I’m a firm believer in everything happens for a reason. I’m kind of waiting it out to see what it’s happening for. – Salesi “Leka” Uhatafe
SALT LAKE CITY — Even the worst days on the football field are a gift for Salesi “Leka” Uhatafe.
The 20-year-old offensive lineman said he has the same love-hate relationship with training that any athlete has. But unlike some players his age, the sophomore has no trouble putting the physical pain in perspective.
Regardless of what happens in the weight room, no matter how grueling practice can be or whether Utah wins or loses, he is always grateful for the game.
“Just knowing what I’ve been through in my life, situations that are a lot harder than football,” said Uhatafe, who is slated to start at right guard for Utah this season. “But football also does the same for what I go through in my life.”
It certainly appears that life has burdened the Texas native more than his fair share of tragedy. Uhatafe admits, with a shrug, that he hears that a lot, but quickly adds he doesn’t spend a lot of time worrying about why he’s suffered more loss in the last three years than many people have in a lifetime.
“I’m a firm believer in everything happens for a reason,” he said without a hint of self-pity. “I’m kind of waiting it out to see what it’s happening for.”
Uhatafe lost his 13-year-old brother Andrew “Lolo” Uhatafe, 19-year-old step-brother Polo Manukainui and high school friend and Utah teammate Gaius “Keio” Vaenuku, in a car accident two years ago as the young men traveled with Uhatafe and his father from Utah to their hometown of Euless, Texas.
“Every day,” he said of the accident. “I still think about it every day. It affects a lot of my decisions like life and knowing every day isn’t guaranteed. I always try to attack the day like every day is my last.”
And just as he was preparing for this year’s training camp in late July, he got a phone call from his aunt telling him that his mother, Paea Latu, had a stroke and was unresponsive in the hospital.
Uhatafe admits he’s still dealing with the loss of his mother.
“I haven’t really figured that one out yet,” he said, looking out across the field at Rice-Eccles Stadium. “It’s still kind of hitting me, that whole situation.”
Uhatafe worried there was an issue with his 54-year-old mom because she’d left him a voice mail a day earlier saying she’d been sick and hadn’t gone to work.
“I thought, ‘Something’s up’,” he said. “She never misses work. Even if she’s sick, she’ll go to work, maybe just leave early.”
In fact, it was his mom’s work ethic that he mentions first when remembering her.
“She was very hard-working,” he said. “She would never say no, even if it was hurting her. …And she always did things to the best of her ability. It’s something I admired. I would never have that much energy to say yes to that many people.” Uhatafe spent nearly two weeks with his mom, who was unresponsive in a hospital after the stroke, which was brought on by a number of health problems.
“I made all my peace with that when I went out there,” he said. “They had her sedated…said she couldn’t hear, but I’d like to think she heard all that stuff (he said during his visit).”
Latu, who passed away on Aug. 6, never got to see her son play football for Utah. She relied on the sports strip that run across the bottom of television on news channels or phone calls from her son to keep her informed as to Utah’s success.
As Christmas approached, she worked more and more hours, so Uhatafe called her and gave her a recap of the game, including an analysis of his own performance.
“This year was supposed to be the year,” he said, “I told her to save some of her sick days so she can come out here and visit and watch a game. That never ended up happening.”
Uhatafe’s mom had a lot of family in Utah, which is one of the reasons she was pleased her 6-foot-4, 315-pound son chose the Utes. But he said his football family, especially those teammates from Euless, Texas, and his fellow linemen, has also helped him navigate the tragic events of the last few years.
“I would get so homesick, I wouldn’t want to be here,” he said of the Utes from his high school. “I’ve grown up with those guys, since I was little. …They’re people I can relate to, they know my history so I don’t have to explain it to people.”
On the field, Uhatafe has made himself one of the most reliable pieces of the team. Teammate J.J. Dielman called him a “workhorse” and praised the man he plays next to every game.
Utah assistant head coach Dennis Erickson said Uhatafe’s hard work has led to his success. He said it’s tough for coaches to really understand what players go through, but they try. He called the friendly, self-effacing player a “fun-loving kid with a great personality.”
But ultimately, it’s his commitment to the task that has helped him find success – in school and on the field.
“The thing about Leka is that he’s getting better and better all the time,” said Erickson, who also coaches the running backs. “Sometimes football can help you through those hard times.” Uhatafe isn’t sure why life has unfolded the way it has for him — good and bad. He does less questioning and more enduring right now. He has support from his teammates, including the senior center Siaosi Aiono, who he said is one of his mentors.
“This football team really has been one of my main ways of getting all my issues out,” he said. “I feel like football has been really helpful. Sometimes I feel like it’s the worst, so annoying, and I’m so tired. Other days, I’m so thankful for it. It’s how I live my life.”
Uhatafe is growing a beard that has special significance this season.
“We used to have this thing,” he said grinning, “me and all of my brothers did. We never cut our hair during the season. My dad was very superstitious. We thought it was the dumbest thing.”
He laughs as he explains how his father explained to them that he wanted them to remain humble, and he worried that if they cut their hair, they’d feel overconfident or full of themselves. He told them how it happened to him, and of course, Leka and his brothers teased his dad that he may not be as talented athletically as they are.
“We’d always make jokes,” he said, his dark eyes shining, as a smile spreads across his face.
Still, the brothers honored their Dad’s wishes, and eventually, it became a tradition they dared not break. But this year, Uhatafe will try something different. He’s shaving his hair on the side, and growing the top into a Mohawk for his brother Lolo, who always wanted a Mohawk. “My dad would never let him cut it, so I’m doing it for him,” he said.
Not wanting to abandon the tradition completely, he said he’s growing the beard to honor what he and his brothers did with his father.
He rubs his hand across the beard and smiles.
A couple of days later, he reiterates how the game has helped him heal after repeated heartbreak.
“Throughout all the things that have happened,” he said, “football has been the thing that is the same. Every time something happens, everything around my life changes, but football is the constant.”
Erickson admits there is something especially familial about the game they both love.
“It’s probably the biggest sport, ever, in all of sports, that brings family together,” he said. “So many guys involved in the game, in the success, not just the 22 who are playing, or the 44, but it’s 100. The team that wins, everybody doesn’t have to love each other, but as long as they get along, if they respect each other, they’re like brothers. …I know those guys are very close, and they’ve helped him through this.”
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