HOMECOMING: Polynesian athletes at MSSU bring faith, family and football to Joplin

Oct. 5—This is homecoming week for Missouri Southern State University, but for 10 guys on the football team, home is actually 4,000-6,000 miles away from Joplin.

Eight come from American Samoa — Solomona Fetuao, Lepopeasenuu (Lepo) Fualaau, Joaquin Tapusoa, Faga'alu Siaki, LaDamien Dawkins, Malo Mata'u, Chris Su'a, Tevita Amituanai — and two from Hawaii, Kalepo Fiaseu and and Malaefono Ale.

But no matter how many miles, hours or days away from home they are, they say that since leaving what they call "the Rock" they have built a home at MSSU.

"Home to me is the people around me. Not really the place," Fiaseu said. "The boys in this room right now, they are my family away from home. The coaches, the football players, they are my brothers, they are my fathers."

Head coach Atiba Bradley talked about that family aspect each one of the islanders brings to the team.

"They bring another level of family," Bradley said. "Their demeanor, the way they carry themselves, they do such a great job. I've never seen a group work so hard and have so much fun doing it.

"That energy is infectious and it spreads. So I'm just thrilled to have them as a part of our team."

Building the brotherhood of Polynesian athletes began back in 2019 when coach Keiki Misipeka came to Southern from Garden City (Kansas) Community College. He helped bring over some of the originals like Jamie Tago, Fetuao and Fualaau.

"It means a lot to me because the opportunity to help kids and families from my home," Misipeka said. "It's a huge blessing because now we can put those families at ease by not having to put out as much money."

Misipeka is now the running backs coach at Hawaii University, but the money he is talking about saving families from the islands is the in-state tuition that MSSU decided to start providing to those from American Samoa and Hawaii in 2019.

He approached former president Alan Marble about the opportunity to provide that in-state tuition to those from his home in the Samoan Islands because they didn't have higher education nor the ability to play football after high school.

Misipeka said the board approved it just two weeks later. Hawaii was added to the in-state tuition because, as Misipeka noted, you must fly through Hawaii to get to American Samoa.

He added that he is glad MSSU still targets Polynesian athletes today to come and play football.

That pipeline to the islands is still important to Southern. Defensive line coach Casey Carlo helps to connect with sources and recruit these players from the islands.

"Hugely important," Carlo said of having a connection to these players. "It is very competitive to recruit within the state of Missouri and surrounding states. That gives us another source of talent that not a lot of the other teams have access to."

That connection includes a high school coach back in American Samoa, Nofu Sualevai.

Sualevai said that older players such as Fetuao, Fualaau and Tapusoa give his current athletes positive role models to look up to, while the newcomers such as Dawkins, Mata'u and Su'a — who just graduated last year — help kids in Samoa realize it is possible for them as well.

"It means a lot to me to see not only guys I've coached but all players from American Samoa make it to the college level to continue not only playing football but furthering their education," he said. "As the saying goes: 'Don't let football use you. Use football to build your future.' Whether it's getting a degree, getting a good job, or continuing chasing the dream of football. See, these guys in college give the next batch of kids coming up something to look forward to."

Sualevai said he wanted to thank coach Carlo and coach Bijan Hosseini for giving the boys a chance.

"I want MSSU nation to know the pipeline to American Samoa is always open and we are proud of our second home in Joplin," Sualevai said.

SAMOAN CULTURE

Each one of the players value punctuality, respecting others and their culture. They were taught to show love to anyone and everyone they cross paths with, no matter if they know them or not.

"We have so much pride in our culture so when we come to the mainland that is the main focus," Tapusoa said. "We are trying to show people how we do stuff. Growing up, our parents taught us to love everyone. ... That is the little part of our island that we brought here."

As for punctuality, growing up with strict schedules that include prayer evenings, curfews and more time-oriented events, there is no choice but to be on time.

Respect is shown in a hierarchy in terms of age or position for Samoans. It makes people in their culture angry when a player talks poorly to a coach.

"These coaches are like fathers to me," Fetuao said. "If you're young, you always have to listen to the person that is higher above you. ... Just looking at how (players) were disrespecting coaches... I don't want to call them my brothers."

The respect extends beyond the football field. These guys make sure to treat a fast food employee or a cook in the cafeteria on campus the same way they would treat a prominent person.

"No matter what age you are, female, male, if you're a president, nonpresident, the poorest person on earth, respect is always given because that's how all of us were raised," Fualaau said.

The most important piece of the Samoan culture that travels with these athletes is Christianity.

Fetuao said that "faith is everything" in Samoan culture. He remembers a Samoan phrase that stays with him that says, "Put God first in everything that you do."

"Without him, we're nothing," Fetuao said. "With him being for us, who can be against us?"

Prayer before and after games is important to each Samoan on the team, and it's something that is shared as a team.

"We always had that saying 'You start with God and end with God,'" Mata'u said referencing his high school football team.

Ale elaborated on the importance of putting God first.

"Football does play a big role in my life, but I don't let football consume my life," Ale said. "God has led me to not put anything above him. Back in Hawaii there's a saying that goes, 'Faith, family and football.' There's a reason football is always last.

"That's what we all strive to be at the end of the day — God-led Samoan football players."

THE CULTURE SHOCK

"When I first got here, it was such a culture shock just having to communicate in English and not being able to talk in my native language" Fetuao said.

That transition affects many things, such as their way of life and even how they eat.

The food adjustment is going from eating healthier things to eating fast food like Panda Express, getting Starbucks coffee and frequenting other popular chains in Joplin.

Something that Mata'u said he missed most about the food back home was To'ona'i, described by Mata'u as Thanksgiving every Sunday. Due to the religious background, To'ona'i is what Samoans call their big lunch after church every week.

All of the guys agreed that food back home just "hits different," so much so that when Fualaau requests a box of Bongos or Tam Tams from home, its hard for him to share with the rest of the group.

Each player experienced a major change in their daily life. Most of the group talked about how moving so far away from home takes them out of the strict life they grew up with in their parents' home.

Getting that complete freedom affects each Samoan differently. For some, it led to maybe partying a lot. Others say it only made them more responsible as they continued to wake up early and get their day started to be on time to class or practice or whatever they need to be at.

"It was pretty hard to be independent because a lot of us depend on our parents a lot," Fualaau said. "Especially with how strict our parents are. We have so much freedom, sometimes we get distracted by all this freedom and going to parties and stuff."

Fualaau admitted he fell victim to the freedom at first but said eventually he got tired of the partying and taking advantage of not having a curfew.

"I realized my parents were right," he said. "They warned me about all of this stuff because they knew from stories about other people. Yes, I'm a victim of that. I just pray and thank God all the time he got to me before I was one of those kids that ended up getting sent back home empty-handed."

Fualaau compared it to getting a sweet tooth and having to have it pulled out eventually because you got too addicted to the sweets.

For someone like Fiaseu, the transition was much different. Fiaseu grew up going to a private school in Hawaii and always had to wake up at 4:30 a.m. to walk 1 to 2 miles to the bus stop and take a 1.5-hour ride to school. He said that punctuality and responsibility has stuck with him ever since leaving the islands.

Another part of the culture shock has been the equipment. When the Samoans get to MSSU, they are given their own personal equipment. That's something not many kids get back home. They are all used to sharing gear with cousins or other family members — cleats and even helmets. The fields they played on have rocks on them and the players have to maintain the field, including mowing and other chores. Having a turf field at MSSU was a shock to them.

FOUNDATION FOR THEIR 'UCES'

The Samoan boys use the word "uso" or "uces" to refer to a brother or brothers. Everything they do in the continental United States is for their uces.

Those at MSSU have been trying to build a foundation for more American Samoa or Hawaiian athletes to come.

"Football, education and the Army, those are our tickets off the Rock," Fualaau said. "We're leading by example for other kids back home that they can do it too."

The younger guys from the Rock have definitely been drawn to the brotherhood already.

"I think it was one of the key factors that drove me to come here to Missouri Southern was that there was already a group of Samoans," Ale said. "Being independent is good and all but at the end of the day we still lean on each other and still depend on each other because we are all from the same place."

The sophomore, Ale, added that having this group of guys can help to keep the cultural morals in check. Things such as focusing on chores and responsibilities is easier with a group of men who think alike to avoid some of those things like going out and partying and losing track of that moral integrity.

The older Samoans really have helped out these younger guys.

"It's truly a blessing to be here, but with having the older guys here to show us the way, we're lucky enough to have them," the freshman athlete Mata'u said. "With all the older boys, it's been a great experience to have somebody to show us how to do it here."

Currently a group of 10, the uces hope they can continue to grow what is already a family inside a family on the MSSU football team.