Northeastern State University Athletics

Junior Tanuvasa enters his second season on the Northeastern State football staff as its Defensive Coordinator, while he enters his first season as Associate Head Coach.

Defensively, the RiverHawks displayed significant progress in their first season under Tanuvasa' guidance, allowing 6.36 fewer points per game and 70 fewer points overall. The pass defense surrendered 741 fewer yards and 24 fewer first downs through the air, while the rushing defense increased tackles for loss and forced opponents to lose an additional 85 yards on the ground. Third-down conversion rates decreased by 7.9% and fourth-down rates were lowed by 12.5%. Tanuvasa also helped the defense to their first shutout since 2011 in a 48-0 triumph on Homecoming over Lincoln (Ca.) on Oct. 26.

Tanuvasa joined the staff in Jan. 2024 after spending time at Chaffey College where he worked alongside Coach Chiaverini as Assistant Head Coach and Defensive Coordinator.  Chaffey went 11-0 during the 2023 season with 12 student-athletes being named Region IV All-California.  They ended the season as the American Metro Conference Champions and 2023 American Division Bowl Champions.

Tanuvasa was previously at Western New Mexico as Defensive Coordinator and Linebackers Coach.  In his season at Silver City, WNMU earned its first winning season in over a decade and had 17 student-athletes named All-Lone Star Conference.

Before arriving at Western New Mexico, Tanuvasa worked on the University of Colorado's football staff for two years (2019-21), originally joining in quality control for recruiting on April 13, 2020. In February 2021, he shifted into quality control for defense.  

Tanuvasa arrived at Colorado from Northern Arizona University, where he served as the linebackers coach for the 2019 season.  That followed one year as linebackers coach at Dixie State College in St. George, Utah. 

Tanuvasa spent nine seasons (2009-17) on the coaching staff at Mount San Antonio College (Mt. SAC), where he tutored the linebackers, was over strength and conditioning and was the Mounties’ co-defensive coordinator for the last five seasons there.  He was inducted into the 2020 Mt. SAC Hall of Fame as a coach for the school’s 2009 & 2010 football teams, which won 26 consecutive games, claiming the JC Gridwire national championship both seasons.  Mt. SAC won several other titles while he was on staff, including the Southern California Bowl (2009, 1011, 2014), the National Bowl (2010, 2012), the Golden State Bowl (2013, 2015, 2016) and the CCCAA California State championship (2009, 2010, 2014).
 
All told in 11 seasons of coaching, the teams he was a part of a 103-29 record (10 winning seasons), and on the JUCO level, he personally coached 13 All-American linebackers, 14 All-State linebackers and 26 All-Conference performers.  On three occasions, he coached the conference’s defensive player of the year (2011, 2014, 1015).
 
Also while at Mt. SAC, at CCCAA Statewide Academic Convention, he developed, proposed and operated G.R.A.S.P. (Grey & Redshirt Academic Support Program) for underserved student-athletes at the state’s community college level, which has since been adopted at several campuses across California.
 
Tanuvasa played one year at linebacker for the Mounties and earned All-Mission Conference honors for the 2003 season as a freshman, when he was in on 108 tackles, 17 for losses with five quarterback sacks.  He then spent two seasons at San Jose State (2004-05) before concluding his career at New Mexico Highlands, where as a senior linebacker in 2007, he recorded 97 tackles, 24 for losses including seven sacks.
He earned his A.A. degree in Sociology from Mt. SAC in 2005, and earned his bachelor’s degree in the same field in 2009 from New Mexico Highlands; he was a member of the Dean’s List at NMHU.
 
Tanuvasa graduated from Tacoma’s Henry Foss High School, where he lettered in football and in track & field (relays, shot put).  He was a two-time All-State performer at linebacker, also earning three-time All-Area honors and four-time All-Conference accolades.  His hobbies include sports, grilling (barbecue), spending time with family, watching movies, amusement parks and traveling; he once played an extra in an episode of Key & Peele, a sketch comedy show that aired on Comedy Central.  He is married to the former Anetero Uiagalelei, and the couple has three children, sons Manaia (17) and Malaki (12) and daughter Maliah (9).  He has a large extended family, as he is the youngest of 11 siblings; he had 45 nieces and nephews between himself and his wife’s brothers and sisters.  His nicknames include Junior and June; first name is Tamafaiga.