Taniela "Tani" Tupou (born December 13, 1992) 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 ...

defensive 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 la ...

for the

St. Louis BattleHawks The St. Louis BattleHawks are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. The team was founded by Vince McMahon’s Alpha Entertainment and is an owned-and-operated member of the new XFL owned by Dwayne Johnson’s Alpha A ...

of 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 ...

. 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 Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...

. He also plays

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

for the

Seattle Seawolves The Seattle Seawolves are an American professional rugby union team based in Tukwila, Washington. The team was founded in 2017 and competes in Major League Rugby (MLR), the top-level rugby union competition in the United States that began play ...

Major League Rugby Major League Rugby (MLR or USMLR) is a professional rugby union competition and the top-level championship for clubs in North America. In the 2022 season it was contested by thirteen teams: twelve from the United States and one from Canada. Off ...

(MLR). His position is at

prop A prop, formally known as (theatrical) property, is an object used on stage or screen by actors during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinct ...

Early years

Tupou attended

Archbishop Murphy high school Archbishop Thomas J. Murphy High School is a co-educational private Roman Catholic Church, Catholic college-preparatory high school located in Everett, Washington, United States. Founded as Holy Cross High School in 1988 at the old site of Our Lad ...

Everett, Washington Everett is the county seat and largest city of Snohomish County, Washington, United States. It is north of Seattle and is one of the main cities in the metropolitan area and the Puget Sound region. Everett is the seventh-largest city in the ...

where he played football as a strongside defensive end and as a

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...

. He led the Wildcats to the WIAA State Championship game at the Tacoma Dome in 2010. Tupou graduated from Archbishop Murphy in 2011. Tupou is of Tongan and Hawaiian descent.

College career

Tupou verbally committed to the

on April 8, 2010. Tupou

redshirted Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

his first year on campus before playing the next four seasons. In his five years at Washington Tupou appeared in 46 games for the Huskies as a

and recorded 59 tackles.

Professional career

Seattle Seahawks

On May 9, 2016,

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 ...

signed Tupou as a fullback /

after participating in their rookie mini-camp. He played in the team's season-opening victory over the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...

on September 11. On September 13, 2016, Tupou was released by the Seahawks.

Atlanta Falcons

During April 2017, Tupou played as a defensive tackle for

The Spring League The Spring League was an American football developmental league and scouting event (pro showcase) that played from 2017 to 2021 and was founded by Brian Woods. Aimed at professional athletes but not paying a salary or expenses, the league's go ...

, a developmental football instructional league. Tupou received an invitation to attend rookie minicamp for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

. On May 14, 2017, following minicamp, Tupou signed with the Falcons. He was waived on September 2, 2017 and was signed to the Falcons' practice squad the next day. He was released on September 6, 2017. He was signed to the practice squad on September 19. He was promoted to the active roster on October 10, 2017. He was waived on October 19, 2017 and was later re-signed to the practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Falcons on January 15, 2018. On April 11, 2018, the Falcons waived Tupou with a non-football injury designation.

Arizona Cardinals

On August 22, 2018, Tupou signed with the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

. He was waived on September 1, 2018.

San Diego Fleet

In 2019, Tupou joined the

San Diego Fleet The San Diego Fleet was a professional American football franchise based in San Diego, California, and one of the eight members of the Alliance of American Football (AAF). The league began play in February 2019, with the team playing its home game ...

of the

Alliance of American Football The Alliance of American Football (AAF) was a professional American football minor league. The AAF consisted of eight centrally owned and operated teams in the southern and western United States, seven of which were located in metropolitan are ...

. In the first game of the season, Tupou recorded 2 tackles and a sack, and finished the year with 13 tackles and 4 quarterback hits. The league ceased operations in April 2019.

Seattle Dragons

During the

2020 XFL Draft The 2020 XFL Draft was the inaugural player selection process to fill the rosters of the eight teams of the 2020 reboot of the XFL. The draft was held on October 15–16, 2019, via conference call, with results released through the XFL's social m ...

, the

Seattle 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 ...

selected Tupou in the seventh round. He was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

before the start of the season on January 21, 2020. He was activated from injured reserve on March 11, 2020. He had his contract terminated when the league suspended operations on April 10, 2020.

The Spring League

Tupou signed with the Jousters of

in October 2020.

St. Louis BattleHawks

On November 17, 2022, Tupou was drafted by the

of the

Professional rugby career

After playing in the

and the league folded in 2020, Tupou tried to get back in the NFL by doing combines on the side. Tupou then got a call from Peter Pasque, the general manager of the American Raptors in

Glendale, Colorado The City of Glendale is a home rule municipality located in an exclave of Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 4,613 at the 2020 United States Census. Glendale is an enclave of the City and County of Denver and i ...

and asked if he wanted to try

out. After stepping onto the pitch for the Raptors, Tupou said, "I just fell in love with the game". On January 27, 2022, Tupou signed with his hometown

of the

(MLR) as a part of their front row. The crossover athlete marks his third professional contract with a Seattle team.

References

External links

Seattle Seahawks bioWashington Huskies bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tupou, Tani 1992 births Living people Sportspeople from Everett, Washington Players of American football from Snohomish County, Washington American football fullbacks American football defensive tackles Washington Huskies football players Seattle Seahawks players Atlanta Falcons players Arizona Cardinals players The Spring League players American people of Tongan descent San Diego Fleet players Seattle Dragons players St. Louis BattleHawks players American rugby union players Rugby union props Seattle Seawolves players