Taylor and Lealofi coming to Spokane
January 26, 2006 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Spokane Shock News Release
The Spokane Shock announced today that former Washington State Cougar Nian Taylor and Aloalii Lealofi, (pronounced uh-low-uh-LEE-ee LEE-uh-low-fee) a former San Diego State Aztec, have been assigned to the inaugural roster by the arenafootball2 League Office.
Taylor, a member of a receiving corps at Washington State University known as the "Fab Five," was selected as an Honorable Mention all Pac-10 his senior season and was a key member of the Cougar's Pac-10 Championship Team in 1998, his junior year. That same season, Taylor caught a 97 yard pass that is still the longest play from scrimmage in Cougar history. Taylor finished his Cougar career with 140 receptions, 2447 yards and 18 touchdowns.
Taylor is a four-year veteran of the Arena Football League and the af2 most recently, as member of the San Diego Riptide where played on both sides of the ball as a WR/DB. Offensively, Taylor hauled in a team high 91 catches, totaling 994 yards with 25 touchdowns. Defensively, Taylor was second on the team in tackles with 41 and he also caught three interceptions returning them for 22 yards.
Taylor, 6"1' 195, is planning on continuing his past success here in Spokane as a member of the Shock. "Spokane's a great place and the city has always been good to me," Taylor explained. "I'm really looking forward to coming out there and showing my fellow Cougars what I can do on the field."
Spokane Shock Head Coach Chris Siegfried is also excited about Taylor's addition to the Shock roster. "Nian is one of the premier receivers in this league and he will bring a wealth of experience to our receiving corps," Siegfried said.
Taylor will be joined on the Shock's roster by former San Diego State Aztec Lealofi. Lealofi, originally born in Germany, was a member of the Aztecs football program for two seasons after transferring from the College of the Desert where he also played football.
His senior season, Lealofi, 6"1' 240, started in nine games at defensive end. That season he made a solid contribution piling up 19 tackles, three tackles for a loss, and a half sack for a loss of three yards for the Aztecs.
"Aloalii is a natural defensive lineman who will also be able to play at linebacker," Coach Siegfried explained, who plans to play Lealofi as LB/FB. "He will be right in the trenches of the battle for playing time with our other FB/LB's," Siegfried said.
The Spokane Shock will be holding an open try-out on Monday January 30th at 8 AM at the Spokane Soccer Center E. 7320 Nora. Players of any experience level are invited to attend. The cost of the try-out will be $50 for those who pre-register or $60 at the door.
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