With the injury to Cal transfer Ben Coleman, one that, according to ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham could sideline him until October of this year, the Sun Devils, throughout spring practice, found themselves in urgent need of an offensive lineman offensive who could start at left guard. 6-3 300-pound Purdue transfer Sione Finau who arrived on campus in mid-May, could be the answer for the Sun Devils and is plenty motivated to end his college career on a high note.
Finau, a 2019 prospect out of Keller, Tex. signed with FIU out of Keller high school and played there for three years before arriving last season at Purdue. He was a reserve at both guard positions in 2022 and played in all 14 games for the Boilermakers, who lost to Michigan in the Big Ten Championship game. The lineman, who entered the portal on March 30th, is a grad transfer with two years of eligibility left.
“The first time ASU reached out to me was pretty early, right after I got into the portal,” Finau recalled. “I was just chopping it up with coach Saga (offensive line coach Saga Tuitele), and he’s a great guy. I felt that the relationship that was there felt so genuine. It didn’t feel like they were trying to sell me something because it felt right. Me being the older guy, he wanted me to come in and bring some experience to the team and be a leader to the younger guys with everything I had experienced at the collegiate level. The coaches see me playing at one of the guard spots helping out wherever they want me on the field to help them get those wins.
“I would describe my game as very technical. When I play, I take a lot of the small details into account because when you play football, everything comes down to the little things. Not being the biggest guy, I focus on my technique and using my speed to the best of my abilities. I’m one of the quicker guys” on the offensive line.”
Growing up in the Dallas area and playing out of high school for FIU in Miami, Finau said that he appreciated the big city atmosphere that Arizona State projected, an environment that was much different than his previous college stop.
“Purdue is “the complete opposite,” Finau described. “The Midwest is very flat. Coming here (to ASU) feels like back home. There are a lot of things to do here if you want to take your mind off football for a little bit. The players I met all seem like good guys. All the transfers like me are coming here for a reason, and that’s to try and help the program turn things around.”
Much like the majority of transfers on any given program, the lineman does arrive to his new team following a tenure at a previous school that didn’t unfold as planned. It’s not just the true opportunity with the Sun Devils that drew Finau to sign with the team, but it’s also the drive to prove to himself, if not to others too, that he’s a different player than the one who people witnessed in West Lafayette, Ind.
“At Purdue, they had me in a rotational role, and that wasn’t the way I envisioned it,” Finau admitted. “I played both left and right guard, and as the season went on, I was playing a lot more. I’m coming here starting with a clean slate, looking to prove myself again and trying to get back in that groove of things, and playing a lot more. Being that guy again is what I’m looking forward to, coming here and helping this program.
“I don’t really feel any pressure coming here as an older transfer guy. I’m coming in and doing me. I feel that I know myself well enough to be able to go out there and play to the best of my ability. If I can do that, things should fall into place. I really enjoy the family culture here, and I’m looking forward to competing with the guys and getting onto the field and competing against all the teams we have on our schedule.”
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