BYU Football Offers Pokaiaua Haunga
BYU prioritized in-state recruiting in the 2021 class and it paid off when the Cougars signed players like Raider Damuni, Logan Fano, and John Henry Daley during the early signing period. Recruiting top in-state players will continue to be a priority for BYU, and the Cougars have already identified some of their top in-state targets in future classes. Over the last few weeks, we've highlighted 2023 prospects Smith Snowden, Stanley Raass and Spencer Fano. Today, we turn out attention to Pokaiaua Haunga who received an offer from BYU on Saturday. Pokai is a 2023 athlete who moved from Hawaii to Utah last year. I had a chance to catch up with Haunga to discuss his offer from BYU.
Haunga tells me that he has "been talking with Coach Ilaisa for a while now." Coach Tuiaki was the coach that officially extended the offer on Saturday. "Moving here to play football because of Covid-19 really helped me to get in touch with BYU," Haunga said. "They have been watching me play throughout the season."
A few schools have reached out with questionnaires, but BYU is the first school to extend Haunga an offer. BYU offered as an athlete, stating that he could play safety or running back at the next level. Haunga is listed at 5'11, 198 pounds - you can check out his sophmore highlights below:
BYU has signed their fair share of Timpview players over the past few years. On what his Timpview teammates have told him about BYU, Haunga said, "My teammates Raider Damuni and Logan Fano were very excited to hear that I received an offer...they want me to join them to play with them once again!"
Haunga says he has become a fan of BYU since moving to Utah: "Living in Utah allowed me to experience BYU football and I’ve been a fan since then."
There's a lot to like about Haunga's game - I expect him to receive more offers by the time he signs with his school of choice. There is still a lot of time between now and the 2023 signing day, but BYU has put themselves in a good position early on.
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