PROVO, Utah – BYU senior linebacker Sione Takitaki has been invited to play in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl on January 19, 2019 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California.
Takitaki, a native of Fontana, California, is BYU’s top tackler in 2018. The 6-foot-2, 230-pound linebacker is an athletic and versatile defender for the Cougars who has played outside and middle linebacker positions as well as defensive end during his career at BYU.
A team captain, Takitaki has recorded a team-best 99 tackles in 2018 while also leading the Cougars with 65 solo tackles and 34 assisted tackles playing both the outside and middle linebacker spots. He has added eight tackles for loss, two sacks and four quarterback hurries as a disrupter in the backfield along with three pass breakups and a forced fumble.
The NFLPA Collegiate Bowl was founded in 2012 by the National Football League Players Association to feature NFL draft-eligible players and help them prepare for a career in the NFL. Nearly 200 scouts, player personnel staff, general managers and head coaches from all 32 NFL teams are expected to be in attendance to watch live practices, conduct player interviews and review tape.
The NFLPA College Bowl will feature the National Team vs. American Team. Serving as head coaches for the 2019 game are longtime NFL coaches Mike Tice and Chuck Pagano.
Tice, who will coach the National Team, retired from the NFL after 36 years of NFL experience as both a player and a coach, including serving as the head coach of the Minnesota Vikings. Pagano, who will coach the American Team, started his long college and NFL coaching career in 1984 and most recently served as head coach of the Indianapolis Colts from 2012-2017.