Tino Sunseri would do whatever was needed in the equipment room. Folding towels, putting away laundry — the nature of the task didn’t matter so long as it allowed the teenager to be near his father, Sal, the defensive line coach for the Carolina Panthers.
One of the perks of hanging around an NFL locker room was meeting the players. Among those who took an immediate liking to the boy was DeShaun Foster, the new running back out of UCLA.
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“He would come up to you as a young kid that looked up to all these NFL players, that was having all the success, and would take the time to be able to talk to you, spend time with you and was really, really genuine,” Sunseri said Saturday, more than two decades after first crossing paths with Foster during the 2002 season. “So when it came to him and our relationship, he was somebody that I knew whenever I walked in the building I felt like I had a friendship with.”
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They did not remain in contact after Foster left the Panthers before the 2008 season, Sunseri going on to play quarterback at the University of Pittsburgh while Foster finished his career with the San Francisco 49ers and began his ascent up the coaching ranks.
The next time the men saw one another was last fall, when they hugged after Sunseri’s Indiana Hoosiers defeated Foster’s Bruins at the Rose Bowl. But the embrace felt like two old friends reconnecting.
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Foster was impressed enough with Sunseri’s work helping Indiana reach the College Football Playoff that he asked the Hoosiers’ co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach to take on a similar role with the Bruins, becoming their offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. After assessing that opportunity in addition to a handful of other job…
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Publish date : 2025-04-06 10:45:00
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