Defensive lineman Pita Tonga Jr., who spent the past four seasons at Utah, will be joining the Rainbow Warriors as a graduate transfer.
Tonga played in 36 games for the Utes, amassing 29 tackles and two interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown. At 6 feet 1 and 310 pounds, Tonga is a blend of first-step quickness and power.
His father, Pita Sr., was a Utah linebacker who led the Utes with 94 tackles in 1990. His mother, Susana, was an All-Western Athletic Conference basketball player for the Utes.
After graduating from Highland High (Taylorsville, Utah) in 2015, Tonga went on a two-year church mission before joining the Utes.
2020: Played in two games, seeing action on the defensive line against No. 21 Colorado and Washington State.
2019: Played as a reserve lineman in 10 games … four tackles … three tackles vs. NIU … interception vs. UCLA.
2018: Played in 13 games with six starts (5 at left tackle, 1 at nose tackle) … missed the USC game with an injury … 12 tackles (3.0 TFL, 2.5 sacks) … two tackles against Weber State, Arizona State and Colorado (1.0 sack) … 7-yard sack against BYU … returned an interception 21 yards against Washington.
2017: Played in 11 games, missing the Washington and West Virginia games with injury … 13 tackles (0.5 TFL) … three tackles against San Jose State, Arizona State and Washington State … first-team Pac-12 All-Academic.
2016: Redshirt.