Patriots Alum RB Mosi Tatupu dead at 54
by MaPatsFan on Feb 24, 2010 10:32 AM EST
in New England Patriots News
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I'm heartbroken, almost sick to my stomach. How can Mosi be dead? It just doesn't seem real to me. Mosi Tatupu was a running back for the Patriots from 1978 - 1990. He had a brief stint with the Rams in 1991before retiring from football. A perennial favorite at the time, "Mosi's Mooses" were present at every home game in "Mosi's Endzone". I attended many a home game sitting in that endzone, in the rain and cold, just to cheer Mosi on. He appreciated it:
"They are great fans, but just to have your own section is an honor," Tatupu said in a 2004 interview with the Globe. "It inspired me to play harder because they were cheering for me and backing me up."
Mosi never could stay away from the game, coaching high school ball at King Philip High in Wrentham, MA and coaching running backs at Curry College in Milton, MA. His son Lofa Tatupu, a middle linebacker for the Seattle Seahawks, had the privilege of being coached by his dad.
I grew up watching Mosi. He was such a great Patriot. Let us hope that his untimely death at 54 focuses more attention on the toll this game takes on these human beings. So sad.
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Prayers go out for Lofa and the rest of the family.
Peace and comfort for them with Mosi’s untimely death.
My life has been a trivial pursuit. Trivia: where three roads meet.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.
by SlotMachinePlayer on Feb 24, 2010 11:19 AM EST reply actions
Steve Grogan reminisced about his former teammate
“He was not only a really good football player who could do a lot of different things for you — from special teams, to goal-line situations, coming out of backfield and catching the ball, blocking — but one of those fun guys in the locker room who also had fun on the field," Grogan said. "When he went to practice, he had a smile on his face all the time because he was having fun. He enjoyed playing football. He could have played in any era, for anybody at any time. It’s a shame that he’s gone at such an early age."
“I think football fans in this area appreciate a lunch-pail attitude, someone who shows up for work every day and that’s what Mosi did,” Grogan said. “I think his personality, the spirit and fun he showed on the field, transferred to fans. That’s why they loved him so much.”
Keep the faith!
Here, here MPF!
The great thing about Mosi’s Mooses – which I believe was in the North end zone – was that his last year with the Pats was 1990 – but I distinctly remember the sign staying up well into the mid 90s.
That is some legacy to have a sign for you 5+ years after you left. Says it all.
Unforgettable player
Mosi might not have been a feature back, but he was a deadly weapon when the D left him all by himself.
by OBrienSchofieldismyHero on Feb 24, 2010 4:41 PM EST reply actions
When Matt Chatham says...
“I sat in a team meeting late in my career in New York with Jets coach Eric Mangini waving combine numbers at an underperforming player begging him to start playing faster as his "measurables" supposedly indicated he should…” does anyone else think he’s referring to Vernon Gholston?
It’ll be very interesting to see if Sergio Kindle will be another workout warrior.
Token southern hemisphere guy - 14,688km from Foxboro. That's 9128 miles, for you heathens.
RIP Mosi
….and condolences to the family.
This made me remember today about back when I was a young’un in high school, about 16 or so(1985), and some of the older kids on the Basketball team decided to nickname me Mosi. This was for 2 reasons, 1), i had just started sprouting one of those teen mustaches, just a shadow of a light dusting of new facial hair, and 2), My father and grandparents were from Hawaii, so we had the Pacific island thing going on(although we weren’t real Hawaiians). For whatever reason they put these together, the look and the island theme, and started calling me Mosi. They thought it was hilarious. I wore it proudly. Even though they were off on the island thing, I never defended it and just smiled, and enjoyed being named after Mosi, one of my favorite players, and still one of my all time Patriots. And it’s not often I see these guys, but when i do they still may throw the Mosi out to me, and i still just laugh and smile.
It’s awesome to hear the great comments from the teammates from back in the day. They all loved Mosi, and so did we.
R.I.P.
I’m not even a little bit of a fan of the Pats due to the “Spygate” nonsense, but I do wanna give my respects and condolences to Mosi and his Family. My father was friends with Mosi when he was at USC (Charles White is my godfather) and my dad said Mosi was the one of the coolest & nicest people he ever met. A funny thing he told me about Mosi was that he had a strong dislike for Marcus Allen when they were roommates at SC, he called him a “bitch” quite often which I thought was hilarious. My dad was really sad about losing an old friend.
Anyway, R.I.P. to Mosi Tatupu and condolences to Lofa and the entire Tatupu family.
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