Linebacker Siale Esera is Living His Dream of Playing for Hometown BYU

Casey Lundquist | Aug 13, 2024

Siale Esera at BYU Football Fall camp / BYU Photo

Prior to enrolling at BYU, linebacker Siale Esera was a four-star recruit with competing offers from the likes of UCLA, Michigan, Oregon, Utah, Arizona, Nebraska, Stanford, Tennessee, and USC among others. When Jay Hill was hired as BYU's defensive coordinator following the 2022 season, getting Esera to BYU was one of his top priorities. Esera prepped just a few miles down the road from BYU's campus at Timpview High School.

Esera eventually signed with BYU and enrolled in time for the 2023 season. It didn't take him long to make an impact as a true freshman. Esera made his first college appearance near the end of the TCU game and he made the most of his opportunities. Esera only played 10 snaps that day, but he had an interception and one tackle in just 10 plays.

A Standout True Freshman

"He's another one of those young linebackers that we think will be absolutely outstanding," Jay Hill said on Siale Esera after the game. "Not many guys go in their first college rep and get an interception in their very first rep in college football. That just shows he's a playmaker, he's athletic, his drop was really good on that coverage, and his best football is still in his future. The BYU fans are going to get to know that name a lot because he's going to be a good football player here."

Esera started to get more and more reps as the season progressed. His snaps increased from 10 against TCU to 20 the following week against Texas Tech. Esera flashed his potential once again against the Red Raiders, finishing with three defensive stops. A "stop" is a term from PFF that constitutes a "failure" for the offense.

Those reps against Texas Tech were his first real reps under the lights at Lavell Edwards Stadium. For a kid who grew up just down the street, Esera said it was a dream come true.

"Oh, it's a dream," Esera told BYU On SI of his first time playing at Lavell Edwards Stadium. "It was a dream of mine, playing in the hometown and to play at LES stadium. It's been a dream to watch the ROC do the side-by-side leaning. Being in that experience on the field was amazing."

Esera's role increased to 28 snaps on the road at Texas. In that game, Esera was BYU's highest-graded player among players that played at least 25 snaps. That earned him even more snaps the following week on the road at West Virginia. His role continued to increase until he suffered an injury against Iowa State that ended his season.

Those opportunities as a true freshman meant a lot to Esera and his preparation for the upcoming season.

"They meant a lot," Esera said on the opportunities he had as a true freshman. "Just being able to get that game feeling, you know, it was amazing man. I loved it. Getting that game sense while you're in there, it's a whole different thing than practice."

During the season last year, defensive coordinator Jay Hill highlighted Esera, calling him a future playmaker for the BYU defense.

Siale Esera completes a drill at BYU Fall camp / BYU Photo

"It's very hard in this defense to play as a true freshman, so him coming along and playing as much as he has is a tribute to him and to Coach Ena and how he's coaching those guys," Hill said. "He's made a lot of plays over the last couple of weeks. I think you'll see him get better and better and you'll see him a lot in the coming years making plays in our defense."

Goals for the 2024 Season

The season-ending injury that Esera suffered last season forced him to miss Spring camp. He was cleared before Fall camp and has been practicing throughout camp. Going into his sophomore season, Esera wants to continue to see the field more and more.

"I'm just trying to play more," Esera said on his goals for the 2024. "I started seeing time on the field [against TCU] and we went from there. This is a big opportunity for me to be on the field most of the time."

Given the injury of Ben Bywater, Esera is a candidate to get a lot of playing time in 2024.

Esera is part of a young core of defense that has a bright future in Provo. Jay Hill said they hit "home runs" with a lot of guys in the freshman class. If BYU can keep that core together, Esera believes they can do special things at BYU.

"That secondary, we have a lot of youngsters coming in and stepping up as well as our D Line, there's a lot of youngsters coming in and stepping up," Esera said. "One of Coach Hill's main points when he came to BYU, he told us that it's his job to recruit to replace us. So it's our job to keep our spot. And so it pushes us to become better and the best guys are going to see the field."

BYU kicks off the 2024 season in 18 days against Southern Illinois.