5 scariest players in college football
By Roje Smith
As we wind down on another fun and scary Halloween, let’s take a look at who the scariest players in college football are.
As everyone’s Halloween begins to wind down, we’re reminded what this holiday is all about: fun and fear. It’s fun to dress up and playfully create fear for those around you. Costumes depicting a variety of ghouls, ghosts and goblins can be seen all day and all night. Theme parks around the country have special haunted events that play into the frightful theme as well.
When it comes to the athletic world, certain sports generate more fears than others. It’s mostly due to the aggressive nature of the sport and the intimidating presence of its athletes. Hockey is one of those sports and it definitely has its share of scary athletes. However, football is arguably still the top sport that people think about when it comes to scary players.
The NFL obviously has a slew of frightening individuals, but so does college football. Let’s take a look at the five scariest players that are gracing NCAA fields this season.
5. Shalom Luani – SS – Washington State Cougars
Shalom Luani may have the most ironic name in college football when you consider his style of play. The word “shalom” in Hebrew means “peace” and that admittedly reflects his off-the-field personality. He’s known as a quiet guy that’s rather shy. However, it seems like he takes on a different persona when he’s on the football field because peace is the last thing that he brings.
Luani is an absolute terror for opposing offenses as a hard-hitting safety. He joined Chabot College of California to play football at the NJCAA level in 2012. He transferred to the City College of San Francisco the following year and became a junior college All-American. By the end of 2014, he was nationally recognized as the top junior college safety in the country and he accepted a scholarship to play for Washington State. After his first season with the Cougars last year, he was named as an honorable mention All-Pac-12 player and he continues to improve.
The thing that makes Shalom so scary is his head-hunter mentality when it comes to going after the football. He has no issue throwing his body into ball carriers and makes sure that the hit he delivers will be felt into the following week. Luani is also the type of safety that gives wide receivers a case of the “gator arms” since he will deliver a thunderous pop to anyone that dares to make a catch near him.
He may not be the best pure safety in college football, but you’ll be hard-pressed to find one that’s scarier than him. Any opponent of Washington State this season must have been up all night worrying about Luani before the game. I know I would be.