Meet Eku Leota, Wildcat turned Tiger

[aubiefifty 18,231]

Meet Eku Leota, Wildcat turned Tiger

By Giana Han

7-9 minutes

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On a table in Eku Leota’s house in Asheville, North Carolina, there lies a book, Football for Dummies.

Despite being home to two college football players and a college football commit, the explainer book is needed. Because the Leotas are not actually a football family.

“We were not a football family at all,” Tamatoa McDonough, Eku’s younger brother said. They broke into laughter at the thought.

Growing up in Samoa, Petelo Leota played rugby. His wife, Molly Mcdonough-Leota, danced. Neither was interested in football, and their children weren’t either — until they moved to America and Molly’s sister gifted their second son, Eku, with a football. Eku loved that football so much he fell asleep with it tucked under his arm at night.

Eku started playing in first grade and all three boys were on a team by middle school. Molly and Petelo started studying to learn this new game. But even as Pika, Eku and Tamatoa developed into standout players, Molly and Petelo never emphasized success on the field.

Which is why Eku Leota, one of Auburn’s new defensive linemen, is so much more than his stats, however impressive they may be.

Former Asheville High School football coach David Burdette’s first impressions of Eku were all physical. He noticed his size and that “his motor never stops.” Asheville had some good players come through, but that combination made Eku, or Andrew, the English name he was called in high school, the only freshman to start every game that Burdette knows of.

In his time playing linebacker, defensive line and tight end, Eku made an impact on the Asheville program, graduating as the school’s all-time sack leader. Years after he graduated, his legacy lives on in Asheville, according to Tama, a senior on the team. But it was his personality that left the lasting impression.

Eku was extremely popular. He was well-liked by everyone because he was inclusive and empathetic, which led to his coaches encouraging him to run for student council, Burdette said. When the school was looking for a new head football coach, Eku was on the search committee that eventually selected Burdette. Petelo said he’s often told Eku is the “village mayor.”

Between his skill, dedication and personality, Eku was exactly the type of player anyone would want for the face of their program. So when it came time for Eku to be recruited, Burdette did his best to campaign for him, giving his name out to “everybody that walked around.”

Pika, Eku’s older brother, committed to South Carolina out of high school, so the family had some SEC experience, but most of the interest in Eku was coming from the ACC. Everyone thought he was going to Duke.

Then he took a trip to Northwestern, where Molly’s father got his medical degree. He loved it. A few weeks after returning to Asheville, he committed.

After moving up to Chicago, Eku redshirted his freshman season. Burdette expected that because Eku needed to put on weight. Watching the work he put in to get bigger was impressive, especially to Tama, who needs to gain weight himself before he heads to Yale. Eku sent workouts and nutrition plans home for him.

At least one of the Leotas tried to be at every one of Eku’s games, excitedly waiting for him to step onto the field. Even Osofa’i, his little sister who used to play with friends at his game, is now paying attention for all 60 minutes.

He finally hit the field his sophomore season. Molly and Malieta, Eku’s youngest sister, were in the stands the day he got his first sack. Malieta had her phone up, ready to video every time he stepped on the field. But when he took the Purdue quarterback down, everyone around her went so crazy that that the video depicts nothing but the up-and-down motion of everyone jumping. Eku finished that season with 2.5 sacks.

The next season, COVID-19 hit. COVID-19 limited the team in a lot of ways. It limited their access to workout equipment during the shutdown. It limited their practices when they came back. It limited their socialization. But it couldn’t limit Eku.

Eku was just as hard of a worker on the field and just as much of an “outgoing, goofy charismatic dude” in the locker room, transfer quarterback Peyton Ramsey said. He remembers joining the Northwestern locker room amid one of the most stressful seasons ever and being greeted by a giant hug from Eku. Despite still not being a starter, Eku somehow still made the All-Big Ten third team. It wasn’t about the quantity of snaps. It was about the quality of them.

“Every time he’s in there, you know, the game changes,” Petelo said.

Northwestern brought him on the field on third downs where they needed to affect the passer, and it yielded results.

In the eight games Eku played in, he recorded 10 solo tackles, 13 total tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss and four sacks. He had double the number of sacks of any other player on the team, including first-team selection linebacker Paddy Fisher and second-team selection linebacker Blake Gallagher. Ramsey described him as “relentless.” Molly described his play as “beautiful.”

“He’s like a puma or something to me,” said Molly, who now knows what a strip sack is after watching Eku make many of them. “He explodes off and then he’s flying vertically through the air and attacks his prey.”

With Eku’s help, the Wildcats came in second in the Big Ten and earned a ticket to the Citrus Bowl. But they were without their sack leader when they got on the plane to face Auburn in Orlando.

After finishing his degree and playing three years in the Big Ten, Eku decided it was time for a change. He let his coach and his team know. They supported his decision, then went and beat Auburn without his help.

Weeks later, Eku announced he was transferring to Auburn.

“It is weird; it is weird,” Ramsey said with a laugh. “Of all the schools in the country that he could have gone to, he picks Auburn, our last opponent that we beat. That’s kind of funny.”

Burdette was also surprised Eku chose Auburn, although he can see how Eku would fit there. Eku’s specialty is attacking the passer, something Northwestern didn’t need often as it played in a run-heavy conference. Teams in the SEC pass more, which means Eku’s skillset can be utilized more often. Burdette says he plays similarly to Clemson’s Austin Bryant and Clelin Ferrell. Eku’s versatility aligns with the types of players coach Bryan Harsin and defensive coordinator Derek Mason have recruited in the past.

Auburn is also way closer to home than Chicago, which seemed to be a factor based on the way the Leotas gleefully pointed out that Auburn is a five-hour drive instead of a 12-hour drive.

But one of the biggest factors was the way Auburn involved Eku’s family. Petelo and Molly said they took the best of both cultures — American and Samoan — when raising their children, and family is of utmost importance to them. Auburn, with its emphasis on the “Auburn Family,” respected that.

The Leotas don’t know much about Auburn since the recruitment was conducted during the pandemic, but they’re ready to meet this new football family.

“They taught us about War Eagle,” Petelo said. “We can’t wait to see somebody in Auburn gear so we can yell ‘War Eagle!’”

[AuburnNTexas 7,317]

The more I read about this young man the more I think he will have a major impact on our Defense. It seems his specialty is getting into the backfield and pressuring the QB which has been a major concern of the Auburn defense. When I initially read about him his numbers did not jump out at me. They were ok until I realized he was not a starter and had limited reps because of that. Extrapolate that to more reps and he could be the Pass rusher we have been looking for from the end position.

[Tigerbelle 5,299]

He seems like a kid who could help the team with leadership as well. Auburn really needs somebody like that.