Washington Football great Daniel Te’o-Nesheim dies at age 30
By Bret Stuter
The Washington Football team is family. Now and for a lifetime. But the news of former Washington Football great Daniel Te’o-Nesheim‘s death at age 30 is saddening and sobering.
Daniel Te’o-Neisheim is known and loved by Washington Football fans. A quarterback sack specialist, he dominated the Pac-12 with his quick edge bursts. The Pago Pago, American Samoa native played high school at Hawaii Preparatory Academy and the three-star defensive end committed to the Washington Class of 2005.
Washington Football star Daniel Te’o-Nesheim played for Huskies from 2006-2009. During that time, he set the bar very high for quarterback sacks, all the way to 29 to be exact. He never made it to 30 sacks despite a standout senior season. He just made it to 30 in life.
NFL Draft
He heard his name called in the 2010 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles at the 86th overall pick. His rookie season, he played in just six games with one start, as he was fighting a shoulder injury through his rookie season. On one hand, he did record a quarterback sack that year. On the other hand, the following year he was waived from the 53 man roster and signed to the practice squad.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers signed him off the Eagles practice squad on November 22, 2011. He played two more seasons for the Buccaneers. His NFL stats recorded 57 tackles and five sacks.
Call to coach
He returned to his high school, Hawaii Preparatory Academy, where he was the assistant high school coach for two seasons. He was promoted to head coach in April 2017.
On October 30, 2017, he passed away.
He is the son of the late David Nesheim and Ailota Nesheim, who now resides in Seattle. Teo-Nesheim is also the distant cousin of former NFL player Toniu Fonoti. As a matter of fact, he gave a tremendous interview to Stephen F. Holder of the Tampa Bay Times at www.tampabay.com on December 12, 2012.
Daniel Te’o-Nesheim will always be a member of the Husky family. It is both saddening and sobering that he has been called so young in life. Some say football is just a game. In some ways, that is true. But it’s also a way for a city to connect to her student athletes. It’s a way to grow a family beyond blood relations. It’s a way to show love for young men who compete for the city and school.
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But today, that love is diluted with the tears of losing one of our own so early in life. May God bless you and keep you Daniel Te’o-Nesheim. You are and always will be a Washington Husky.