Alfred Sione Pupunu is a former professional American football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 tight end

Tight end

The tight end is a position in American football on the offense. The tight end is often seen as a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like offensive linemen, they are usually lined up on the offensive line and are large enough to be...

 who played nine seasons in the National Football League

National Football League

The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...

 from 1992 to 2000.

High school career

Pupunu attended and played high school football

High school football

High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....

 at South High School

South High School (Salt Lake City)

South High School was a high school in Salt Lake City, Utah, which operated from 1931 to 1988. The school was located on the southern end of Salt Lake City proper, at 1575 S. State Street...

 in Salt Lake City, Utah

Salt Lake City, Utah

Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...

.

College career

Pupunu played college football

College football

College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...

 at Weber State University

Weber State University

Weber State University is a public university located in the city of Ogden in Weber County, Utah, USA. It was founded in 1889 and is a coeducational, publicly supported university offering professional, liberal arts and technical certificates, as well as associate, bachelor's and master's degrees...

, where he went on to earn all-Big Sky Conference

Big Sky Conference

The Big Sky Conference is an intercollegiate college athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I, with football competing in the Football Championship Subdivision. The BSC was founded in 1963. Member institutions are located in the western United States in the states of Arizona,...

 and All-America

All-America

An All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...

n honors and has been inducted into the school’s athletic Hall of Fame. Pupunu earned Walter Camp All-American honors after leading the nation (NCAA Division I-AA, now Football Championship Subdivision) in receptions, with 93, in 1991. The 93 receptions are the second-most ever in a single season by a tight end.

Pupunu was also an All-Conference performer at Dixie State College of Utah

Dixie State College of Utah

Dixie State College of Utah is a college located in St. George, Utah, United States.-History:...

.

Professional career

Pupunu played for the San Diego Chargers

San Diego Chargers

The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 (1992–1997, 1999), the Kansas City Chiefs

Kansas City Chiefs

The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. They are a member of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Originally named the Dallas Texans, the club was founded by Lamar Hunt in 1960 as a...

 (1997), the New York Giants

New York Giants

The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...

 (1998) and the Detroit Lions

Detroit Lions

The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...

 (2000). Pupunu made a championship appearance with the Chargers in Super Bowl XXIX

Super Bowl XXIX

Super Bowl XXIX was an American football game played on January 29, 1995 at Joe Robbie Stadium in Miami, Florida to decide the National Football League champion following the 1994 regular season...

 in the 1994 season

1994 NFL season

The 1994 NFL season was the 75th regular season of the National Football League. To honor the NFL's 75th season, a special anniversary logo was designed and each player wore a patch on their jerseys with this logo throughout the season...

, and helped them get there by scoring a touchdown in the AFC title game.

Though Pupunu only scored five career touchdowns (three regular season, two postseason), he performed a unique celebration after each, in which he mimicked twisting off the top of a coconut and drinking the juice, a very popular celebration among San Diego fans.

Pupunu finished his career with 102 receptions for 1,000 yards and three touchdowns in 103 games.

Coaching career

Pupunu was a volunteer assistant at the University of Utah Running Utes Football Team for three years (2005–2007).

In 2008, Pupunu was invited to coach the running backs and tight ends at the Southern Utah University

Southern Utah University

Southern Utah University, or SUU, is located in Cedar City, Utah. It was founded in 1897 as an extension of the Agricultural College of Utah, by the citizens of Cedar City.During its history, the school has been known as:...

 (Cedar City, UT) Thunderbirds Football Team by Head Coach Ed Lamb

Ed Lamb

Ed Lamb is the football head coach at Southern Utah University, he took over from Wes Meier in December 2007. Lamb is an alumnus of Brigham Young University.-Head coaching record:-External links:*...

.

On February 24, 2010, Pupunu was named assistant coach at the University of Idaho

University of Idaho

The University of Idaho is the State of Idaho's flagship and oldest public university, located in the rural city of Moscow in Latah County in the northern portion of the state...

 by Head Coach Rob Akey.

External links

• Southern Utah Coach Bio