Leki Fotu

George "Leki" Fotu[2] (August 23, 1998) is an American football defensive end for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Utah and was drafted by the Cardinals in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

Leki Fotu
No. 95 – Arizona Cardinals
Position:Defensive end
Personal information
Born: (1998-08-23) August 23, 1998
Oakland, California[1]
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:335 lb (152 kg)
Career information
High school:Herriman (Herriman, Utah)
College:Utah
NFL Draft:2020 / Round: 4 / Pick: 114
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 15, 2020
Total tackles:10
Sacks:1.0
Forced fumbles:0
Fumble recoveries:0
Player stats at NFL.com

High school career

Fotu played high school rugby[3] and high school football at Herriman High School, playing defensive end and sporadic tight end. His team won the Utah 5A state championship his senior season.[4] Fotu committed to Utah on September 20, 2015, choosing the Utes over USC, Brigham Young and Oklahoma State.[5]

College career

After his sophomore season, Utah coaches considered moving Fotu from defensive end to offensive tackle, but Fotu instead moved to defensive tackle and claimed the starting spot at that position.[6] At the end of his junior season, Fotu was named first team all-Pac-12 Conference.[1]

Before his senior season, Fotu was named a preseason All-American by ESPN.[7] During the season, after a game against Cal, Fotu was named Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week after recording a 13-yard sack.[8] He was named second team midseason All-American by the Associated Press.[9]

Professional career
Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand size40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard splitBench press
6 ft 5 3⁄8 in
(1.97 m)		 330 lb
(150 kg)		 34 1⁄4 in
(0.87 m)		 10 5⁄8 in
(0.27 m)		5.15 s1.80 s3.00 s21 reps
All values from NFL Draft[10][11]

Fotu was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the fourth round with the 114th overall pick of the 2020 NFL Draft.[12] He was placed on injured reserve with an ankle injury on November 14, 2020,[13] and activated on December 5, 2020.[14] In Week 15 against the Philadelphia Eagles, Fotu recorded his first career sack on fellow rookie Jalen Hurts during the 33–26 win.[15]

Personal life

Three of Fotu's brothers have also played college football.[1] Before focusing on football, Fotu also played rugby.[1] Both of Fotu's parents were born in Tonga, but moved to America before Leki was born.[16]

References
  1. Monson, Gordon (August 17, 2019). "Gordon Monson: Utah's all-everything defensive tackle Leki Fotu is a menacing man with a tender prayer in his heart". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
  2. Brugler, Dane (April 7, 2020). The Athletic's 2020 NFL Draft Guide (PDF). Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  3. "One-Time Rugby Phenom Leki Fotu Finds Football Groove".
  4. Furlong, Josh (October 28, 2019). "Leki Fotu taking no prisoners as he barrels down on special defensive season". KSL-TV. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  5. "Leki Fotu". Rivals.com. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  6. Sloan, Benjamin (October 3, 2019). "Leki Fotu's Fulfilling His Promise". The Draft Network. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
  7. Wood, Trent (August 20, 2019). "Utah defensive linemen Leki Fotu named to ESPN's preseason All-America team". Deseret News. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  8. Kragthorpe, Kurt. "Utah's Leki Fotu is the Pac-12 Defensive Lineman of the Week". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
  9. Allen, Trevor (October 15, 2019). "Utah Defensive Tackle Leki Fotu Named AP Midseason All-American". KSL-TV. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  10. "NFL Draft Prospect Profile - Leki Fotu". nfl.com. May 1, 2020. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  11. "Utah DT Leki Fotu : 2020 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile". NFLDraftScout.com. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  12. Zimmerman, Kevin (April 25, 2020). "Cardinals select Utah DT Leki Fotu in 4th round of 2020 NFL Draft". Arizona Sports. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
  13. "J.R. Sweezy Activated From IR As Leki Fotu Placed On IR". AZCardinals.com. November 14, 2020.
  14. Urban, Darren (December 5, 2020). "Cardinals Activate Leki Fotu From Injured Reserve". AZCardinals.com. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  15. "Philadelphia Eagles at Arizona Cardinals - December 20th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2020-12-20.
  16. Bodkin, Michelle (October 18, 2019). "SENIOR FEATURE: Leki Fotu, Big Man on Campus for Utes". UteZone. 247Sports. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
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