John Nau Penisini (born May 31, 1997) 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 wi ...

nose tackle 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 l ...

who is a

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 ...

. He played college football at

Snow College Snow College is a public community college in Ephraim, Utah. It offers certificates and associate degrees in a number of areas, along with bachelor's degrees in music and software engineering and a four-year nursing program. Snow College is par ...

before transferring to

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

and was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the sixth round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

Early life and college career

Penisini was born in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

n immigrant parents. He moved with his family to

when he was eight and graduated from

West Jordan High School West Jordan High School is a public high school founded in 1981. Located southwest of Salt Lake City in West Jordan, Utah, United States, it enrolls around 1,700 students. The men's varsity basketball team won the 2001 state championship, as well ...

West Jordan, Utah West Jordan is a city in Salt Lake County, Utah, United States. It is a suburb of Salt Lake City and has a mixed economy. According to the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 116,961, placing it as the third most populous in the state. T ...

. Penisini began his collegiate career at

. During his freshman season, he recorded 40 tackles, 6.5 tackles-for-loss, three sacks and a forced fumble. Following the season he was named an All-

Western States Football League The Western States Football League (WSFL) is a defunct American junior college football league for schools in the states of Arizona, Idaho, New Mexico and Utah that existed from 1985 to 2018. The league was part of the National Junior College Athle ...

honorable mention. He transferred to

for his sophomore season and sat out the 2016 season. During the 2017 season, Penisini played in 12 games, including one start, where he recorded four tackles and one sack. During the 2018 season, Penisini played in all 14 games, where he recorded seven tackles-for-loss, two sacks, and 38 tackles. His 38 tackles ranked second on the team. During the 2018 Pac-12 Football Championship Game, he recorded three tackles and a blocked field goal in a 3–10 loss to

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

. Following the season, he was named to the second-team All-Pac 12. During the 2019 season, Penisini played in all 14 games, with 13 starts, where he recorded seven tackles-for-loss, two sacks, two forced fumbles and 38 tackles. His two forced fumbles tied for the team lead, and ranked eighth in the Pac-12 Conference. He was named the Pac-12 Defensive Lineman of the Week for the week ending November 4, 2019, after he tied his career-high in tackles with seven that included a sack and a forced fumble in a 33–28 victory over

. Following the season, he was again named to the second-team All-Pac 12.

Professional career

Detroit Lions

Penisini was selected by the Detroit Lions in the sixth round (197th overall) of the 2020 NFL Draft. On May 22, 2020, the Lions signed Penisini to a four-year contract. In Week 11 against the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. ...

, Penisini recorded his first career sack on

P. J. Walker Phillip "P. J." Walker (born February 26, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Temple, and was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Indian ...

during the 20–0 loss. In Week 13 against the Chicago Bears, Penisini recovered a fumble forced by teammate Romeo Okwara on

Mitchell Trubisky Mitchell David Trubisky (born August 20, 1994) is an American football quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at North Carolina and was drafted second overall by the Chicago ...

late in the fourth quarter to set up the Lions’ game winning touchdown during the 34–30 win. Penisini announced his retirement from professional football on June 11, 2022.

Carolina Panthers

On April 10, 2023, Penisini came out of retirement and signed with

. He was waived due to a failed physical on August 1, 2023.

References

External links

Utah Utes bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Penisini, John 1997 births Living people American football defensive tackles Carolina Panthers players Detroit Lions players People from West Jordan, Utah Sportspeople from Salt Lake County, Utah Players of American football from Utah Snow Badgers football players Utah Utes football players American people of Tongan descent