Tag: Popo Aumavae

Former Oregon DT Popo Aumavae signs with Carolina as an undrafted free-agent

Popo Aumavae is headed to the Carolina Panthers after signing as a UDFA.

Popo Aumavae, a former defensive tackle for the Oregon Ducks, has signed with the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent. Aumavae battled several injuries during his time at Oregon, but he has been a staple on the Ducks’ defensive line for the last seven years.

As a three-star recruit and the No. 49 ranked DT according to 247Sports, Aumavae came to Oregon in the class of 2017. In five seasons with the Ducks, Aumavae played in 43 games and took over 1200 snaps. In his career, Aumavae tallied 86 tackles, 12 TFLs, and 6.5 sacks.

Aumavae’s best season at Oregon was his 2021 campaign, when he played in all 13 of the Ducks games, taking 500+ defensive snaps. That season Aumavae registered 36 total tackles and received an 81.3 PFF defensive grade — a top 15 rank for DTs with 500+ snaps that season.

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The Bears show loads of interest in offensive prospects at Oregon’s pro day

All 32 NFL teams were at Oregon’s pro day workouts, but nobody sent more coaches than the Chicago Bears

Tuesday’s top collegiate pro day was in Eugene for the Oregon Ducks workouts. All 32 NFL teams were in attendance, though some were represented more heavily than others.

No team sent more resources and high-level personnel to the Ducks pro day than the Chicago Bears. Specifically, the Bears had six members of their staff in Eugene to check out the plethora of prospects.

Per Jim Nagy of the Senior Bowl, the Bears dispatched head coach Matt Eberflus and offensive coordinator Shane Waldron were there for the festivities. Other sources on the ground indicate new Chicago WR coach Chris Beatty was in attendance. Offensive line coach Chris Morgan was also there, a day after he witnessed Oregon State standout Taliese Fuaga at the Beavers’ pro day.

Among the Ducks prospects they got to watch, listed in expected order of draft selection:

IOL Jackson Powers-Johnson

QB Bo Nix

WR Troy Franklin

RB Bucky Irving

CB Khyree Jackson

DT Popo Aumavae

Fall Ball Takeaways: Pair of notable defensive linemen not accounted for

Fall Ball Takeaways: Pair of notable defensive linemen not accounted for

The most pressing information that came out of the portion of Oregon Ducks practice that was open to media members on Friday afternoon had to to with the absence of a pair of notable defensive linemen.

Neither Popo Aumavae nor Keyone Ware-Hudson was accounted for during the 20 minutes of practice that media members were able to watch. Aumavae is a projected started on the DL, and Ware-Hudson has had some major contributions over the past couple of years as well.

There were also two offensive players missing from the first part of practice: WR Justius Lowe and OL Michael Wooten. This is the second practice in a row where Lowe has not been spotted by media members.

The Ducks will hold their first scrimmage of fall camp on Saturday afternoon, but that event is closed to media members, so we will not be able to take attendance and see if either of the four aforementioned players are suited up and partaking in activities. We will get a chance to talk to head coach Dan Lanning after the scrimmage, though, so he will likely be asked about their availability.

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How Oregon’s DL looks with Jordan Burch’s commitment, Brandon Dorlus’ return

In the last week, former 5-star DL Jordan Burch committed to the Ducks, and Brandon Dorlus announced his return. Oregon’s DL could be special in 2023.

Going into the offseason for the Oregon Ducks, one of the biggest areas of concern was on the defensive line. While that unit played well in 2022, there were a lot of question marks about who would be returning for the 2023 season.

Defensive end DJ Johnson announced quickly after the end of the regular season that he would be declaring for the NFL Draft and opting out of the bowl game. It was also believed that Brandon Dorlus would do the same, and guys like Casey Rogers, Taki Taimani, and Popo Aumavae had yet to make their future intentions clear.

This past week has been an endless source of good news on that front for the Ducks. It started out on Sunday with Dorlus announcing that he would be coming back for one more year, and continued on Tuesday with Rogers announcing that he would do the same. Wednesday provided the fireworks, with South Carolina defensive lineman Jordan Burch, a former 5-star recruit and the No. 1 ranked player in the transfer portal, announcing that he would commit to the Ducks, giving Lanning one of the best DL in the nation.

We also got news from Aumavae, who has been granted an injury waiver and will be returning for one last season in Eugene as well.

With all of this news, I figured it would be a great time to look at the defensive line as a whole and try to project how things will shake up in 2023. Some of the aforementioned guys will likely announce their future intentions in the next week, and a few others may choose to transfer to other schools.

Let’s take a look at how things stand on the DL going into the offseason:

Breaking: Popo Aumavae out for the season with foot injury

Defensive tackle Popo Aumavae will miss the 2022 season with a foot injury he sustained in practice leading up to the Georgia game.

Last year it was Justin Flowe. This year it’s Popo Aumavae.

Oregon Ducks football head coach Dan Lanning announced during his Monday press conference that the Ducks defensive tackle will miss the 2022 season with a foot injury.

He’ll most likely have surgery this week.

Lanning, who doesn’t give away injury news very often, said that the injury occurred late last week before the team headed for Atlanta.

It’s a big blow for the Oregon defense as Aumavae was on the Associated Press Pac-12 All-Conference first team, the PFF Pac-12 All-Conference first team and a coaches Pac-12 All-Conference honorable mention,

In 2021, the senior enjoyed a breakout season for the Ducks in his fifth year with the program, playing in 13 of Oregon’s 14 games and finished the season with a career-high 36 total tackles, including 16 solo.

His absence last week against Georgia was noticeable as the Bulldog offensive line continually pushed the Ducks back and controlled the line of scrimmage.

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Five Ducks named to the Polynesian player of the year award watch list

Oregon linebacker Noah Sewell headlines a group of five Ducks to be named to the Polynesian Player of the Year award watch list.

Oregon has had a long history of having great Polynesian players in the football program and that hasn’t changed.

Five current football players have been named to the watch list for the 2022 Polynesian Player of the Year award. Marcus Mariota took home the first award in 2014 and Penei Sewell also won it in 2019.

Defensive tackle Popo Aumavae, offensive lineman Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu, linebackers Noah Sewell and Mase Funa as well as defensive lineman Taki Taimani have all been named to the watch list.

Sewell is definitely one of the favorites to win the award if he has the kind of year the Ducks are expecting the junior to have. If Sewell is to win the award, it would mark the first time in the award’s short history that players of the same family have been recipients.

The winner will be announced after the regular season is finished in December.

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Oregon’s defense is on track to being healthy when season begins

Oregon missed out on Justin Flowe and other defensive players this spring because of injury. That shouldn’t be the case this fall.

Oregon Ducks head football coach Dan Lanning would be the first one to say his team wasn’t quite 100 percent healthy during spring practices.

They were missing quite a few key pieces, such as linebacker Justin Flowe and defensive linemen Brandon Dorlus and Popo Aumavae. It makes it difficult to evaluate the talent that the Ducks are sure to bring on the defensive side of the ball in 2022.

But according to Lanning, that shouldn’t be a problem for fall camp as he explained at Pac-12 Media Day.

“I don’t want to spend a lot of time talking about injuries,” he said. “I will say all those guys are doing really well this summer. We definitely think they’re going to be a big part of what we’re doing this season.”

The less time Lanning has to talk about injuries, the better. Oregon has one of the tougher schedules out there this season, beginning with the defending national champions in Georgia.

Having players back at 100 percent is key, but seeing Flowe recover fully from his foot injury will be extra important. Flowe, along with Noah Sewell, could be the most dynamic linebacker duo in the nation, which is why Lanning recruited him to play at Georgia.

He’s a really talented player, a specimen. I think at this point he’s played five quarters. I think Justin will tell you there’s high expectations and he hasn’t been able to execute the level he wants to yet because of injury.

Oregon is hoping on Sept. 3, Georgia will see what it missed out on with Flowe. The Bulldogs’ loss should be the Ducks’ gain.

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Oregon NT Popo Aumavae set to return to Ducks for 2022 season

Oregon Ducks’ nose tackle Popo Aumavae will return to the Ducks for the 2022 season, but will miss the Alamo Bowl due to injury.

It looks like one of the unsung heroes of Oregon’s defense will be returning to the Ducks for the 2022 season, though nose tackle Popo Aumavae will miss Wednesday’s Alamo Bowl because of injury, according to his Twitter.

Aumavae was one of several players on the Oregon defense who was considered a prospect to enter the 2022 NFL draft and forgo the rest of his college career. However, it appears that Popo is interested in returning to see the first season of Dan Lanning in Eugene.

During his four seasons with the Ducks, Aumavae has been a stronghold on the defensive line, though stats don’t always come with the position. In 2021, he had his best season to date, with 36 total tackles, three of which went for a loss.

While he is returning for the 2022 season, Aumavae will not play in the Alamo Bowl for the Ducks due to an injury.

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Five Oregon Duck defenders named to the Associated Press first team

Led by Kayvon Thibodeaux and Noah Sewell, Oregon took up nearly half of the AP first-team defensive selections.

The Oregon Ducks defense was one of the best in the Pac-12 and the Associated Press took notice.

Oregon occupied nearly half of the AP All-Pac-12 first-team defense released on Friday with five selections, while two more players earned second-team honors.

Defensive linemen Popo Aumavae and Brandon Dorlus, along with defensive back Verone McKinley III, linebacker Noah Sewell, and defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux were all named to the first team, giving Oregon five of the 11 spots on the first-team defense.

The Ducks have five first-team selections for the second time in the last three years, and their five defensive first-team honorees are the most in program history.

On offense, running back Travis Dye and kicker Camden Lewis earned second-team recognition, giving Oregon seven total AP All-Pac-12 selections.

To no one’s surprise, Thibodeaux is an AP All-Pac-12 first-team selection for the third year in a row, becoming the first Oregon player ever to achieve that feat.

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Four Ducks are on the Polynesian Player of the Year watch list

Popo Aumavae, Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu, Mase Funa, and Noah Sewell are all on the watch list for the 2021 Polynesian Player of the Year.

Marcus Mariota and Penei Sewell may have to move over.

Four Oregon football players, Popo Aumavae, Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu, Mase Funa, and Noah Sewell have been named to the preseason watch list for the 2021 Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award, the Polynesian Football Hall of Fame announced on Thursday.

The 2021 list is composed of 63 players from 31 different FBS schools. Oregon is one of six schools with at least four players on the watch list.

Oregon has a rich history with the Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award. Mariota, who also won the Heisman Trophy, was the inaugural recipient in 2014. Offensive lineman Penei Sewell took home the honor in 2019. Oregon is the only program to have had multiple players win the award as the Ducks are looking to make it three.

Five finalists will be unveiled on Nov. 30 with the winner being announced Dec. 14. The presentation of the award will be held during the Polynesian Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Week Celebration Dinner Jan. 21, 2022 and they will also be recognized at halftime of the Polynesian Bowl the very next day.

Among the four Ducks named, it’s likely Noah Sewell has the best chance to claim the award. The super freshman linebacker was the 2020 Coaches Pac-12 Freshman Defensive Player of the Year and was one of two true freshmen and the only among the Power 5 conferences to lead his team in tackles (45) in 2020.

The other three Ducks, Aumavae, Aumavae-Laulu, and Funa will all play major roles in defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter’s defense and are all expected to have great seasons.