“The Bear” in the Trenches: Josh Singh’s Journey from the Islands to the SEC

When Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson was thrown to the ground at his own five-yard line on a momentum-shifting play two weekends ago, most Vanderbilt fans looked up at No. 99 — the culprit behind the sack — and thought, “Who the heck is that?”

The answer, they quickly learned, was Joshua Singh — a 6’0, 285-pound defensive tackle who had flown under the radar with Commodore fans until he announced himself on the big stage at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa. For Singh, that sack wasn’t just a highlight, but the payoff of months spent grinding through injury, doubt and a transition across the country.

Singh isn’t supposed to be here, at least not by the numbers. He’s one of the few players from Hawaii to compete in the SEC, an undersized defensive tackle built in a league full of giants.

Football has always been more than just dimensions or stats for Singh. Raised in a tight-knit Hawaiian community, he grew up playing football barefoot at the park, watching older players like now-Los Angeles Chargers safety Alohi Gilman turn island dreams into college and later professional careers.

“I grew up watching Bradley Anae and Mika Tafua — all these guys played at Utah,” Singh told Vandy on SI. “Those are my neighbors. Seeing them and the impact they made on kids my age growing up. If they can do it, I can do it too.”

Singh’s Hawaiian roots are an instrumental part of his journey, and a piece of motivation that keeps him going every single day. Long before he was an SEC lineman, he was a kid in Laie — a small coastal town where community runs deep and competition starts young. Now, when he runs onto the field wearing black and gold, it’s not just Vanderbilt’s logo on display. It’s Laie’s. It’s Hawaii's It’s his family’s name.

“All the kids growing up from the islands want to put our family and hometown on the map,” Singh said. “What I can do for the kids going forward, it’s just about giving back. That’s the biggest thing for me.”

Leaving Hawaii for the first time, Singh attended high school in Orem, Utah — a long way from the breezy beachside parks where he first learned the game. Singh’s work ethic earned him an offer to stay in Utah and play football for BYU, where he stayed for four seasons. Yet the story from there didn’t go as scripted.

Singh spent most of his time in Provo buried on the depth chart, rotating in for limited snaps and never once starting a game for the Cougars. The Laie native registered just 14 tackles across his four seasons with BYU. For many players, that might have been discouraging. But Singh saw it differently. He was used to playing with a chip on his shoulder.

“I’m grateful for every experience I had at BYU,” Singh said. “I love the coaches there. I love my boys."

Singh had always been one of the smallest guys in the defensive line room, and he knew it. At 6’0 and 285 pounds, he doesn’t exactly fit the prototype. Not at BYU. Not in the SEC. But he wasn’t going to let that stop him from accomplishing his goals.

“You look at the average defensive tackles in the SEC— about 6'3, more than 300 pounds,” Singh said. “I’m a 6'0, 285 [pound] tackle. I’ve had that my whole life — every day I have to prove to everyone, ‘Hey, I can do it.’”

That relentless mindset has defined Singh since the day he first touched a football. Every rep has been a test of whether heart can outwork measurables. And while BYU gave him a home where he found comfort and faith, it also gave him a hunger to find a place where he could truly shine like he knew he could.

“I was shocked at how the transfer portal worked,” said Singh, who had offers from a mix of SEC, ACC, and Big 12 schools. “Honestly, it’s a crazy world.”

Vanderbilt’s offer stood above all the rest, though, not because of the program’s pedigree, but because of its values. Singh has always carried his faith extremely close to him, repeatedly crediting a higher power for delivering what’s in store for him.

“I know everything happens for a reason,” Singh said. “I just put my head down and I know [God will] put me where I need to be. I think God has a plan for me.”

When considering Vanderbilt, Singh quickly realized West End wasn’t just a physical home, but a symbolic one through faith and family — two of the most important things in his life. Defensive line coach Larry Black took Singh under his wing and explained what to expect from head coach Clark Lea’s program.

“When I met Coach Lea, it wasn’t about football — it was about family and it was about faith,” Singh said. “It was about who I am as a person, and that made the biggest difference to me.”

As he spoke to other coaches, he realized this wasn’t the norm. Other programs wanted to talk exclusively about money and branding. But not Vanderbilt.

“Coach Lea and Coach Black wanted to be my family and wanted to know who I was,” Singh said. “These guys really care about me, and not just on the football field.”

While he might have seemed destined to succeed in Nashville, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows for Singh. The lineman dealt with an injury that kept him out of the season opener against Charleston Southern, and he played only sparingly after that, recording just two tackles across the team’s first five games. But something clicked for him as he entered Bryant-Denny Stadium for the first time, and the lineman had himself a mini-breakout, recording 2 tackles-for-loss, a pass deflection and the aforementioned sack against the Crimson Tide.

The coaching staff seemed to take notice of Singh’s strength and twitch, and he played 35 snaps against Alabama, which he took advantage of by living in the backfield for most of the game. It was a huge moment for Singh to prove to a national audience that he belongs.

“[Singh]’s a difference maker at the line of scrimmage,” Lea said. “He can beat the opponent in technique and get in the backfield. We’re grateful to have him.”

After thriving against Alabama, Lea and Black decided to reward Singh by starting him for Vanderbilt’s Week 8 win over LSU — Singh’s first start at the collegiate level. The graduate student thanked his coaches by recording 4 tackles and led the team with 1.5 TFLs en route to posting a strong 73.4 PFF grade across 28 snaps. Singh knows he needs to earn his way onto the field every week, though.

“All the boys in our [defensive line] room, we’re all hungry cats,” Singh said. “No one’s just given the [starting] spot. We just have to keep working.”

One teammate in particular has helped Singh grow on and off the field. Lea spoke earlier about Issa Ouattara’s continued impact on the team despite being sidelined with a shoulder injury, and Singh credits the senior captain with much of his growth through his time in Nashville.

“[Ouattara] is one of the best captains I’ve ever been around,” Singh said. “Even though he’s injured, he’s still here taking care of us, helping us watch film and doing as much as he can for us.”

Around the facility, Singh’s quiet confidence and relentless motor have earned him new respect — but not a new name. Back home, they called him “the Bear”, a nickname that followed him through BYU and now to Nashville. It fits. He’s strong, twitchy and deceptively quick, though he’s maybe more likely to maul you with a swim move than a growl.

“[Singh]’s presence has been great,” defensive lineman Zaylin Wood said. “Me and him are kind of similar — we’re both twitchy, undersized guys, but I love that guy. I’m glad to have him.”

Wood isn’t the only one who’s taken notice of Singh’s presence. Inside Vanderbilt’s locker room, his teammates and coaches alike talk about his growth through energy, humility and faith — the same traits that carried him from Laie’s parks to the toughest conference in college football.

“He's been a great addition,” Lea said. “And a lot of that is beyond the playing field. He’s a really good person, and we've enjoyed having him.”

Singh may be undersized by textbook standards, but his story towers over the field. For Vanderbilt, he’s become a spark. For Hawaii, he’s proof. And for Singh, he’s right where he’s meant to be.