William Harvey Unga (born January 18, 1987) is a former American football fullback and the current running backs coach for the Brigham Young University football team. He was drafted by the Chicago Bears with a seventh round pick in the 2010 NFL supplemental draft. He played college football at Brigham Young where he became the school's second all-time leading rusher.
 Unga in 2009 | |
| BYU Cougars | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Running backs coach |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | January 18, 1987 Kahuku, Hawaii |
| Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
| Weight: | 237 lb (108 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Timpview (Provo, Utah) |
| College: | Brigham Young |
| Supplemental draft: | 2010 / Round: 7 |
| Career history | |
| As a player: | |
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |
| As a coach: | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Career NFL statistics | |
| Player stats at NFL.com · PFR | |
College career edit
After the season-opener against the Arizona Wildcats in 2007, Unga earned the Mountain West Conference (MWC) offensive player of the week award. He had gained 194 all-purpose yards, with 127 yards coming from receptions. Unga became the starting running back in 2007 due to an injury to Fui Vakapuna in the prior season. As a starter, Harvey rushed for over 1,000 yards in just 11 games, with this mark reached in the second quarter against their in-state rivals, Utah, on November 24, 2007. He was named the MWC Freshman of the Year.[1][2] He had the second-most yards gained by a freshman in MWC history, and third among all freshman running backs in the nation in 2007.[3]
In 2009, Unga rushed for 1,087 yards and 11 touchdowns, and became the school's second all-time leading rusher with 3,455 yards. He earned first-team All-MWC honors following the season.[4]
On April 16, 2010, Unga voluntarily withdrew from BYU after violating its honor code.[4]
Professional career edit
Supplemental draft edit
Unga declared for the NFL supplemental draft that took place on July 15, 2010.[5] He worked out for 20 NFL teams on July 8 in Utah.[6]
| Height | Weight | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
244 lb (111 kg) |
4.59 s | 1.60 s | 4.39 s | 35 in (0.89 m) |
9 ft 6 in (2.90 m) |
19 reps | |||||
| All values from workout on July 8.[6] | ||||||||||||
Chicago Bears edit
Unga was selected by the Chicago Bears with a seventh round selection in the 2010 supplemental draft.[7][8] He was signed to a four-year contract on July 21, 2010.[9]
On August 31, 2011 the Bears received a roster exemption for Unga, who had left the team twice during the preseason for personal reasons.[10] He was placed on the reserve/left squad list on September 20, 2011. Following the 2011 season, Unga was reinstated to the active roster on April 16, 2012.[11]
On August 27, 2012, Unga was waived by the Bears.[12] He was later placed on the practice squad.[13] He was once again waived on October 9, and replaced by Kamar Aiken.[14] On December 4, Unga was brought back to the Bears practice squad.[15] On December 28, Unga was elevated to the active roster.[16] On August 30, 2013, Unga was released.[17] On September 1, Unga was re-signed to the Bears practice squad,[18] However a month later, on October 1, Unga was once again released from the team.[19]
Carolina Panthers edit
Unga signed with the Carolina Panthers on August 16, 2014.[20] The Panthers released Unga on August 24, 2014.[21]
BYU Cougars edit
Unga is currently serving as the running backs coach at BYU under head coach Kalani Sitake.[22] He was promoted to this position on March 19, 2020 after having worked as a graduate assistant and student assistant since 2015.
Personal life edit
Unga was born to Jackson and Theresa Unga. His father played running back for the BYU Cougars in the early 1980s.
Since July 16, 2010, he is married to Keilani (née Moeaki),[23] a former BYU women's basketball player,[24] and sister of former Chicago Bears tight end Tony Moeaki. The couple has a son, Jackson (born July 2010), and a daughter, Leila (born August 2011).[25]
References edit
- ^ "Unga named MWC Offensive Player of the Week". ksl.com. September 3, 2007. Retrieved 2010-07-12.
- ^ Reynolds, Jeff (December 4, 2007). "Unga Named MWC Freshman of the Year". BYU Athletics. Archived from the original on April 5, 2008. Retrieved 2010-07-12.
- ^ "Unga named MWC freshman of the year". ksl.com. December 5, 2007. Retrieved 2010-07-12.
- ^ a b "BYU RB Unga leaving school". FoxSports. April 17, 2010. Retrieved 2010-07-12.
- ^ Florio, Mike (June 16, 2010). "Harvey Unga heads to the supplemental draft". Profootballtalk.com. Retrieved 2010-07-12.
- ^ a b Florio, Mike (July 8, 2010). "Twenty teams see Harvey Unga work out". Profootballtalk.com. Retrieved 2010-07-12.
- ^ "2010 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2023-05-13.
- ^ "Bears pick Unga; Price-Brent to Dallas". ESPN.com. July 15, 2010. Retrieved 2010-07-15.
- ^ Dickson, Darnell (July 21, 2010). "BYU's Unga signs 4-year deal with Bears". Daily Herald. Retrieved 2010-07-21.
- ^ Jensen, Sean (August 31, 2011). "Bears receive roster exemption for Harvey Unga". Chicago Sun Times. Archived from the original on 25 September 2011. Retrieved 8 September 2011.
- ^ Wilson, Aaron (April 16, 2012). "Source: Harvey Unga reinstated from reserve/left squad list". scout.com. Retrieved 2012-04-16.
- ^ Mayer, Larry (2012-08-27). "Preseason finale was critical for Clutts". Chicago Bears. Archived from the original on 2012-09-02. Retrieved 2012-10-09.
- ^ Licensed, The (2012-01-09). "Bears Announce 2012 Practice Squad". Windy City Gridiron. Retrieved 2012-09-02.
- ^ Adam Oestmann. "Bears sign WR Aiken, release RB Unga | Chicago Bears Huddle". Chicagonow.com. Retrieved 2012-10-09.
- ^ Mayer, Larry (2012-12-04). "Bears sign DeCicco, waive Trahan". Chicago Bears. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2012-12-04.
- ^ Mayer, Larry (2012-12-28). "Bears counting on defense to take ball away". Chicago Bears. Archived from the original on 2013-10-12. Retrieved 2012-12-28.
- ^ Mayer, Larry (2013-08-30). "Bears cut 17 players, still have five to go". Chicago Bears. Archived from the original on 2013-09-01. Retrieved 2013-08-30.
- ^ Biggs, Brad (2013-09-01). "Bears sign rookie DE Bass; QB Johnson joins practice squad". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2013-09-01.
- ^ Wright, Michael (2013-10-01). "Bears add Cattouse, release Unga". ESPN. Retrieved 2013-10-02.
- ^ Wilkening, Mike (16 August 2014). "Jaguars sign FB Harvey Unga, OT Cody Booth". Pro Football Talk. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
- ^ "CB Mike Harris among 11 players released". Archived from the original on 2016-06-12. Retrieved 2014-08-24.
- ^ "BYU running backs get their wish, former Cougar great Harvey Unga added to coaching staff". 19 March 2020.
- ^ "Harvey Unga gets married". Daily Herald. July 17, 2010.
- ^ "Keilani Unga Athlete Profile | The Official Site of BYU Athletics". byucougars.com. Archived from the original on 2012-09-26.
- ^ "Keilani Unga works her way back for senior season after life-changing event". Deseret News. January 17, 2013.
http://www.foxsports.com/florida/story/jaguars-sign-fb-harvey-unga-ot-cody-booth-081614
