Linebacker Rob Siavii had everything going for him heading into his senior year at Idaho, but it all came crashing down last spring when he tore his ACL and was forced to redshirt. Now,after a year of healing,he’s back and ready to lead the Vandals’ defense on the field once again.
Siavii has played a large role in the Vandals’ defense since coming to Idaho in 2008. He played in every game for Idaho in his first three years, and was Idaho’s leading tackler in 2010 with 117 tackles.
Idaho coach Robb Akey said having Siavii back this season is huge.
“There was a guy who was a starter, who made a ton of plays for us, who has been a successful player,” Akey said. “Getting him back, I’ve been very excited about it. He has an opportunity to be a senior playmaker and hopefully a senior leader.”
An ACL injury is serious for any athlete, especially those in physical sports like football. There’s never a guarantee of being able to come back from the injury and there’s never a guarantee the leg will ever be 100 percent again.
“It was real scary for me,” Siavii said. “As soon as this happened, in my head, I just thought my football career was over.”
Not only was Siavii’s football career in question, but he had to endure a season of watching his team play without him. He said it was frustrating to be on the sideline and it affected him deeply.
“I’d wake up thinking about it,” Siavii said. “I’d go to sleep thinking about it. It was just real scary for me to be on the sideline. I’d see all my teammates having fun without me and that was kind of depressing.”
Siavii said he was inspired by former Vandals JoJo Dickson and Tre`Shawn Robinson, who both came back from injuries in the past. He used their support to stay positive through the rehabilitation
process and is now back on the field with his team for spring practice.
Defensive coordinator Mark Criner said having a veteran like Siavii is invaluable and he’s been pleasantly surprised with Siavii’s movement so early in the year.
“Robert comes in with number one, a lot of experience and number two, knowing the defense,” Criner said. ” … In my opinion, he’s coming back in better conditioning with that knee. He’s coming back and planting off of it at a full speed level more so than I ever expected.”
Siavii is trying to get back to his old form, but is also stepping into a new role — leadership. The coaching staff is looking to the fifth-year senior to be a leader on the defense, a role Akey said he’s growing into.
“I think we’re going to see him grow,” Akey said. “I think as we were getting things going, he was making sure he was going to be able to be him. I think we’re going to see more of the leadership come about and the wheels are looking pretty good now.”
While Siavii is not known as a vocal player, he does try to lead by example. Siavii said his time off was helpful for him in developing his leadership skills. During his injury he said he never missed a practice or a meeting, and Criner said he’s a player who is more than willing to help teach the younger players on the team.
Defensive end Maxx Forde said Siavii is a positive influence on the team and leads their actions.
“He’s one of our emotional leaders and he’s able to match that with a high level of play on the field,” Forde said. ” … When the team’s facing adversity, he’ll be vocal and get the team past that adversity.”
Last year the Vandal defense showed improvement throughout the season, and Siavii will undoubtedly try to keep it going in his return.
Kevin Bingaman can be reached at [email protected]