UH defensive tackle John Tuitupou finds motivation from his girlfriend, children

John “JT” Tuitupou’s iPhone clock is set to family time.

After every University of Hawaii football practice, Tuitupou will have FaceTime conversations with his three children — daughter Tifa, 4, and sons Tevita, 3, and Takele, 2. They live on Lanai with his girlfriend, Malialani Manuel.

“They’re such blessings,” said Tuitupou, also expressing gratitude of his girlfriend. “I give her a lot of props. She holds it down. She supports me, I support her. … Our kids are our motivation.”

They met when they were students at Kalaheo High. Then Tuitupou went to East Los Angeles College, where he was named to the All-South Coast Conference’s second team as a defensive end, before eventually transferring to UH.

Last year, Tuitupou played in 10 games as a backup nose tackle. After Timmy Chang was named as Todd Graham’s successor as UH head coach in January, Jacob Yoro was promoted to defensive coordinator and Eti Ena was hired to coach the defensive linemen.

“I got here in the spring, and then evaluated the skill sets these young men possess,” Ena said. “And then I tried to put them in a position to be successful.”

With Blessman Ta‘ala established as the nose tackle, it was decided to move Tuitupou a few feet. Tuitupou welcomed the shift to 3-technique, where he defends the B gap between an offense’s guard and tackle.

“It’s about getting guys who can play this position and that position,” Ena said. “You’re also trying to diversify their portfolio, in business terms, so they can pass rush, so they can play the run. If they can do better, the better they can present themselves to provide an opportunity at the next level.”

At 6 feet 4 and 300 pounds, Tuitupou is an imposing obstacle. As a 3 tech, he said, “you have to hold that B gap. You can’t lose that B gap. You have to be selfish in there. Your primary goal is to stand your ground. You can’t be washed (out of position).”

Tuitupou has worked on several techniques to fight off grasping offensive linemen. His pet move is the swipe. Picture Mr. Miyagi’s wax-on, wax-off technique. Tuitupou will use a similar motion to bat away a blocker’s hands. “It’s one of my favorites,” Tuitupous said. “You pass rush vertically, then swipe the O-lineman’s hands. You can swipe inside or swipe outside.”

During training, Tuitupou will charge the blocking sled or wrap the blocking bag. Ena implores the defensive lineman to bring the top of the sand-filled bag to the ground. Tuitupou also works on fire steps, power steps and a no-step stance. In practices, he goes against the quick (Ilm Manning), undersized (6-foot Sergio Muasau) and massive (6-5, 365-pound Arasi Mose).

Ena noted much of Tuitupou’s work is statistically uncredited. There is no category for filling a gap while the ball-carrier heads to another area.

Ena said he reminds his players: “if you have a pizza, and we cut it into 11 slices, and I give you one slice, do you think that’s a lot? No, you’re going to want a lot more pizza. But that’s your job every play. Do your one-11th. And doing that job, and doing that job well, will either lead to plays or the man next to you making plays. You might not make the play, but you make the play happen.”

This training camp, Ena noted, Tuitupou is creating defensive plays.

“I can’t say enough good things about the way JT and Blessman go about it,” Ena said. “It’s fun to watch the big guys do what they do, and have some fun while doing it. I think that gets lost in the business world. If you can go to work and have fun, that’s a good day.”