NAME:
Mosiula Faasuka Tatupu
BIRTHPLACE:
Pago Pago, American Samoa
KNOWN FOR:
An NFL player, who during a fifteen year professional career, played for the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams. His tenure with the Patriots lasted from 1978 to 1990. Tatupu made the Pro Bowl in 1986.
SHORT BIO / CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
Tatupu attended the University of Southern California (USC). He was drafted in 1978 by the New England Patriots (8th round, 215th overall). Tatupu rushed for 2,415 yards over his career with the Patriots, scoring 18 touchdowns and averaging 3.9 yards per carry. Tatupu was a special team’s standout and a jack-of-all-trades running back.
At six feet tall and weighing 227 pounds while playing, Tatupu was known for his low center of gravity and his wide feet and legs and his ability to continue to drive when the defense presumed he was stopped. Tatupu became proclaimed for his ability to run in the New England snow. He was one of the most popular players of his era and even had his own cheering section at Schaefer/Sullivan Stadium called “Mosi’s Mooses.”
After retiring from the NFL, he coached at the high school and college levels in Massachusetts. He was most recently the running-backs coach at NCAA Division III school Curry College in Milton, Massachusetts, a program previously led by former New England Patriot.
Tatupu was honored as a special-teamer on the Patriots’ 50th anniversary team in September and participated in a ceremony at Gillette Stadium during halftime of the Patriots’ 2009 season opener.
He was an honorary captain for the World team, which had three American Samoan players on its roster.
The Mosi Tatupu Award was handed out to the best collegiate special teams player from 1997 to 2006.