NFL Draft 2012: Exclusive Interview With Navy DE/OLB Jabaree Tuani

[Editor’s Note: Here at NFL Spin Zone, we have put together a series of 2012 NFL Draft prospect interviews to give our viewers a more in-depth look at a handful of the players who could end up with their team next season. Today, we have a special treat and one of the most unique perspectives you can get thanks to Navy defensive end/outside linebacker, Jabaree Tuani. 

Tuani has been praised for his leadership and maturity during his time with Navy and those very characteristics shine through in this interview. To see all of our previous interviews, CLICK HERE. To see what Jabaree had to say when speaking to Spin Zone’s Chris Boyle, continue on!]

Chris Boyle: Talk about your career at Navy. You were not originally offered a college scholarship and were later referred to by coach Ken Niumatalolo as the best defensive lineman he ever had.

Jabaree Tuani: The whole experience at Navy has definitely been good. I really appreciate [my coaches] for just giving me the opportunity to come up here, to play for them and try to represent what the academy is all about.

Boyle: Did you have any doubts about joining the Naval Academy, considering it requires athletes to commit to much more than just football?

Tuani: Looking at those first years coming out of high school, it eventually really weighed on me. I had to think about talking to my uncle, my dad and my mom about it. Ultimately, I came to a decision to understand that it was the best place for football, but obviously there’s a greater goal than that: to serve your country. That’s something I had no problem with; not necessarily knowing that I wanted to do that but coming here not having the option to because you have to.

My dad was in the Army for 16 years so having that military background on my side, giving me the ins and outs on things, really helped with my decision to come up here and make that sacrifice. Even if football doesn’t work out, I definitely will be in the United States Navy doing the best I can and try to help out my country in any way possible.

Boyle: What was it like growing up in a military household?

Tuani: It was here and there, definitely kind of a more strict environment. My dad was definitely on me to be organized, that my clothes were ironed; a lot of good discipline, nothing more than what a good father would do to his son. But, it was about really having that organized structure definitely helped me out.

It bettered myself in high school, bettered myself as a man, and it definitely set me up for a road to success coming into this place so it wasn’t really that hard adjusting. Having a military background from my dad really taught me a lot and it gave me a lot of insight that I still use to this day.

Boyle: What would you say is the most important lesson he taught you?

Tuani: You know you’re going to deal with a lot of stuff sometimes that you just don’t want to do, especially being here at the Naval Academy. They definitely have a lot of authority over you, a lot of superiors. Regardless of the fact if you like that person or not, given that person has the authority and superiority over you, you definitely have to respect that and his rank.

At the same time, [he taught me] acknowledging what’s wrong and what’s right. Whenever I’ve done something wrong, then I adapt. You’re always going to face tough decisions. You have to realize that you have to take account for everything, and you also have to be responsible for your actions, no matter what they are.

Boyle: When you found out that Coach Niumatalolo called you the best defensive lineman he ever had, what did those words mean to you and how did you react?

Tuani: They definitely mean a lot coming from a coach that I really care about, that gave me the opportunity. I have so much respect for him and the way he’s treating his program. He’s doing a great job, and I think it will definitely be a place that he considers home for at least the next five years and possibly for his whole career.

To be called the greatest defensive lineman at Navy, obviously looking at the past, it’s just like ‘wow.’ Coming from a kid who was really not highly recruited at all and didn’t have any other Division I offers, it definitely means a lot to show that, even though [I was] getting overlooked and this and that, you don’t have to be necessarily that five-star prospect to be able to produce on the field. Coming from the coaching staff, it really means a lot.

I’ll love this program until the day I die, and all those guys know that if they ever need me in any which way ever that I’ll be there for them.

Boyle: Are you actively pursuing a career in the NFL, or are you more concerned with your commitment to the Naval Academy?

Tuani: To be honest, kind of both. I definitely want to and would love to pursue a career in the NFL, and hopefully I’ll get the opportunity to go out there and try to show that I can produce and help out any team that would ever give me that chance. But also, the naval aspect is something that I know is going to happen. It’s guaranteed unlike the NFL. It’s a job.

The people out there are going to do their best job to get the best people out there on the field. The navy actually worries me a bit here and there. It’s real life in the sense of having been going to school to try and prepare for these moments. But, I’m actually about to get thrown out there.

I’m going the actual navy route, being on the ship serving as a warfare officer. I’m going to have to be able and accountable for the decisions I make with the people under me as well. It’s not just school anymore, but it’s real life. I’ll have people under me. Their lives will be in my hands, so my decisions are not just going to affect me from now on. It’s going to affect whoever I’m running, my whole division, the whole chain of command.

That definitely really weighs on me as I go there. Being in school right now, you want to focus on passing class and just kind of making it through. But now, it’s not just making do with what you have. You need to make sure you’re on the top of your game, upholding the standards not just for yourself but for the people who you’re around all the time working with.

They’re going to see how you commit yourself as a person, as a leader and as an officer. Their judgment will be based on that. If they see you’re not really producing or putting out for them, then why should they produce and give it their all for you?

Boyle: From things I’ve read, you seem to be a person who strives for leadership and someone who’s recognized as a leader. What qualities make you a strong leader not only on the football field, but as an officer?

Tuani: I deal with adversity; just being out there in the fire, not just in a football sense but being in life. There have been some times where I’ve gotten in trouble at the Naval Academy, like I messed up on a test or something like that or cheating or lying. I’ve been in those situations where I’ve taken those experiences and what I’ve learned.

Being at the academy, there have been times where I’ve definitely thought I’d want to leave but leaning on other guys beside me has really helped me out. Being in those times like when I got in trouble, I really did have to humble myself and realize that I did make a mistake, no matter how big or how small it was. I had to be accountable for it because no one else made that decision besides myself.

Being in that leadership role, in football as well, the team’s going to be looking for you; not just to get them pumped up and things like that but when things are down who else are they going to turn to but the leaders and the team captains? This year definitely wasn’t the easiest year for Navy. We went 5-7, didn’t make a bowl game for the first time in 8-9 years. It definitely took a toll on me, but at the same time, it also taught me a lot about myself, the leadership role, football and the type of person I am.

Anybody can lead from the front when you’re winning and have all the tradition of going to bowl games and winning the Commander in Chief Trophy and things like that. But when you face the adversity of a six-game losing streak, and I want to say we lost five games this year by three points or less, it just shows you how hard it is to win.

We’ve been in those same situations in the past and it so happened that we came out on top. This year, we weren’t able to execute on some plays here and there and it cost us the game. Those decisions that you make will also affect you as a leader.

You’re not always going to make the right decision, but at the same time, you have to realize and learn from that experience that ‘Hey, just because I didn’t make the right decision here doesn’t mean I can’t take from this or learn from whatever happened and use it to benefit myself to move forward.’

In future references, I’ll be able to make that better decision, rather than sit there and say ‘Aw man, I messed up on that’ and look down on yourself and let it affect you rather than keep moving forward. After one bad decision that’s made, life still goes on. Nobody’s perfect. But, how are you going to respond? People should look at you to be that person to inspire them. Nobody wants to have anybody inspire them who looks down upon themselves and hold their heads down and not continue to go forward.

Life keeps moving. If you don’t move with it, then you’re going to get left behind.

Boyle: While at Navy, you took part in one of college football’s oldest rivalries – the Army-Navy game. What were your experiences like against Army? Is there anything like that rivalry?

Tuani: That rivalry has such rich tradition. It literally has bloodlines it that. It goes farther than any kind of sport contest. It goes between the services. Think about it – people all across the world watch this game in the United States military and you just want to go out there and fight with your all.

To even think about that and imagine what’s going on out there in the world, people in Iraq will take a couple hours of their day while they’re standing watch for 12 hours at a time to try and keep everybody safe, knowing that they have to go into the heat of battle the next day. To actually come up here and be able to watch us, it’s really crazy.

I was a freshman, being in this game I was very fortunate to do so, but I’ll never forget the first play I was involved with in the Army-Navy game ever. It was a pitch to the opposite side of the field that I was on. The play was over, and I looked the Army tackle right there, like I was nowhere near the play; the play was over. And he took a swing at me. It was nothing personal against me. It was just how the emotions of the game were so high. It kind of put it in perspective. But to be a part of this Army-Navy tradition is amazing.

Boyle: Was it ever difficult for your father, an Army man, to have to root for the Navy?

Tuani: I don’t think so (laughs). He didn’t go to West Point or anything, but he was 100 percent in support of me. He definitely didn’t mind putting on that Navy hat or Navy shirt or watching that game. Luckily, we won all four games in my four years of being here. He enjoyed it as well.

Boyle: Looking toward the next level, what have some scouts told you they think your strengths are and what are some things they’ve knocked you and said you need to improve on?

Tuani: [Scouts have knocked me for] my size at my position. I’m six foot, a la Dwight Freeney or Elvis Dumervil at defensive end. I think some of my strengths are how I really get off the ball and the leverage that I use to rush other people. I mean, yeah, I’m not the tallest person in the world but I’m still able to get under those six-foot-six guys and be able to play hard and give them a match throughout the whole game.

But things that I definitely see that I need to work on are to get faster, getting off of blocks here and there instead of staying on them too long. Right now, I’m just trying to keep myself in shape in case that opportunity does come through.

Boyle: Do you feel that physical size is an important quality, or do you think it’s more about the will of the player?

Tuani: I know the NFL definitely wants to have a solid player in the sense that it’s a different level, just like high school is a different level than college. I think just being in the NFL they look for those bigger, faster, stronger guys but with me and a lot of smaller players, like here at Navy, a lot of teams who faced us, it wasn’t like they easily beat us out there.

They beat us on paper, but when comes down on the field, it’s something completely different. It’s just a different type of beast. You have all these guys that may have that chip on their shoulder, but it’s really these guys that are willing to go that extra mile to work that much harder.

We always said five-star heart beats five-star talent every day, and it’s the truth. When you have that talent, if they choose to not work their hardest all the time, they can easily be exposed by some of the smaller guys. He has nothing to lose … It’s clearly about having that will to beat your man in front of you. I think that certain people do have that aspect, and I think I truly have that aspect, and I’m just trying to get the opportunity to show other people that I do, regardless of that being through the draft or as a free agent. I’ll just be fine with a workout or tryout.

Whatever I could get, I’m going to make the best of it and hopefully they can see that there.

Boyle: You mentioned the option of being drafted or trying to latch on as an undrafted free agent. If given the choice, would you rather be drafted in the seven-round timespan or get to more or less choose your own situation as a free agent?

Tuani: To be honest, it wouldn’t even matter to me. Playing in the NFL has been a dream of mine when I was growing up playing football. Whoever would just give me that opportunity, I’d be grateful to take it. If I got drafted, I wouldn’t mind going to that team. Obviously, I’d still have to make it and everything.

If I was a free agent, regardless of whatever spot you’re picked up, there are still guys in the NFL who went undrafted. Like I didn’t know about Victor Cruz’s situation, but I thought he was a big-time guy coming out of college and that he went to a big school. It doesn’t mean that other people who go to smaller schools that it takes anything away from them. To be drafted, a free agent, whatever, like a tryout, if I had the opportunity, it would truly be a blessing.

Boyle: Growing up, did you have any teams that you rooted for that would be a dream situation personally?

Tuani: Definitely, the Tennessee Titans. Growing up, I’m from Nashville, I remember my dad being a big fan watching Steve McNair and Eddie George.

Boyle: Would that be the first place you’d want to look into if you were a free agent?

Tuani: That would be one of the places for sure I’d be looking to get into, if I could get a workout or whatnot.

Boyle: What position do you think you would most likely be able to succeed in? As a 4-3 defensive end or as a 3-4 outside linebacker, or something else?

Tuani: I’ve never had the opportunity to stand up, but I’m a fast learner; somebody that put into whatever situation will pick it up and go from there. I think a 3-4 would be pretty good, like in the outside linebacker position like James Harrison. Being on the line, I know size-wise that the NFL is a different type of beast, like all the offensive lineman are like 330 [pounds]. But, I still wouldn’t see a problem with myself having my hand down on the ground. I think that if I could get in the 3-4 defense to where I could stand up in the outside linebacker position, I think it would definitely help me a little bit, at least in adjusting.

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