Marist

Liufau

A native of the Island of Oahu, Liufau (6'2/234) is the latest in a long line of Hawaiian-born players who went onto the NFL. He redshirted as a freshman in 2019 but managed to draw three starts in 10 games during the pandemic shortened season. He was set for a full-time starting role in 2021 when he sustained an ankle injury that cost him the entire campaign. Fortunately Liufau returned better than ever in 2022, racking up 95 tackles with 4 PBU with just 102 receiving yards allowed in coverage over the last two seasons. An 85.4 PFF cover grade ranked sixth overall among all Power Five linebackers while his 25 pressures ranked 15th among his P5 contemporaries. While he ran a solid 4.64s 40-yard dash (81st%) and 4.18s shuttle run (92nd%), his jumping and bench portions of Combine testing were sub-25th percentile marks for a 5.64 RAS. Liufau plays with a frenetic pace and is hungry to make plays, but is often left out of position in his run fits as a result. He profiles as a core special-teamer who rotates in defensively on passing downs.

Liufau (6'2/226) suffered a broken and dislocated ankle in practice, with the junior undergoing surgery Monday morning. During his game week press conference, HC Brian Kelly said that it was likely that the expected starter will miss the entire 2021 season. With Liufau unavailable, the expectation is that J.D. Bertrand will fill the void at WILL (weak side) linebacker. Notre Dame opens its season Sunday night at Florida State.

Liufau (6'2/175) will be taking in the sights and sounds of the Boise Valley for Saturday’s showdown with upset-minded San Diego State. This will be his first official visit. The Broncos initially offered to him in May. On the 247Sports composite board, Liufau slots in as the No. 13 prospect in the state of Hawaii -- he hails from Honolulu -- in the 2019 class. Boise State is expected to play host to several of their key recruiting targets this weekend.

Liufau was down to four: USC, Notre Dame, Boise State and Utah. It’s the Fighting Irish that get the commitment after he took a visit to South Bend last weekend. The 6-foot-3, 210-pound defender has played all over the field, but most project him as an outside linebacker who has the cover skills to play safety -- maybe even corner. It’s the 19th commitment of the year for Notre Dame, and their class improves to 13th in the 247 Sports composite rankings.