| Q & A WITH PAUL FANAIKA |
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 Having the size and the ability to play Division 1 college football can be a great blessing, but not receiving a scholarship offer can be somewhat frustrating.
This was the case for Paul Fanaika, playing like a "giant among boys," according to his high school head coach Barrett Krieger, for Mills High School, a school in the suburbs of San Francisco. "When you play at a small school in an unknown conference, college recruiters don't come see you, and you don't get any recognition through the media." says Coach Krieger, who is now a junior varsity football coach for Half Moon Bay High School, just on the outskirts of San Francisco. "It also didn't help that Paul had three different head coaches in three years." He certainly got the attention of the coaches in his conference by being named Lineman of the Year, first-team all-league, and all-county honors in 2003; his senior year at Mills High School. Still, it wasn't enough to land a scholarship offer from any Division 1 school. Ever since he was a little boy, Paul was infatuated with the Pac-10, and made it a dream of his to someday play for one of their schools; whether it would be Cal, UCLA, USC, or Stanford. So when no one came knocking on his door, he took matters into his own hands. In the fall of 2004, Paul decided to walk-on at the University of Arizona State, under the guidance of then-head coach and current Jacksonville Jaguars offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter. "I arrived at Arizona State with the mindset that if I didn't play football, I will be a student and earn my degree." Paul recalls. "Education has always been emphasized by my parents, so school was just a little bit more important than football, even though I do have a dream of playing professionally someday." After paying his way through college and redshirting his freshman year, he was awarded the Levi Jones scholarship in 2006. He would go on to play in 12 games at offensive guard and tackle, starting in 10 during the season, and earning honorable mention All-Pac-10 honors for his play on an offensive line that paved the way for ASU's first 1,0  00 yard rusher (former ASU and current Denver Bronco running back Ryan Torain) since 2001.Entering 2008, his senior year, Paul had started 25 games in a row, and is one of only two returning lineman (the other is fellow guard Shawn Lauvao). Not only that, he is the only offensive lineman left from Coach Koetter's recruiting class, which included six lineman on scholarships who have either dropped out or left the team for undisclosed purposes. Not bad for someone who wasn't even recruited by the school. "Paul is a very positive influence and has a great work ethic." Arizona State Offensive Line Coach Greg Smith said. "He does a good job working with the younger players, and is very patient with them. He works as hard as on the field as in the film room. It just goes to show why he's one of the lop level guards in the Pac-10, if not the nation." As far as in the classroom, Paul is set to graduate in December 2008, with a degree in interdisciplinary studies of sociology and anthropology. He will complete one dream, and will have a great chance to fulfill another lifelong dream after graduation. VOT SPORTS: Who is your biggest influence? Paul: My mom and dad. They struggled to provide a good life for me and my siblings. (Paul is the second of four children. His sister, Lavinia, is a senior point guard for the ASU women's basketball team) VOT SPORTS: What is your favorite book? Paul: The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama VOT SPORTS: What is your favorite quote? Paul: "Impossible is Nothing" -Unknown VOT SPORTS: Who is the hardest player you ever played against? Paul: Former USC and current New Orleans Saints defensive tackle Sedrick Ellis. VOT SPORTS: What is your favorite movie? Paul: 21 VOT SPORTS: What is your favorite class? Paul: Sociology of crime VOT SPORTS: What is your favorite food? Paul: Mom's lu sipi. Nothing better than mom's home cooking. VOT SPORTS: What do you see yourself doing in ten years from now? Paul: Playing professional or running my own business. src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
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