Player Bio: UNLV: A former UCLA signee who was highly recruited out of high school ... Also made official visits to Arizona and Washington before signing with the Bruins in February 2009 ... Came to UNLV one year later and made an immediate impact as a true freshman ... Is listed No. 1 at the WLB spot after spring practice ... Name is pronounced "TAH-nee MAH-cah."
2010: Joined squad in time for fall camp and went on to earn his first letter as a Rebel by playing in all 13 games ... Made one start, at West Virginia ... Ranked 13th on squad with 34 total tackles and forced one fumble.
2009: Signed with UCLA out of high school but took year off instead.
HIGH SCHOOL: A 2009 graduate of Jordan HS ... A three-year letterman for the Panthers ... A versatile athlete who played LB, S, FB, RB, WR and DE for coach Scott Meyer ... A Rivals three-star recruit when he signed with the Bruins, he was rated as the nation's No. 32 OLB by ESPNU, the No. 71 inside linebacker by Rivals and the No. 57 MLB by Scout, which also ranked him the No. 95 player in California ... A PrepStar All-West Region selection and SuperPrep's All-FarWest (CA/HI/NV) No. 103 prospect ... As a senior, he made 52 tackles in seven games, including four sacks ... Also rushed for 107 yards on 11 attempts.
PERSONAL: Taniela M. Maka was born on Dec. 19, 1990, in Tonga ... The son of Topani and Tolofi Maka ... Has three brothers: Makisi, Sam and David, and one sister, Topani ... Majoring in interdisciplinary studies.
--Courtesy of UNLVRebels.com
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