Daniel Te'o-Nesheim (

né The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Nesheim; June 12, 1987 – October 29, 2017) was an American Samoan player of

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

who was a

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He was selected by the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

in the third round of the

2010 NFL draft The 2010 NFL draft was the 75th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The 2010 NFL draft, draft took place over three days, at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, with the first ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Washington Huskies The Washington Huskies are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Washington, located in Seattle. The school competes at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) N ...

Early life

Te'o-Nesheim was born in

Pago Pago, American Samoa Pago Pago ( or ; Samoan: )Harris, Ann G. and Esther Tuttle (2004). ''Geology of National Parks''. Kendall Hunt. Page 604. . is the capital of American Samoa. It is in Maoputasi County on Tutuila, the main island of American Samoa. Pago Pago ...

on June 12, 1987, to parents David and Ailota Nesheim. He moved to Mill Creek, Washington at the age of 5. His father, David, died of an

aneurysm An aneurysm is an outward :wikt:bulge, bulging, likened to a bubble or balloon, caused by a localized, abnormal, weak spot on a blood vessel wall. Aneurysms may be a result of a hereditary condition or an acquired disease. Aneurysms can also b ...

when Te'o-Nesheim was attending Heatherwood Middle School. Te'o-Nesheim relocated back to American Samoa at age 12 before going on to attend boarding school in Hawaii. Although his last name was originally Nesheim his mother suggested adding the Samoan surname Te'o to it while he was in high school as a tribute to the family's Samoan heritage. Te'o-Nesheim was a three-time first-team all-league selection as two-way lineman during his high school years at Hawaii Preparatory Academy. He helped his team to an 11-1 overall record during his senior year, including a 10-0 league record, before losing in the state semi-finals. Playing on the first-team from the big island to win a state playoff game. He also excelled in track, competing in the shot put and discus. Winning the state championship in shot put and second in discus his senior year. Te'o-Nesheim also lettered in basketball and baseball. He was a high school teammate of center Max Unger. He was coached by Bern Brostek (NFL center). Te'o-Nesheim was recruited by

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

and Washington, but committed to Washington a few days prior to signing day in 2005.

College career

Te'o-Nesheim played

for the

. He redshirted in 2005 and earned the scout team defensive player of the year award. He was named the defensive MVP in 2007. In 2008, he won the Guy Flaherty Most Inspirational Award, the John P. Angel Defensive Lineman of the Year award, and the L. Wait Rising Lineman of the Year award. He was named a team captain in 2008 and 2009. He earned second-team All-Pac-10 honors in 2009. He started all 49 games of his career recording a total of 194 tackles, 30 sacks, 50.5 tackles for loss, eight forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries. His 30 sacks set a school record for career sacks, breaking the record set by Ron Holmes, who played from 1981 to 1984, with 28.

Professional career

Philadelphia Eagles

Te'o-Nesheim was selected by the

in the third round (86th overall) of the

. He was signed to a four-year contract on June 16, 2010. Te'o-Nesheim was hindered by a shoulder injury throughout his rookie season, only playing in six games (starting in the season-finale against

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

after the Eagles clinched a playoff berth) and recording two tackles and one sack. He registered his first career sack in the game against the Cowboys. Te'o-Nesheim was waived on September 3, 2011, during final roster cuts, but was re-signed to the team's

practice squad In gridiron football, 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. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

on September 4.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

After spending most of the 2011 season on the Eagles' practice squad, Te'o-Nesheim was signed off it by the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (colloquially known as the Bucs) are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC S ...

on November 22.

NFL statistics

Key * GP: games played * COMB: combined tackles * TOTAL: total tackles * AST: assisted tackles * SACK: sacks * FF: forced fumbles * FR: fumble recoveries * FR YDS: fumble return yards * INT: interceptions * IR YDS: interception return yards * AVG IR: average interception return * LNG: longest interception return * TD: interceptions returned for touchdown * PD: passes defensed

Later life and death

Following his playing days, Te'o-Nesheim became an assistant coach for two years at his high school, Hawaii Preparatory Academy, before becoming the head coach in 2017. Te'o-Nesheim died at the age of 30 on October 29, 2017. He died after a night of drinking at a friend's house, with a mixture of pills and alcohol in his system, the local medical examiner told ''

The Seattle Times ''The Seattle Times'' is an American daily newspaper based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1891, ''The Seattle Times'' has the largest circulation of any newspaper in the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region. The Seattle Time ...

''. Te'o-Nesheim's family donated his brain to the

Boston University School of Medicine The Boston University School of Medicine (formally the Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine) is the medical school of Boston University, a private university, private research university in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts. It was founded in ...

, where doctors determined that he had been suffering from

chronic traumatic encephalopathy Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a neurodegenerative disease linked to repeated trauma to the head. The encephalopathy symptoms can include behavioral problems, mood problems, and problems with thinking. The disease often gets wor ...

. He is one of at least 345 NFL players to be diagnosed after death with this disease, which is caused by repeated hits to the head.

References

External links

Washington Huskies bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Te'o-Nesheim, Daniel 1987 births 2017 deaths Players of American football with chronic traumatic encephalopathy American people of Norwegian descent American sportspeople of Samoan descent Sportspeople from Hawaii County, Hawaii Players of American football from Hawaii American football defensive ends Washington Huskies football players Philadelphia Eagles players Players of American football from American Samoa Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Orlando Predators players Sportspeople from Pago Pago People from Mill Creek, Washington Players of American football from Snohomish County, Washington Drug-related deaths in Hawaii Alcohol-related deaths in Hawaii High school football coaches in Hawaii Pacific Islander American players of American football