PROVO — One big Aloha.
The nation’s first major college football head coaches from Samoan and Tongan heritage face off on ESPN when Navy hosts BYU the night of Labor Day in Annapolis, Maryland.
The very successful Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo’s roots go back to the beautiful Samoan islands, although he was born in Laie, Hawaii. BYU’s coach Kalani Sitake was born in Tonga before moving to Laie, then to St. Louis.
Niumatalolo has risen to become the most successful Navy coach in academy history with a couple of 11-win seasons and national rankings. Sitake led a 2019 team that beat USC, Tennessee and Boise State but lost to Toledo, San Diego and Hawaii.