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SALT LAKE CITY — Lowell Lotulelei has some unfinished business to take care of this year.
The hard-nosed defensive tackle enters his senior year with a clean bill of health and a vision to dismantle opponents one-by-one. He’s intent on finishing the job the University of Utah failed to complete last season by coming up short on a Pac-12 championship berth. Or as he calls it, to “get over that hump.”
Lotulelei spurned an early opportunity to jump to the NFL — a dream for any collegiate football player — to take care of some personal business and resume his spot on a veteran defensive line unit feared by many in the Pac-12.
“It was pretty much me not feeling too good about my season last year,” Lotulelei said, speaking about his decision to return to Utah. “I kinda felt like I had stuff to do here on the field and off the field as well. I just felt like it was a better choice for me to come back.”
Lotulelei, a potential first round draft pick, according to some projections, felt incomplete leaving Utah, particularly without winning the South division of the Pac-12 in his three years at Utah — a feat the university has fallen short of multiple times in Lotulelei’s tenure. The team has proven its mettle and has been a consistent force nationally, but continues to fall apart in the later part of each season to miss out on a Pac-12 championship appearance.
“The last stretch of the season these past three years, we’ve kind of disappointed ourselves at the end of the season by losing a game that could have put us in a possible Pac-12 South championship spot,” he said. “I think this year that’s really my main focus, to get this team over that hump.”
Hampered by the constant pain of a shoulder injury last season, Lotulelei felt like he hadn’t played his best. The injury, mixed in with his desire to win a Pac-12 title, prompted the star lineman to come back to prove his value, not only to himself but to his teammates. Following the repair of his shoulder in the offseason, defensive line coach Lewis Powell said Lotulelei is “playing lights out” and looks to resume his role as a disruptor of offenses.
Among Lotulelei’s desire to stay at Utah was an opportunity to cap off a personal legacy — one separate from his older brother, Star, who had a life-changing experience at Utah and eventually made it to the NFL as a first-round pick to the Carolina Panthers.
“He’s always been like that,” Powell said of Lotulelei, speaking about his desire to create his own legacy. “Coming out of high school, his brother was the man here and he always wanted to be Lowell Lotulelei and kind of getting out of the shadows of his brother. Right now he’s doing a good job.”
From the onset, Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham recognized the distinct talents of the younger Lotulelei, saying “Lowell is his own man.”
But for Lotulelei, a legacy means more than differentiating himself from his brother; it’s about creating a lasting impression on the university and future members of his family that may come to Utah for football.
“It’s important, but at the same time, it’s the same last name,” he said. “If it helps open some doors for some of our younger cousins and some of the younger family that we have coming up, then all the better.
“I think coming over here and playing, it was up to me to make it,” he added, saying that he was never given preference for Star’s success. “If I came (to Utah) and I didn’t play good, then that would have been up to me. It’s just part of being a family. He ended up coming here and I just ended up coming here, too.”
In his final season at Utah, Lotulelei has been asked to take a bigger leadership role on the team — one as a mentor to a younger, less experienced defensive line and one with the passion and drive to leave it all out on the field in the program’s pursuits to finally claim the coveted Pac-12 title.
Lotulelei has taken the challenge to heart and has attempted to push the younger guys who will eventually take over once he’s playing in the NFL. Following a recent practice, with sophomore defensive end Bradlee Anae in earshot, Lotulelei detailed the things his fellow lineman needed to do to reach his potential.
“Bradlee, the only thing that I think we worry about a little bit is just his plays,” Lotulelei says. “Sometimes he gets out of technique.”
But Lotulelei is quick to point out Anae’s ability as well, saying he is “probably one of the most athletic d-lineman that we have in our group.
“It’s just up to him,” Lotulelei says. “If he decides to get his plays down and do everything right, he’ll be a baller.”
“The young guys have benefitted from it a lot and I’m excited to see how the whole group comes together and plays,” Powell said.
His newfound leadership role is just one way for Lotulelei to finish his business at Utah, all while leaving a lasting legacy for current and future players. Most importantly, it’s another opportunity to raise the Lotulelei name as a symbol of hard work, dedication and leadership on behalf of the University of Utah.
