There were more than just a couple of starting linemen on ASU's front five to replace following the 2022 season, and the last piece of the puzzle in that regard was completed today. On that same day that multi-year starter Ben Scott announced that he was committing to Nebraska, 6-2 305-pound UNLV Center announced his pledge to the Sun Devils.
“There were a lot of the factors I considered,” Fautanu told Devils Digest following his decision. “Coach Saga and coach Kenny and the other coaches are really good recruiters. They told me about the team culture and their vision, and that made a big impact on why I committed. They want to win. They don’t want to have a rebuilding year, and with my past experiences with rebuilding years… I’ve been a part of the Sanchez era and the Arroyo era, and it was it just didn’t look the same at Arizona State Coach with coach Dillingham coming in. It’s different.
“I like the way these coaches talk to each other and the way they operate. It is just different from what I’ve seen. Them showing me what they think of me and where I could fit into this team really means a lot to me.”
While Fautanu did not know ASU’s first-year offensive line coach Saga Tuitele previously, he was given a formidable impression of him even before they met on the lineman’s visit last week.
“Coach TJ Woods, who was my O-line coach at UNLV knew coach Saga,” Fautanu noted. “And I really trusted him (Woods) and what he was thinking. When coach Saga reached out to me, I asked coach Woods to see if he was legit. And Coach Woods told me that coach Saga was a really good coach and has similar teachings. So that’s why I listened to coach Saga when he reached out, and that’s why I want to play for him.
“Coach Saga and I are Samoans, so we have the same ties with the Polynesian Cultural. I know he can develop me into the best player he can, so I think it’s best for me to go land earn from him.”
Fautanu admitted that he wasn’t looking for glitz, glamor, or eye-popping facilities when considering his various suitors. The lineman cared quite a bit about the substance that a school can offer him, and needless to say that ASU checked that box.
So, when he went on your visit last weekend, what some of the stuff that really stood out that you know, you think caused you to be a Sun Devil.
“I was just trying to figure out the behind the scenes stud,” Fautanu explained. “Coming from Las Vegas, you have all the fancy stuff, the facilities, playing in Allegiant (Stadium). So, I think my thing was I needed to find out more about the culture. I wanted to be surrounded by guys that had the same goals as me and were like-minded.
“Getting to know the coaching staff and seeing who they were bringing in right now, that is definitely a really big piece of why I committed. I know they are bringing in a lot of pieces around me that not only going are going to help us win games but compete for a championship. I just love the attitude the coaches have and how they carry themselves. They got there just a few days before I visited, and I could see their buy-in, how they talk to each other, and their vision for this program and how good it can be.”
Fautanu, who prepped at Hawaii’s University Laboratory School, received offers from Arizona, Cal, BYU, and Hawaii and ultimately joined UNLV as part of their 2019 class. Last season, he anchored a Rebels’ front five that aided a ground attack that posted 1,649 yards averaging 4.1 yards per carry, and one that scored 18 touchdowns. He was a three-year starter in Las Vegas, seeing first-team duties in 28 contests. One of those starts was against Arizona State in 2021, a game ASU won in Tempe 37-10.
“It was a good experience playing there,” Fautanu recalled. “The student section atmosphere was really crazy. It was a really great environment, and I don’t need to get used to it. I won’t be starstruck when I first play in that stadium.
Fautanu, who will arrive in Tempe next month, has two years of eligibility. He joins two other portal transfers, Cal’s Ben Coleman and Nevada’s Aaron Frost, as projected starters on the Sun Devils’ 2023 roster. ASU also added two junior college transfers to its offensive line in Riverside College’s (Calif.) Kyle Scott and East Los Angeles College Maxwell Iheanachor.
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