lost more than 25 pounds in the last couple of months and hopes to start the season at around 245 or 250.

“I just want to be in the best shape I can be in once we start practicing in August,” he said.

Faatiliga will begin taking classes later in August. In the meantime, he’s working out with the team and working full time at Southern Champion Tray off Manufacturers Road.

“He gets up at 5:30 in the morning and walks to work every day,” Mocs coach Rodney Allison. “Then he gets off work and finds somebody to bring him here and does what he has to do and walks home.

“He’s dedicated, and he’s got a great attitude.”

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