Tuioti’s Imagination Sidelined by Injury

The 29th Orange County All-Star football game had to make do without Santa Ana linebacker George Tuioti, which is a shame, since Tuioti would have made it a Friday evening to remember.

First, he was going to quit wearing those black, skintight Lycra pants under his uniform, the ones that made him look like a 6-foot 4-inch, 229-pound Samoan aerobics instructor from hell (“And . . . 1-2-3-4, leg kick, go for the burn . . . “). In their place, Tuioti had chosen a more festive color: shocking pink.

“It was going to be show-and-tell time,” Tuioti said. “I was going to let them come along and hit the guy with the pink tights.”

Next, he was going to find just the right earring to wear. Something subtle, sort of an After Six look for football. His lucky diamond earring was a possibility. Of course, earrings are a dangerous accessory in this sort of game. Will they go with the uniform? And what happens if, well, a mishap occurs?

“If it tears off, I’ll just tape my ear,” Tuioti said.

As a final touch, Tuioti had a special bandanna all picked out. Offensive linemen wouldn’t have known whether to block him or ask him where he shops for clothes.

Tuioti also planned to intercept at least one North pass, knocking the bejabbers out of any North ballcarrier, blitzing, and asking his coaches for a chance to take a few snaps in the fourth quarter (he also played quarterback at Santa Ana). “Just for old time’s sake,” he said.

Instead, he stood on the sideline, wishing more than anything that June 28 had never existed.

Tuioti takes on an angry edge as he recalls that day’s practice. There was a no-contact, 7-on-7 drill--a drill designed almost exclusively to practice pass routes and coverages without the clutter of pass blockers and rushers. A simple swing pass to a tailback was thrown. Tuioti moved into perfect position for the tackle.

At the last moment, Tuioti veered away. Why hurt a teammate? he thought to himself.

But as Tuioti landed, his left leg remained perfectly straight. He said he heard a “a crunching sound, like my knee fell off.” So great was the impact that Tuioti flipped in the air.

“I knew something tore tremendously,” he said. “I thought, ‘Oh no, I don’t get to hit the North quarterback.’ ”

Or anyone else, for that matter. Torn ligaments can do that.

Arthroscopic surgery was performed Tuesday. By Thursday, Tuioti was limping to the kitchen to make lunch. By Friday, the crutches were gone. This week, he begins the long rehabilitative process.

Still, don’t expect to see him in that USC uniform this fall. With freshman recruits scheduled to report in less than a month, Tuioti is a probable candidate for a redshirt year. Just as well. It will give him a chance to work on his knee, as well as his grades.

This isn’t exactly how Tuioti had it planned. Or USC, which, understandably, prefers that its recruits politely decline any high school all-star game invitations.

Quarterback Todd Marinovich, a USC signee and Capistrano Valley alumnus, said no to the 29th Orange County affair. Too risky. Too unorganized. Too useless.

But Tuioti couldn’t say no. Nor could USC’s other two local linebacker recruits: David (RoboCop) Webb of Irvine and Jeff Pease of Mission Viejo.

“Everybody tells you, ‘Maybe you don’t have to play (in the game),’ ” Tuioti said. “But it’s an honor. You can’t play against all these little peons all year and then, when the big boys are out there, you don’t play.”

If you’re wondering how Tuioti is taking all this, just visit his family’s home. There are fist marks on one wall where Tuioti flailed away the night of the injury. Later, at about 1:30 a.m., Tuioti took out a pair of clippers and snipped away at his hair. Beats beating the wall, he figured.

Friday night, Tuioti had to resist the temptation to smack a North runner who swept by the South sideline. “It’s killing me,” he said.

At least there’s the USC scholarship, which takes away some of the hurt. If anyone deserved one, it’s Tuioti, who managed to stay clear of the gangs that dot his tough neighborhood. Football was his passage out.

“I looked at (the injury) all kinds of ways,” Tuioti said. “I’m glad, I guess, that I did it in football. Knowing that it was an all-star practice, rather than trying to beat somebody else up for money. I’d rather do it in some athletic activity than out there (gang fighting).”

Some guy, this Tuioti. Not since the two linebackers who ate cockroaches and crickets before games have I met anyone like him. Certifiably football crazed . . . tough as his football helmet . . . genuinely concerned about his future--with or without football (though he’d prefer it with).

“Right after I hurt my knee, one of my best buddies said, ‘It’s not now, it’s at the end,’ ” Tuioti said. “You see, it’s hurt now, but we’ll see at the end who gets the last laugh. I intend it to be me.”

Betcha the pink tights that he’s right.