A Moment with New Husky RB Wayne Taulapapa
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To travel from his home to college, Wayne Taulapapa used to navigate roughly 4,700 miles from Hawaii to Virginia, which required him taking a half-dozen flights.
He's got it narrowed down to a nonstop now, from Seattle to Honolulu.
Taulapapa — pronounced towel-A-papa — is a new University of Washington running back and, by all the different clues emanating from two weeks of fall practice, likely to be the Husky starter for the season opener on Sept. 3 against Kent State.
Consider UW offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb's take on the 5-foot-11, 207-pound runner formerly of the University of Virginia.
"We tell our guys we want smart, tough and physical," Grubb said. "I think Wayne might be the best embodiment of that on our football team."
For sure, Taulapapa, who met with Seattle media members for the first time on Wednesday, comes across as an extremely mature and polished presence as he finishes up his college career in Montlake.
He's the sort of Pac-12 and ACC merger that the Huskies can live with. He was one of four Cavaliers co-captions last season. With 27 college starts, he becomes the second-most, battle-tested UW player on the roster, behind only offensive tackle Jaxson Kirkland, a 39-game starter.
Wayne Taulapapa shows off his pass-catching ability with receivers coach JaMarcus Shephard on top of the play.
Skylar Lin Visuals
If Taulapapa seems a lot older than his teammates, it's because he is — he first spent two years on a Mormon mission to Managua, Nicaragua, before pulling on a college football uniform and playing for four years in Charlottesville. He's full of all sorts of life experiences, majoring in Spanish after spending time in Central America.
He ended up at Virginia because Bronco Mendenhall's staff at BYU previously tried to recruit him before they packed up and moved to the South, following up with the running back once they got to Virginia and he had come home.
Taulapapa is at the UW now partly because Mendenhall stepped down following last season and partly because he was ready for something new.
"I just thought it was time to come closer to home and start fresh," he said.
Wayne Taulapapa brings 1,192 career rushing yards with him from Virginia.
Skylar Lin Visuals
Taulapapa also was recruited by UCLA, Purdue and Rice before signing on with the Huskies.
With 1,192 career rushing yards for Virginia and another 150 yards receiving, plus 20 touchdowns overall, he seems like the ideal player for DeBoer's high-powered offense.
Taulapapa first made a recruiting connection with UW defensive-line coach Inoke Breckterfield, who happens to be Hawaiian, and then visited Seattle for the first time when he took his recruiting trip. DeBoer and staff did a good job of selling him on what they're trying to do.
"I really enjoyed it," he said. "It was one of the best experiences I've ever had."
The nonstop flight and half the travel distance to school no doubt were factors.
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