At 5-11, 270 lbs., Siataga may seem like an unlikely participant in the performing arts, but "he's always singing and dancing around," Papich said. "He's always singing the oldies."

In his grandmother's San Francisco neighborhood where Siataga spent much time as a youngster, "you see shootings, you see drug addicts across the street," he said.

But it was a world he only saw, not experienced, for his parents shepherded him away from those troubles.

"When we were little, my mom and dad raised us not to be like that, all the drug addicts and that. They raised us in church; they raised us to be respectful. That's how the Samoan culture is."

Family is never far from Siataga in any conversation. For instance, his love of Montana's snowy winters relates to a childhood fascination shared with his siblings.

"I love the scenery, the mountains, especially I love the snow," he said. "I'd never seen snow in my life. My brothers, sisters and I used to have snow fights with the ice inside the freezer. We'd ball it up and throw it at each other."

Siataga paid tribute to his family as a player, writing his sisters' names on the taped portion of his right hand before games, and his brothers' names on his left hand. His older sister, Ursula, graduated from UCLA and works as a counselor for at-risk children in the Bay Area and in Southern California. His other siblings also followed the path of education. Siataga, too, aspires to work as a counselor, possibly at a junior college.

Family is the inspiration behind the way Siataga conducts himself around campus, and family guides his hopes for the future.

At MSU, his relentless helpfulness and incessant good cheer have taken on urban legend status. Have you seen the big guy that dances all night at a local club, drinking only water, then helps clear the place out and bus tables at closing time? How about the guy who jumped in to help with some heavy lifting after a large campus social event that he wasn't even attending, just because some people needed help?

"(If) it's got to be done, it doesn't bother me," he said. "People say 'Didn't he play football before, why is he washing tables?' It doesn't matter to me. Some people would get embarrassed over that, but I don't.

"I've been doing that my whole life," Siataga said with a smile that most who know him say comes from his father. "I grew up cleaning the house and stuff. My dad wakes us up at 4:30 every morning, just the guys, to clean the house.

"I like helping out," he said. "It's second nature to me."

Return to regular view	Text-only              Email this article	Published: 11/27/2007