Updated at 8:15 a.m., Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Satele drawing comparisons to Dolphin Hall of Famer
Advertiser Staff
|
In a story by Andy Kent on miamidolphins.com, Satele, a former Kailua High athlete, is being lauded for his toughness and promise.
Like Stephenson, a Hall of Fame center who starred for the Dolphins in the 1980s, Satele was drafted in the second round.
The article mentions Satele's six root canals a week before the team's final minicamp last month. Yet, Satele didn't miss a practice.
"I'm just a rookie and I can handle pain," Satele says. "It didn't bother me, honestly. I couldn't really talk but at the same time I was out there trying to fight for my job. It was something I wanted to get done and I'm happy it's done because it's a lifetime investment."
The article states that Satele tried to keep the news to himself, not even telling his fellow former UH teammates Tala Esera and Reagan Mauia.
The team found out — and Satele gained a new level of respect — during drills when offensive line coach Hudson Houck came up to Satele and asked him how he was doing.
"They did it over two days, and unless you like to lie down and look at the lights for about five hours it's not real comfortable," Satele said in the article. "The actual procedure wasn't that bad but the pain afterwards was a challenge."
Satele's tenacity and desire to land the starting center job and hold onto it have already garnered the attention and respect of first-year head coach Cam Cameron.
At the conclusion of the mini-camp, Cameron revealed what Satele had gone through the week before in order to make a point.
"I'm talking about his toughness. He never flinched, never said a word," Cameron told reporters. "I have never been around a guy yet that really practiced a whole practice with one root canal and he's had (six) in the last however many days. One thing is; we know he's smart and we know he's tough, which goes a long way at that position. We're very pleased with his progress."
Satele is back in Hawaii visiting with his family and friends before training camp starts in earnest at the end of the month. He and the other rookies will get in some work before the veterans report on July 27.
As for any comparisons to Stephenson, Satele said:
"I give my respect to him knowing that he was the best center there ever was in Miami, and to stay with the same team like he did is my motivation," Satele says. "I'm real eager just to look forward to the season and look forward to my future with the Dolphins and stay here forever. I want to be here forever because it's like Hawaii with no mountains."
