POCATELLO, Idaho- Idaho State coach
Mike Kramer was looking forward to have
Leki Fuapau on the defensive line last year. But after an ACL injury in preseason camp in 2011, Fuapau spent the 2011 season rehabbing his knee. Now Fuapau is back and ready for a strong final year as a Bengal.
“Our anchor is a guy who has not played a down for me yet in
Leki Fuapau,” Kramer said. “He was headed for a tremendous 2011 when he suffered an ACL injury just prior to the opener at Washington State. He appears fully recovered. He is a 255 pound lineman who can stop the pass rush and stop the run. That makes him very coveted.”
James Bergren and
Jake Rouser who were starters last year also return with solid game experience. Rouser finished 2011 with 51 tackles and a team-best 3.5 sacks and 9.5 tackles for loss while Bergren had 21 tackles in 11 games.
Also expected to contribute this year is
Austin Graves,
Kimo Makaula and
David Forester. As a freshman Graves came in and had 36 tackles, eight tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. Makaula missed much of the 2011 season due to a foot injury while Forester will be out until the end of October due to a broken foot.
On the two-deep chart at the start of fall camp is
Terrence Carey, a 6-0, 300 pound nose tackle who transferred from Florida State. Carey played high school football with linebacker
Demetrius Allen. At the start of fall practices Graves is currently slated to start at nose tackle.
Austin Baker is currently the back-up defensive end to Rouser.
Idaho State opens the season September 1 at Air Force and then returns home for a 4 p.m. contest vs. Black Hills State in Holt Arena. Season and single-game tickets are currently on sale at the Holt Arena Ticket Office by calling 208-282-FANS or by logging onto isubengals.com.
