Robert Apisa (born June 4, 1945) is a former

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 wi ...

fullback. He played college football at Michigan State University.

Early years

Apisa, one of eleven children, was born in

American Samoa American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the Internationa ...

. His parents moved the family to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

when he was seven. He didn't start playing football until entering the ninth grade at Farrington High School. He also practiced

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

and track. He accepted a football scholarship from Michigan State University. He was named a starter at fullback as a sophomore, registering 126 carries for 715 yards (second on the team and third in the conference), a 5.7-yard average and 10 touchdowns. At the end of the season he was limited with injuries, but still was able to become the first player of Samoan ancestry to be named All-American. He required off-season knee surgery. On November 19, 1966, he was a part of the contest played against the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic university, Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend, Indiana, South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin fo ...

called " The Game of the Century", which ended in a 10–10 tie. It was also the first ever live television sports broadcast in Hawaii. He had 140 rushing yards and one touchdown against the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. He suffered a knee injury in the seventh game against

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

and missed most of the remaining contests. He posted 86 carries for 445 yards (5.2-yard avg.) and 9 touchdowns. As a senior, he struggled to recover from off-season knee surgery. He tallied only 50 carries for 183 yards during the season. Besides being a notable blocker, he finished his college career as the school's all-time leading rushing fullback with 1,343 yards. He was a part of 2 national championship teams ( 1965 and 1966). In 2017, he was inducted into the Michigan State Athletics Hall of Fame. In 2018, he was inducted into the

Polynesian Football Hall of Fame The Polynesian Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame that honors the greatest players, coaches, and contributors of Polynesians, Polynesian descent in the sport of American football. It was established in 2013 by former National Football League (N ...

Professional career

Apisa was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the ninth round (245th overall) of the

1968 NFL Draft The 1968 National Football League draft was part of the common draft, in the second year in which the NFL and AFL held a joint draft of college players. It took place at the Belmont Plaza Hotel in New York City on January 30–31, 1968. The Mi ...

. He was waived on July 30.

Personal life

Apisa spent more than 33 years working as an actor and stunt coordinator in television series and films. His grandson Jacob Isaia is an

offensive line In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numb ...

man for Michigan State University.

References

External links

Bob Apisa's journey from American Samoa to Michigan State Hall of Fame
{{DEFAULTSORT:Apisa, Bob 1945 births Living people People from Pago Pago Players of American football from American Samoa American football fullbacks Michigan State Spartans football players American stunt performers American male television actors American sportspeople of Samoan descent Actors of Samoan descent