IDAHO, USA — A former NFL player lives right here in the Treasure Valley and is a University of Idaho Vandal. He spoke with KTVB about what it was like playing in the NFL and what he has been up to since he stepped off the field and retired.
At 6'5", 331 pounds, Mike Iupati played in the NFL for 11 years. From the San Francisco 49ers to the Arizona Cardinals and Seattle Seahawks. He played for some of the most-recognized NFL teams and coaches in the league, but his football career actually kicked off in Idaho long before he began playing in the pros.
"Singletary, Harbaugh, Bruce Arians and Pete Carroll. They're all phenomenal coaches," he said. "I will say I was lucky."
It was lady luck who 'intercepted' and sparked his love of football. The former pro player started playing by accident while he was in high school after moving from the island of Samoa to the United States.
"We moved from Samoa to get a better education, a better future," Iupati said.
He was in PE class one day when the coach asked if he wanted to play football.
"I remember my teammates saying just find a guy with the ball. I didn't know anything. I knew rugby a little bit, just you know, for fun...I was lost. But it was fun," he said.
Iupati would later go on to become a Vandal at the University of Idaho. However, he didn't play right away.
"I was a prop 48. I didn't qualify for the NCAA. So, I had to pay for my first year of school. And then promised me a scholarship if I did well, in my first year. It all paid off for me and mom and dad took a loan out to pay for school," Iupati elaborated.
He attended university for five years before being drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in 2010.
"It was tough, a lot of hard work, a lot of hours," Iupati said of his experience. "It's a grind. But it was fun. It's tough for people to understand how hard it is to be a football player; you have to train 24/7 mentally and physically, and a lot of people think that you just show up and play on Sunday. So, they don't know the hard work you got to put in. Usually my body, on Sundays, playing a game, and Monday...it's crazy. The older you get, the slower the healing process."
That is something Iupati said he started to notice as he began experiencing a lot of injuries. "Towards the end of my career, I had a lot of stingers...nerve pains." He said he was reminded of something a veteran football player once told him; "Learn a lot from football. But at the end of the day, when you want to hang up, you want to exit on your terms," he said.
So, he did. Giving him more time to spend with his family in the Gem State. Iupati said he married the love of his life, has four kids and loves Idaho for the people.
"I think the favorite part for me is the people. kind, good human beings," he said. "Other than that, I think it's a really good place to raise a family."
People can find him volunteering at the College of Idaho, giving back and sharing his experience in the NFL, as well as advice for the next generation hoping to someday play in the big leagues.
He said he takes it one step at a time.
"Have that main goal in your eye, and then have little goals. So, that way you can achieve. Because if you set that big goal, and yet it takes a while to achieve it, so then you get tired of it. Or sometimes you get complacent, or, you know, but I always have that big picture in my head. And I'd set small goals. And then I would complete one goal, and then move on to another at the end of the day. You're already at your main goal," he said.
He said life here is different from Samoa.
"Oh, it was different. It was a culture shock when I came here, obviously. But think sports, we didn't have a lot of sports growing up. Not organized. So, we play for fun, but there was no youth football at the time," he said.
He said football always came after family and chores.
"But now is totally different. You know, there's a career in football. A lot of parents see now okay, school is important. Football is important for the kids an opportunity for them to leave the island," he said. "Just looking back, I think because the blessing, I think it's more so, you know, the sacrifice that my parents had and everything just kind of just grateful."
Iupati said he goes back once a year.
"It's always fun to go back. And just to get a reminder of where I came from, and the struggle is going up. Just taking a step back and just reflect sometimes when you go so it's really cool," Iupati reflected.
He still misses things about playing the big game but is enjoying life in Idaho. A life, he said, would have been different if it weren't for his parents moving him to the United States for a better future.
"I am happy. I'm super blessed," Iupati said. "Go vandals!"
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