| The University of Idaho Vandals had one player taken | | | | Before playing in four seasons of college football for |
| in the 2010 NFL Draft and that one player is Mike Iupati | | | | the Vandals Mike was born and raised in the south |
| who played guard for the Vandals and hopes to win a | | | | pacific in American Samoa and spent his high school |
| starting offensive line position with the San Francisco | | | | years with his family in Anaheim, California. In part due |
| 49ers after the bay area team selected him with the | | | | to arriving in the United States later in life and also |
| number 17 overall pick in the first round. | | | | having scholastic issues as a result of trying to pick up |
| The University of Idaho football team competes in the | | | | English as a second language (his native tongue is |
| Western Athletic Conference which is commonly | | | | Samoan) Mike did not have the array of college |
| referred to by the acronym WAC. As a frame of | | | | scholarship choices that are normally associated with |
| reference the WAC had a total of five players out of | | | | NFL first round selections. |
| 255 2010 NFL Draft selections come from the mid | | | | Through hard work, persistence, and a bit of luck Iupati |
| major conference. By comparison the Southeastern | | | | found his way onto the University of Idaho football |
| conference which is commonly shortened to SEC had | | | | team in 2006. After persevering through setbacks that |
| 49 players represented in the 2010 NFL Draft, nearly | | | | included a surgically repaired shoulder Mike eventually |
| ten times as many as the lowly Western Athletic | | | | flourished into a dominant interior offensive lineman |
| Conference. | | | | who finally gained national attention as a senior. |
| Mike Iupati was the first player from the WAC chosen | | | | In 2009 the Idaho Vandals had one player taken in NFL |
| in the 2010 NFL Draft and was considered one of the | | | | draft. Eddie Williams was selected in the seventh and |
| top prospects at his position in all of college football | | | | final round by the Washington Redskins. Prior to Tight |
| entered the primetime nationally televised event held in | | | | end Eddie Williams being selected the University of |
| Radio City Music Hall in New York City. There were | | | | Idaho had the bitter sweet distinction of producing Mr. |
| only three offensive lineman selected head of Iupati in | | | | Irrelevant for the 2008 NFL Draft. Mr. Irrelevant is the |
| a draft that saw a total of 38 offensive linemen taken. | | | | title given to the very last player selected in the NFL |
| At 6'5" 330 pounds Iupati has the right build for an NFL | | | | Draft. In 2008 that player was David Vobora, a |
| offensive guard. | | | | linebacker from Idaho. |