Sione Vaki (born July 30, 2001) is an American professional football running back for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Utah Utes as a two-way player. Vaki was selected by the Lions in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL draft.
| No. 33 – Detroit Lions | |||||||||
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| Position: | Running back | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | July 30, 2001 Antioch, California, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 213 lb (97 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Liberty (Brentwood, California) | ||||||||
| College: | Utah (2022–2023) | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2024 / round: 4 / pick: 132 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of Week 2024, 6 | |||||||||
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Early life
editVaki attended Liberty High School in Brentwood, California. In Vaki's high school career he played on both sides of the ball. On offense he rushed for 401 yards and seven touchdowns, while also bringing in 107 receptions for 2,203 yards and 32 touchdowns. On defense he notched 142 tackles with one being for a loss, five interceptions, four fumble recoveries, two forced fumbles, and two defensive touchdowns, Vaki also returned a kickoff for a touchdown.[1] Vaki committed to play college football at the University of Utah.[2][3]
College career
editIn Vaki's true freshman season in 2022 he totalled 41 tackles with 3.5 going for a loss, three pass deflections, and a forced fumble.[4]
In week one of the 2023 season, he recorded his first career interception versus the Florida Gators.[5] In week seven, Vaki had a breakout game where he played both ways of the ball as he rushed 15 times for 158 yards and two touchdown to help the Utes beat California.[6] In the following week, he rushed nine times for 68 yards, while also hauling in five receptions for 149 yards and two touchdowns, while also notching two tackles and having the best coverage grade on the Utes, as helped them upset USC 34-32.[7] The rest of the season, the Utes formulated a plan to use Vaki more on offense.[8][9]
As a sophomore, Vaki finished the season with 51 tackles, 8.5 tackles for a loss, two sacks and two interceptions on defense. On offense he had 317 yards rushing (7.5 yards per carry) and two rushing touchdowns. As well as 11 receptions for 203 yards and three receiving touchdowns. He was voted to the first-team All-Pac-12 team twice in 2023, both as a safety and a special teams/all-purpose player.[10] Following the 2023 season, Vaki declared for the 2024 NFL draft after playing two seasons of college football, as he went on a three year mission trip following his high school graduation.[11]
Professional career
edit| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft 11 1⁄8 in (1.81 m) |
210 lb (95 kg) |
29 1⁄8 in (0.74 m) |
8 5⁄8 in (0.22 m) |
4.51 s | 1.57 s | 2.59 s | 4.28 s | 7.16 s | 39.5 in (1.00 m) |
10 ft 5 in (3.18 m) |
20 reps | |
| All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day[12][13] | ||||||||||||
Vaki was selected in the fourth round, 132nd overall, by the Detroit Lions in the 2024 NFL draft.[14]
Personal life
editVaki lost his mother Oto’ota due to cancer.[15] Vaki is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; he started to serve a mission for the church in the Nuku'alofa, Tonga, Mission, but was reassigned to the West Salt Lake City, Utah, Mission due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[16]
References
edit- ^ "Sione Vaki Football Stats". MaxPreps.com. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
- ^ "Liberty High School two-way football star Sione Vaki signs letter of intent to attend University of Utah". The Press.net. February 8, 2019. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
- ^ Stark, Alex (February 6, 2019). "Utah Signs S Sione Vaki". Block U. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
- ^ Bagley, Cole (February 8, 2023). "Utes on the rise: Safety Sione Vaki". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
- ^ Holt, Chandler (August 31, 2023). "Sione Vaki Interception Leads To Bryson Barnes Rushing Touchdown". KSL Sports. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
- ^ Borba, Kevin (October 15, 2023). "Utah Led To Victory By College Football's Next Two-Way Star Sione Vaki". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
- ^ Coles, Joe (October 25, 2023). "Before starring at Utah, Sione Vaki flashed two-way prowess on California high school fields". Deseret News. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
- ^ Borba, Kevin (October 24, 2023). "Utah's Sione Vaki On Track To Offensive Focus For Utes After Breakout Showings". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
- ^ Walden, Eric (October 26, 2023). "Will Sione Vaki start playing more offense than defense? It's 'trending in that direction.'". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
- ^ "Sione Vaki College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved June 21, 2024.
- ^ Bartle, Steve (December 8, 2023). "Utah two-way star Sione Vaki has declared for the 2024 NFL Draft". 247Sports. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
- ^ "Sione Vaki Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
- ^ "2024 NFL Draft Scout Sione Vaki College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
- ^ Birkett, Dave (April 27, 2024). "Detroit Lions trade up, take Utah's do-it-all Sione Vaki in Round 4 of NFL draft". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved April 27, 2024.
- ^ Bodkin, Michelle (October 26, 2023). "Exclusive: Utah Football's Sione Vaki Talks Making His Late Mother Proud". KSL Sports. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
- ^ Toone, Trent (April 29, 2024). "2 Latter-day Saint returned missionaries selected in NFL draft". thechurchnews.com. Retrieved October 12, 2024.