Husky Roster Review: Tuputala Is Here to Stay as Starting LB
Alphonzo Tuputala is a big, tough and dependable inside linebacker. Outside of his University of Washington football coaching staff, no one really seems to know all that.
A year ago in spring football, team observers waited for returning starter and legacy player Carson Bruener to leapfrog his teammate and reclaim the No. 1 job, and it didn't happen.
This spring, people wondered how long it would take USC transfer Ralen Goforth to bypass Tuputala as the Husky starter, bringing impressive credentials with him from Los Angeles. Again, there was no lineup change.
The 6-foot-2, 238-pound junior from Federal Way, Washington, is here to stay, seemingly immovable from the second row, still better than everyone thinks.
"Now we know what we've got with Zo," UW coach Kalen DeBoer said. "A year ago, I don't think we really knew that."
What the coaches learned about Tuputala is he often is a mistake-free not necessarily flashy player who keeps things together on the football field.
Of the returning UW defenders, Tuputala and junior defensive tackle Faatui Tuitele are the only ones who started all 13 games last season.
He was one of four defensive players returning with defensive accolades, named All-Pac-12 honorable mention along with edge rusher Zion Tupuola-Fetui and safety Asa Turner, while edge rusher Bralen Trice was a first-teamer.
Going down the roster from No. 0 to 99, Tuputala, who wears No. 11 on defense, is next up in a series of profiles about each of the Huskies' scholarship players and assorted walk-ons, summing up their spring football performances and surmising what might come next for them.
IMMOVABLE ALPHONZO TUPUTALA
Tuputala has been so unsung at times that in 2021 spring ball he and Tupuola-Fetui each tore Achilles tendons within a few practices of each other, and everyone knew ZTF was injured and no one on the outside was aware Tuputala was down for the count.
"I never really bothered or cared whether my name was out there or not," Tuputala said in typical fashion.
Fully healed with a new coaching staff, he became a starter for the first time in his four Husky seasons and finished second on the team in tackles with 71.
On three occasions, Tuputala was selected defensive player of the week by his coaches. He had 9 tackles at UCLA and Oregon, and 8 at Washington State in the Apple Cup.
Playing next to a fully recovered Edefuan Ulofoshio this season, the Husky linebackers will be asked to blitz and press the issue more rather than simply stay in their zone and limit mistakes.
They'll be asked to create a lot more defensive turnovers, something that's been missing at a high rate at the UW for a number of seasons.
Tuputala comes off a 2022 showing in which he emerged with three sacks and a fumble recovery. The Husky defense could use a lot more interceptions and forced fumbles.
When ZTF tore his Achilles, he was driven out of the stadium on a motorized cart for all to see. With Tuputala, he limped up the tunnel unnoticed by just about everyone. That's just him, a tough guy.
He was examined by the team physician and then hobbled into the shower, let the water beat down on him and stood there feeling sorry for himself but only for a moment.
"Once I got out of the shower, I went to the training room and told them, ‘What do we have to do?’ " Tuputala recalled. "That was my mindset every day: ‘I have to do more. I have to do more. I have to do more. I have to sacrifice myself. I have to sacrifice myself. I have to do more.’ ”
Twenty-four months later, Tuputala has held true to that mantra. He became a Husky starter and didn't give the job back, not with heady competition. Not last year. Not this spring. People finally are beginning to understand that.
ALPHONZO TUPUTALA FILE
Service: Tuputala has played in 26 Husky games, starting all 13 last season. He came in with a linebacker class filled out by Josh Calvert, Daniel Heimuli and Miki Ah You, and maybe was the least touted of the four, yet he's the only one left on the roster. Calvert now plays for Utah and Heimuli for Arizona, while Ah You apparently gave up football. Tuputala turned out to be the best of the foursome.
Stats: He finished as the UW's second-leading tackler with 71, trailing only graduated safety Alex Cook, who topped everyone with 82. Tuputala has career numbers of 84 tackles, 7.5 for lost yards and 3 sacks, and a fumble recovery..
Role: Tuputala was the starter in 2022 and remains the starter, no matter who the Huskies bring in. A year ago, linebacker Cam Bright and Kris Moll arrived from Pittsburgh and UAB, respectively, supposedly to fill a starting spot opposite Bruener. Again, Tuputala was better than everybody. This spring, Goforth transferred in from USC and Ulofoshio, once considered the nation's top linebacker, returned fully healthy for the first time in 18 months. Tuputala is still daring any and all challengers to try and take his job from him.
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