When the season is on, his job as a safety is to stymie any opposing success in his secondary, and when given the chance, to hit people hard enough to separate the ball from their body. It’s football and he’s good at it, but it’s a far cry from what Raider Damuni did this summer to prepare for his last blast at BYU.
“We just got back,” the senior told the “Y’s Guys” livestream show this week about a trip to Tonga with a few of his teammates and head coach Kalani Sitake. While there, in addition to staging a football camp and a fireside, they advanced the mission of BYU-Pathway Worldwide throughout the island nation.
“When we play, we represent not just the people in Provo and Utah, but we represent the church and our faith and our faith is worldwide,” Damuni said. “So being able to have that impact on people with the platform that we have as football players at BYU, that is why we want to go out and reach out to people, not just in the United States, but worldwide.”
In partnership with the We Are One Foundation, headed by former Cougars Isaiah Kaufusi and Connor Pay with BYU head coach Kalani Sitake as chair of the board, Tonga has a new employment center to assist BYU-Pathway Worldwide graduates find work.
“I’ve seen it firsthand with my own family,” Damuni said. “I’ve had family members who went through the BYU-Pathway program who didn’t go to college out of high school, but they were able to do that and now they are thriving in their lives. They have jobs. I think that is the vision.”
Game-changing
The preparation for Damuni’s first trip to Tonga began several years ago when he served the Tongan people in the San Francisco area on his mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He knew the language and the culture, but visiting the island was game-changing.
“Just being there with the people reminded me of being on my mission again, serving people, going to the hospitals, saying prayers over there, it reminded me of being back on my mission, I felt like I was on the Lord’s errand,” he said. “That was huge for me and just seeing how happy the people of Tonga are. They don’t have a lot. They don’t have nearly as much as we have here, but they are always happy.
“Their faith is their main thing. Just being able to learn from them and see the example they set for us of how it is to be faithful in their lives. I think that was the biggest blessing and being with my teammates and coach Kalani (Sitake) as well.”
Love is key
Damuni’s summer of service shifts back into football mode in two weeks when the Cougars report to fall camp to prepare for the Sept. 5 home opener against Utah Tech. What he saw and felt for the people in Tonga is what he hopes to see and feel with his teammates in Provo.
“We know we have the talent. We know we have the scheme, and we have the coaches to take us to the right place. I think the one thing that is going to continue to carry us is the love that we have for each other,” he said. “The more you love your team and the more you love your brothers, the more you want to play for them and do good. I think that is something that is a huge emphasis with us right now.”
Big plans
At 6-foot-1 and 210 pounds, Damuni has an NFL body. He hopes to have the kind of season that will give him an NFL career — but not at the expense of his teammates.
“My main goal is, I want to be around the ball every single play. That is one thing I’ve been focusing on is the effort and how I control that,” he said. “Obviously, you want to get interceptions and tackles, but when you start focusing on the overall team, then you start playing better — just doing whatever I can do to make the team better is my goal right now.”
Going against BYU’s offense during the spring and through the summer workouts have Damuni and the defense confident the Cougars can keep building on their 23-4 record over the last two seasons.
“Bear (Bachmeier) is way harder to read now as a safety in the post, and he just seems way more calm and way more collected,” he said. “His receivers are nice — and the tight ends room. Obviously, you have LJ (Martin) too, who is the best running back in the nation. I think they are versatile and there is a lot of depth there.”
Strong at safety
With Damuni and highly touted Faletau Satuala in the safety spots, BYU is confident their last line of defense is solid and firmly in place. Satuala is healing from a fractured foot but is not expected to miss any playing time.
Together, with Satuala leading the way, the two combined for 127 tackles, eight tackles for loss and four interceptions last season, while working next to senior captain and current Oakland Raider Tanner Wall. Sophomore Tommy Prassas will also add to the safety depth as the defense transitions from Jay Hill as coordinator to Kelly Poppinga.
“We are so excited,” said Damuni of the fast-approaching start to fall camp. “We are just so excited to go out and play some football. That’s what you train for all year. Being so close, we are eager to go out and play.”
Go and make a difference was the intention for Damuni’s trip to Tonga, and it remains the marching order for his last blast at BYU. But opponents beware, Damuni’s summer of service may have softened his heart, but it won’t keep the young husband from menacing in the secondary.
It’s football and he’s good at it.
Dave McCann is a sportswriter and columnist for the Deseret News and is a play-by-play announcer and show host for BYUtv/ESPN+. He co-hosts “Y’s Guys” at ysguys.com and is the author of the children’s book “C is for Cougar,” available at deseretbook.com