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On the Road to Recovering from Knee Injury, 2022 Lineman Dave Iuli Excited by LSU Football Recruitment

Iuli striving for breakout junior season after recent recruitment take off

Dave Iuli was ready for his breakout sophomore season at Puyallup High School when an early season knee injury derailed his plans. It was early September and the season hadn't yet started when Iuli went down with a torn lateral meniscus.

An injury that for most isn't season threatening cost Iuli the entire season as it took longer than expected to heal after surgery. Instead of letting the injury take a negative toll on his mind, Iuli worked even harder to get back as healthy as possible.

"The doctors said I could've come back quicker if I was a little bit lighter but with all of the weight and pressure I had on my knee I didn't want to force it," Iuli said. "I had rehab on my knee four times a week and they basically helped me get the feel back in my knee, get the flexibility back and it was a great learning experience."

It wasn't until about three weeks after the season that Iuli really started to feel like his old self. 

Yet having to miss out on an entire year of development and being on the field with his teammates was at times difficult for Iuli. More than anything, he just missed playing the game he loved.

"When you truly have a feeling for the game, it's just hard to sit back and watch," Iuli said. "To watch your brothers go to war without you was just really tough but I always knew God has a plan."

Despite having to miss the entirety of his sophomore season, a funny thing happened. Iuli's freshman highlights blew up and now some of the top programs in the country are making offers to the 2022 lineman. 

A few of the teams that have shown Iuli the most interest to this point have been Washington and Oregon as they are the two programs that are closest to Iuli's hometown of Puyallup, Washington. The 6-foot-5, 320-pound lineman holds double-digit offers from schools like LSU, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Oklahoma and Arizona State.

The Tigers offered Iuli back in April and he called it a true blessing to pick up a scholarship from the national champs. Now, the goal for Iuli isn't even to focus on the recruiting process. It’s to make sure he's locked in on the season and proving to all of the teams that offered him scholarships that it was a wise decision.

"Missing sophomore year was a huge and major setback and the reason why all of these coaches are offering me is that they want to see that I still have it," Iuli said. "That's my biggest goal right now, I want to go out there and prove to everybody that I still got it and can play at a high level."

Iuli, who plays both offensive and defensive line, is currently the No. 6 ranked offensive guard in the country and has primarily dealt with defensive line coach Bill Johnson as his source of contact. 

LSU is recruiting him on offense but haven’t pegged one particular role as far as fit with the program, mainly because the staff wants to see how much Iuli has progressed from his freshman year.

"Coach Johnson told me he loved my freshman tape and how aggressive I was," Iuli said. "When he asked me what position I want to play in college, I literally told coach Bill that you can put me anywhere and I'll just make the play for you."

On the field, whether it's on offense or defense, Iuli loves to be the aggressor. On offense, that means opening up holes and giving his running back lanes to run through while also giving his quarterback time to throw. Defensively, it's about getting after the quarterback any way he can, something he can't wait to do in his return to the field.

"I don't like to stay passive, I'm not a passive guy," Iuli said. "If I see you, I'm hunting you down because I love to rush the QB."

Iuli takes great pride in his leadership with the team, an impressive quality to have particularly after missing an entire season due to injury.

"It takes one little fire to start up that whole team so that's what I try to bring to the table whether I'm on the field or not. I'm a very passionate guy," Iuli said. "I want to make sure my guys are straight, that grades are good. So one of my biggest duties I feel is making sure that I'm being that vocal locker room presence and just take action with my dogs." 

Getting back on the field and exceeding his great freshman season is why Iuli’s put in so much work this offseason. Iuli has been in the gym every day working on cardio, conditioning, weight lifting and technique so he can get back to having sustained success on both sides of the field. 

As it pertains to his technique, Iuli says he's focused mainly on the offensive side of the ball, though he has worked on defense to. The one area that comes in handy on both sides of the ball is his foot quickness.

“Technique is the most important part so I've been hitting that the most but I've been working on both,” Iuli said. “I've been working on my feet a lot, not applying pressure because my feet need to be quick at the line of scrimmage no matter what side of the ball I'm on."

As it pertains to LSU, Iuli hasn't spoken with anyone in a little while but hopes to get back in touch with the staff soon. After his junior season, the Puyallup High School prospect plans on making a ton of visits and Baton Rouge is one of his preferred destinations. 

"LSU is a great school and if it wasn't for them I wouldn't have nearly as much recognition as I do," Iuli said. "Getting the offer from the No. 1 school in the country was just a blessing and humbling. I'm grateful for everything that's happened to me so far and can't wait to see what's next for me with them."