Austin Faoliu (born January 9, 1999) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

nose tackle for the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...

Early years

Faoliu attended

Junípero Serra Catholic High School JSerra Catholic High School is a private coeducational Catholic high school located in San Juan Capistrano, California. Named after Saint Junípero Serra, the school was founded by parents in 2003 and is an independent school sanctioned by the ...

. As a sophomore, he had 48 carries for 351 yards and 4 touchdowns. As a senior, he transferred to Mater Dei High School and was named a starter at

nose guard A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

. He tallied 32 tackles (9 for loss), 1.5 sacks and one forced fumble, while receiving All-County honors. He contributed to a second place in the CIF Southern Section Division 1.

College career

Faoliu accepted a football scholarship from the

. As a freshman, he appeared in 12 games, starting the first two contests. He posted 22 tackles (2.5 for loss) and one sack. He had 3 tackles, one sack and one forced fumble against the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory. T ...

. He made 4 tackles against

Boise State University Boise State University (BSU) is a public research university in Boise, Idaho. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has been awarding baccalaureate and master's degrees It became a publ ...

. As a sophomore, he appeared in 11 games with 6 starts. He totaled 44 tackles and 2 sacks. He had 7 tackles against

Portland State University Portland State University (PSU) is a public research university in Portland, Oregon. It was founded in 1946 as a post-secondary educational institution for World War II veterans. It evolved into a four-year college over the following two decades ...

. He made 7 tackles against the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...

. As a junior, he appeared in 13 games with 8 starts. He registered 39 tackles (5 for loss), 2 sacks. He had 6 tackles and 1.5 sacks against

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

. He made 8 tackles (1.5 for loss) and one quarterback hurry against

Oregon State University Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant, research university in Corvallis, Oregon. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate-degree programs along with a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees. It has the 10th largest engineering co ...

. As a senior, the football season was reduced to 7 games due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. He started in 6 contests, while collecting 21 tackles (0.5 for loss). He had five tackles against

. He finished his college career with 43 games, 124 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, 5 sacks and 3 forced fumbles.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

Faoliu was signed as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

by the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

after the

2021 NFL Draft The 2021 NFL Draft was the 86th National Football League Draft, the annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2021 NFL season. The draft was held in Cleveland from April 29 to May 1, 2021 ...

on May 14. On August 31, he was waived. On September 1, he was signed to the

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

. On September 27, he was promoted to the active roster. He appeared in one game and had 2 tackles. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Cowboys on January 19, 2022. He was waived on August 15, 2022.

Seattle Sea Dragons

Faoliu was selected by the

XFL XFL may refer to: Sports * XFL (2001), a defunct American football league that played its only season in 2001 * XFL (2020), a professional American football league Vehicles * Bell XFL Airabonita, a 1940 U.S. Navy experimental interceptor aircra ...

Seattle Sea Dragons The Seattle Sea Dragons (formerly known as the Seattle Dragons) are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. The team is a franchise of the new XFL and plays its home games at Lumen Field in Seattle. Originally founded ...

in the Group 3 fourth round (31st overall) of the

2023 XFL Draft The 2023 XFL Draft, is the player selection process to fill the rosters of the eight teams of the 2020 reboot of the XFL, and the second draft in that league's history following the 2020 draft. The draft was held on November 15–17, 2022, with ...

. He appeared in 10 games with 10 starts, making 24 tackles and one sack. He was released from his contract on May 15, 2023.

Seattle Seahawks

On May 16, 2023, Faoliu signed with the

. He was placed on the reserve/ PUP list on August 29, 2023. He was activated on November 6, then waived the following day and re-signed to the practice squad.

References

External links

Oregon Ducks bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Faoliu, Austin Living people 1999 births Players of American football from Santa Ana, California American football defensive tackles Mater Dei High School (Santa Ana, California) alumni Oregon Ducks football players Dallas Cowboys players Seattle Sea Dragons players Seattle Seahawks players