POCATELLO − Trehsyn Fesili visited both Boise State and UNLV prior to his final year in high school, and spent most of his last high school football season committed to the Running Rebels.
And then he wasn’t.
“There was a lot of miscommunications with them (UNLV) and they just went with somebody else,” said Fesili, who has already made quite a name for himself in his first two games as a 17-year-old starter at defensive end for Idaho State. “And that’s fine. Coach Rick (Ali’ifua, Idaho State’s defensive line coach) called me and gave me the opportunity and I took it.”
Actually, when you talk to Fesili, who is known to his teammates as “Buddah,” the UNLV snub is not fine. Are you playing with a chip on your shoulder?
“Yes sir,” he answers without hesitation.
“Especially after being committed to a big school like UNLV, and then coming to Idaho State, I have a big chip on my shoulder knowing I can play at a bigger level,” he said. “But I’m still grateful for the opportunity to be here and be part of this family.”
Fesili, who played for traditional Honolulu power Mililani, was rated one of the top recruits in the islands going into his final season, with a three-star tag and reported offers from UNLV, BSU and Arizona State. He was ranked the No. 12 prospect in Hawaii by one recruiting service, and was selected defensive MVP of the Polynesian Bowl National Combine.
So when Ali’ifua heard that UNLV had dropped its offer to Fesili just a week before the early signing period last fall, he sprang into action.
“As soon as I found out, I got on the phone with him and his mom, his parents, and had about a four-hour conversation,” said Ali’ifua. “And after four hours, he gave me a call back, he committed and he ended up signing. Obviously, it’s a blessing to have him here.”
Fesili wasted no time making a big first impression at Idaho State. He graduated high school in December, allowing him to take part in spring practice with the Bengals. Even though he was only 17 years old, ISU’s coaches were talking about what an impact he was making in camp.
“It was always my plan from the start of high school to graduate early because I believed that if I get up there early, learn the playbook quick and just get used to the family system here, I would adjust quickly,” said Fesili.
Adjust quickly he did. In his first game as a Bengal, he finished with three solo tackles, six total tackles, 2.0 tackles for a loss, a sack, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery against Virginia Military Institute. He was named the Big Sky Conference Defensive Player of the Week after his debut.
Then he followed up that effort with seven tackles, 1.5 tackles for a loss and 1.5 sacks in ISU’s upset win against FBS Utah State on Saturday.
He currently leads the Big Sky in total sacks and tackles for a loss, although he’s third in TFLs by average per game, and second in sacks per game.
“Buddah is really a joy to coach,” said Ali’ifua. “He listens, he’s humble. I think the most impressive thing about him is his learning curve. He’s one of those guys I can just demonstrate one thing one time, or tell him to do something or explain something one time, and he’s able to do it at a high level. So that just makes him a special player and that’s the reason why he’s starting as a 17-year-old. He’s able to apply a lot of the teachings.”
Fesili got his Buddah nickname from his mom, when he was a chunky little baby. He currently bears no resemblance to the way the ancient Indian spiritual leader is typically portrayed. ISU lists Fesili as 6-foot-2, 217 pounds, which is light for a down lineman. He makes up for it in physicality, according to Ali’ifua.
“Physicality solves every problem here at the front,” said Ali’ifua. “Man, if you go ahead and take the fight, as opposed to catching everything, if you take the fight to the offensive lineman, you’re going to give yourself a shot. So physical and violent and relentless, that’s how he plays.”
Fesili acknowledges he still has a lot to learn. While he’s already a weapon as a pass rusher, he knows he needs to better defend against the run.
“For me being so young, I’m still growing and I’m still a little underweight,” Fesili said when asked about what he needs to improve upon. “Just being able to be more controlled against the run, I’d say that’s what I need to work on the most.”
Fesili also learned a hard lesson on Saturday at Utah State, getting a 15-yard personal foul after making a swiping motion with his finger across his face following his sack. Such a gesture is considered unsportsmanlike conduct and is one of the points of emphasis of officials this season.
“He’s still young, he’s 17 years old, and he doesn’t have everything figured out,” said Ali’ifua. “In fact, he doesn’t have most things figured out. But the thing I like about him is if he makes a mistake, he’s going to make a mistake 100 miles per hour. We can clean up the mistakes, the technical parts — that’s my job as a coach. So, I’m confident in my ability to be able to develop those pieces, but what I can’t coach up is the effort, the attitude, the physicality, the willingness to be violent … I can’t bring that out of somebody. So, if that’s not an innate characteristic, it’s hard for me to coach a person to the standard that I want them to play with.”
While Fesili brought many of those innate characteristics with him, he’s still just a boy on the verge of becoming a man. And he misses his family back in Honolulu.
“It’s very hard for me, especially for me still being so young,” he acknowledges. “I’m still technically supposed to be in high school, so it sucks. But this is the part where I gotta grow up and mature. … But all my front-line guys, Coach Rick, Coach Hawk (Hawkins), they’ve been helping me through this process.”
Having obtained such early success raises the obvious question: How long will Fesili be a Bengal? There is an internet site titled “The Portal’s Most Wanted,” and at the top of the list is Fesili.
“You can be sure that P4 coaches will be watching when Idaho State plays No. 1 Montana State, No. 3 Montana and No. 24 Northern Arizona later this season,” wrote Mark Pszonak, a recruiting analyst for Mike Farrell Sports. “Only two games into his collegiate career, Fesili has already become a player to watch.”
But that’s not worth worrying about until after what ISU fans hope will be a historically successful season. Until then, Ali’ifua will be working to make Fesili the best Bengal he can.
“I think right now, he’s one of those, ‘See ball, get ball’ kind of guys,” said Ali’ifua. “And he has the skillset to react based on what he sees. But for the most part, I’d say that’s the biggest part right now — continue to build upon the skill set that he brought in, continue to build that IQ.”