PROVO, Utah – BYU head football coach Kalani Sitake today announced the signing of junior college offensive lineman, John Taipe Vaka, out of Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill, California.
Vaka, a 6-foot-5, 275-pound lineman, is ranked by Scout as the No. 94 overall JUCO player and a three-star recruit after two seasons at Diablo Valley. As an offensive tackle he helped the Vikings average 465.2 yards of total offense per game in 2015, including 348.3 yards in the air, good for second in their league. Vaka was named to the All-National Bay 6 Conference First Team. Versatile and athletic, he also spent time as a tight end and played defensive line.
Vaka, from Oakland, prepped before junior college at Skyline High School. He was named to the Oakland All-League Second Team as a senior. He also served an LDS mission to St. Louis, Missouri.
Vaka was also recruited by Oregon, Colorado, Arizona, Washington State, Iowa State, Cincinnati, UCF, New Mexico, San Diego State and Hawaii.