Over the past few seasons, Vandal athletics produced many great athletes who are trying to find their own paths to professional success.
Most notably, Idaho football and men’s basketball’s most memorable names have been making a splash in their respective leagues.
Mike Iupati — The one-time All-American guard for Idaho has been enjoying a wonderful career in the NFL. Iupati is a four-time pro bowler who was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in 2010, playing in Super Bowl XLVII in 2012. In 2015, Iupati signed a five-year contract with the Arizona Cardinals where he earned Second Team All-Pro honors in his first season with the team. After battling inju- ries during the past few seasons, Iupati made his way back to the Pacific Northwest, signing a one-year contract with the Seattle Seahawks March 14. He now enters his 10th season in the NFL.
Matt Linehan — The former Idaho quarterback has finally found a home in the Alliance of American Football. After bouncing around the NFL, Linehan has found a spot on the Salt Lake Stallions in the AAF.
Led by former Idaho head coach and college football Hall of Famer Dennis Erickson, Linehan was able to provide valuable minutes early in the season for the Stallions. In his one game of action, Linehan completed seven of his 13 passes while throwing his first professional touchdown.
Austin Rekhow — The popular former Idaho punter has found his spot in the AAF as well, joining Linehan and Erickson on the Salt Lake Stallions. Rekhow sits as the starting punter for the Stallions, averaging 46 yards on 30 punts this season. Before finding his place in the AAF, Rekhow had a brief stint with the Buffalo Bills in the NFL.
Mike Scott — The former Idaho men’s basketball point guard has been enjoying a career in the Poland EBL League playing for BM Slam Stal Ostrow. This season BM Slam is fifth in EBL Standings with a 15-7 record.
Scott serves as the second leading scorer in the team, averaging 12 points, 4 assists and 2 rebounds throughout the year.
Kyle Barone — Barone is making a name for himself in the ASEAN Basketball League for the Saigon Heat. Barone leads the team in points per game and rebounding, averag- ing 21 points and 13 rebounds. Barone also ranks third in the ABL in rebounds per game. The Heat stand at a 13-12 record and picked up a win on Sunday over the Singapore Slingers, where Barone finished with a double-double of 17 points and 11 rebounds.
Brayon Blake — A part of the former “senior six” who made a splash for Vandal basketball has found his path to playing professional basketball. Blake first found an op- portunity in the NBA Summer League this past summer playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers. After his time in the Summer League, Blake signed a contract to play overseas in the Germany-BBL for Basketball Loewen Braunsch- weig. Blake currently provides valuable minutes off the bench where he averages nearly 10 points and four re- bounds per game.
Chris Deremer can be reached at [email protected]