Michael Tauiliili (; born October 29, 1986) is an American football linebacker. 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 ...

for the Duke Blue Devils at

Duke University Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...

, where he led the

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associa ...

in total tackles during his senior year. He was not selected in the

2009 NFL Draft The 2009 NFL Draft was the seventy-fourth annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 25 and 26, 2009. T ...

, but was subsequently signed as a free agent by the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

Early life

Tauiliili was born Michael Brown in

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

and raised by parents Daryl McMullen and Iva Brown. His father played basketball at Tennessee State University.Michael Tauiliili Bio
Duke University, retrieved March 28, 2009. While at

, Michael Brown changed his name to Tauiliili, with the explanation that it was the name of his maternal great-great-great-grandfather, a Samoan high chief. He attended

Alief Taylor High School Alief Taylor High School is a public high school in the Alief Independent School District. It is located in an unincorporated area in the Alief community of Harris County, near Houston. Opened in 2001, Alief Taylor is the newest high school in ...

, where he was a letter winner and team captain for three years. As a sophomore, he recorded 102 tackles and was named a second-team all-district player. As a junior, he recorded 111 total tackles, 14 for loss, and three sacks, and was named first-team all-district. As a senior, he recorded 121 total tackles, 15 for loss, four sacks, and one interception, and was again named a first-team all-district player. In his final two seasons, the team made state playoff appearances.

College career

He attended

where he majored in political science. As a true freshman in 2005, Tauiliili saw action in all 11 games, including 10 starts. He was the leading rookie linebacker in the nation with 92 tackles, including 10 tackles for loss, and three forced

fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful ...

s. He was the seventh overall tackler in the

(ACC). He was named the ACC Defensive Freshman of the Year, a first-team Freshman All-American, ''

Sporting News The ''Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a pr ...

'' first-team Freshman All-ACC, and Scout.com first-team Freshman All-American. In 2006, he started all 12 games, and again led Duke in tackles, with 94 total, 10.0 for loss, and also recorded four quarterback hurries. That season, he became the second Blue Devil in school history to lead the team in tackles in both his freshman and sophomore years. During the 2007 season, he started 11 of 12 games, sitting out the season-opener against Connecticut due to a suspension. Tauiliili recorded 108 total tackles, including 13.0 for loss, three interceptions, four sacks, two broken up passes, two quarterback hurries, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery. He finished third in the conference in tackles per game. In

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

, Tauliili started all 12 games, during which he recorded 140 total tackles, including 63 solo and 13.0 for loss, four interceptions, five broken up passes, five quarterback hurries, three forced fumbles, and one recovered fumble.2008 Cumulative Season Statistics
Duke University, retrieved March 29, 2009. He led the conference in total tackles and was named a first-team All-ACC player. In the win, 31–3, against Virginia, he recovered a fumble, forced a fumble, and intercepted a pass. For his performance in that game, the Walter Camp Foundation named him the National Defensive Player of the Week. ''Sports Illustrated'' named him a second-team Midseason All-American. After the season, the Walter Camp Foundation named him a second-team All-American. Tauiliili participated in the East-West Shrine Game as captain of the East squad. He recorded a game-high of 18 tackles and was named the Defensive Most Valuable Player.

Professional career

Indianapolis Colts

The NFL Draft Scout ranked Tauiliili as the 17th out of 149 inside linebacker prospects for the

.Michael Tauiliili, Duke, ILB
NFL Draft Scout, retrieved March 29, 2009. During the 2008 season, ''Sports Illustrated'' compared him to former first-round draft pick Jonathan Vilma in terms of stature and playing style. Tauiliili was not selected in the draft, but was signed as a free agent to a two-year contract by the

.Colts add two undrafted free agents
'' The Indianapolis Star'', May 4, 2009.

References

External links

Tauiliili up to challenge
''News & Observer'', October 25, 2008.
Boyette, Tauiliili lead Blue Devils
'' News & Record'', p. C11, March 30, 2008.
Duke's Tauiliili reinstated after arrest
'' USA Today'', August 16, 2007.
Just Sports Stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tauiliili, Michael Living people 1986 births American football linebackers Duke Blue Devils football players Players of American football from Texas Players of American football from Houston Sacramento Mountain Lions players