Junior Tautalatasi

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

American football player (born 1962)

PositionRunning back

Born (1962-03-24) March 24, 1962 (age 64)
Oakland, California, U.S.

Listed height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)

Listed weight207 lb (94 kg)

Junior Tautalatasi

No. 25, 37

Position

Running back

Personal information

Born

(1962-03-24) March 24, 1962 (age 64)
Oakland, California, U.S.

Listed height

5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)

Listed weight

207 lb (94 kg)

Career information

High school

Encinal (Alameda, California)

College

Washington State

NFL draft

1986: 10th round, 261st overall pick

Career history

Philadelphia Eagles (1986–1988)
Dallas Cowboys (1989)

Career NFL statistics

Rushing yards	275
Rushing average	2.8
Receptions	88
Receiving yards	706
Total touchdowns	2
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Taivale "Junior" Tautalatasi Jr. (born March 24, 1962) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Washington State Cougars and was selected in the 10th round of the 1986 NFL draft. He played in the NFL for the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys.

Born in Oakland, California to a Samoan American family, Tautalatasi graduated from Encinal High School in nearby Alameda in 1981.^[1]^[2]^[3] After high school, he began his college football career at Chabot College, a junior college in Hayward where he would play in the 1981 and 1982 seasons.^[4]

He then transferred to Washington State University.^[5] After redshirting the 1983 season, he played in 1984 and 1985 with the Washington State Cougars, while playing behind Rueben Mayes (conference rushing leader) and Kerry Porter.^[5] With Washington State, Tautalatasi rushed for 402 yards and four touchdowns, averaging 6.3 yards per carry.^[6]

Professional career

Philadelphia Eagles

Tautalatasi was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the tenth round (261st overall) of the 1986 NFL draft.^[7]^[3] He made the team after showing big play potential in the preseason.^[8]^[9] He appeared in all 16 games as the team's third down back and started 2 games, including the season opener, while Keith Byars was recovering from a foot injury. Although he was slowed down by a right knee injury,^[10] he finished with 41 receptions (second on the team) for 325 receiving yards (fourth on the team) and 51 carries for 163 rushing yards.^[11] He had 11 receptions in the tenth game against the New York Giants. He recorded a 50-yard run in the seventh game against the Dallas Cowboys. He made a 56-yard reception in the fifth game against the Atlanta Falcons.^[12]

Buddy Ryan, Tautalatasi's head coach with the Eagles, was unable to pronounce his last name and referred to him most often as "Junior Smith".^[13] In 1987, he posted 25 receptions for 176 yards and 26 carries for 69 yards.^[3] On November 9, 1988, he was waived to make room for running back Walter Abercrombie.^[14] Tautalatasi concluded the 1988 season with 48 receiving and 28 rushing yards.^[3]

Dallas Cowboys

On September 26, 1989, he was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as a free agent. A backup running back, Tautalatasi had 157 receiving yards and 15 rushing yards in six games.^[3] He was released on August 26, 1990.^[15]

References

↑ Aubrey, Coult (May 11, 1986). "Samoan running back could be Eagles surprise". The Morning Call. Allentown. Retrieved October 22, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
↑ McGreehan, Mike (November 12, 2009). "Spotlight on Encinal's Hall of Fame athletes". Alameda Times-Star. Archived from the original on August 27, 2016. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
1 2 3 4 5 "Junior Tautalatasi". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
↑ "CSM, Chabot to battle for GGC title again". San Francisco Examiner. September 15, 1982. p. 88. Retrieved October 22, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
1 2 Domowitch, Paul (May 10, 1986). "Tautalatasi Would Like To Come Out Of Hiding". Philadelphia Daily News. Archived from the original on October 17, 2015. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
↑ "Junior Tautalatasi". Sports Reference CFB. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
↑ "1986 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 3, 2023.
↑ Hoffman, Rich (August 29, 1986). "Despite Brilliance, Junior Will Play 2nd Fiddle". Philadelphia Daily News. Archived from the original on January 31, 2016. Retrieved January 25, 2018.
↑ Reid, Ron (August 20, 1986). "By Any Name, A Surprise". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on September 25, 2015. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
↑ "Potential Trouble Awaits Tautalatasi After 'scope". Philadelphia Daily News. Archived from the original on December 31, 2015. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
↑ Drago, Mike (August 19, 1987). "Ryan displeased with Tautalatasi". Reading Eagle. p. 38. Retrieved January 23, 2018.
↑ "Junior Tautalatasi 1986 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
↑ Reid, Ron (August 11, 1986). "Ryan Promotes Waters And Tautalatasi To First String". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on February 1, 2016. Retrieved January 23, 2018.
↑ "Abercrombie Joins Eagles". Reading Eagle. November 10, 1988. Retrieved January 25, 2018.
↑ "Former Eagle Zendejas Released By Cowboys". The Philadelphia Inquirer. August 27, 1990. Archived from the original on January 31, 2016. Retrieved October 22, 2020.

v t e Philadelphia Eagles 1986 NFL draft selections
Keith Byars Anthony Toney Alonzo Johnson Matt Darwin Ray Criswell Bob Landsee Cornelius Redick Byron Lee Seth Joyner Clyde Simmons Junior Tautalatasi Steve Bogdalek Reggie Singletary Bobby Howard Charles Crawford (supp.)

Philadelphia Eagles

Dallas Cowboys

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