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Bronco walk-on from Mountain Home living out dream
When Ia Falo was a kid growing up in Nebraska his mother used to tease him when they would attend Husker football games. As they were waiting in line, she would point to the player's family entrance and say that someday she would be standing in that line over there.
Falo would simply look up at her and smile.
Now, his mother has a chance to do just that next week when Falo suits up for Boise State as they square off against Boston College in the MPC Computers Bowl Dec. 28 at Bronco Stadium.
"Game day is always exciting," said the 2003 Mountain Home High School graduate. "But a bowl game is extra special."
Falo, listed as a 5'7" 159 lb. safety, has always dreamed of playing college football. Ever since he was in elementary school he has prepared himself for gameday.
His mother, Marta L. Suponchick of San Francisco, remembered how he use to wake her up the morning of a game.
"It would be 6 a.m. and I would hear the T.V. on downstairs. I would also hear heavy breathing and when I came downstairs I would find him sitting on the couch watching cartoons with his helmet on and mouthpiece in," she said.
"His uniform would be perfectly laid out with all the pads in and the only way I could get him to take his helmet off was to make him breakfast!"
Falo obsessed about football growing up in San Diego and then Nebraska, where he grew to idolize the Huskers.
When he moved to Mountain Home with his father, who was stationed at Mountain Home AFB, he soon became enthralled with Boise State.
"I am so proud to be a part of this team, a part of this tradition," he said as he sat staring at the famous blue "Smurf" turf of Bronco Stadium.
"I always wanted to play college football, but to be able to do it here, so close to home, is amazing."
As a senior at Mountain Home, Falo helped lead the Tigers to a conference championship as the starting outside linebacker and running back. He also won a state pole-vaulting championship and a district title on the wrestling mats.
Still, as graduation loomed many college coaches were not interested because of Falo's size. "It's tough you know, trying to play Division 1 football at my size," he said.
"But I never for one second thought it couldn't be done. I have always been taught that heart is more important than size."
Falo decided to stay close to home and walk on to Dan Hawkins' Boise State team in the fall of 2003. It seemed like the perfect fit.
Hawkins, who recently accepted the head coaching position at the University of Colorado, has always prided himself on accepting walk-ons and taking a genuine look at their abilities.
"We are a blue collar team and if someone like Ia is willing to work hard, that is exactly what we are looking for," Hawkins said.
Falo red-shirted his first year with the Broncos but through hard-work and determination, won himself a spot on the team.
"He called and told me he was still on the bubble the day before the last cut and he was nervous he wouldn't make it," his mother said.
"I told him to hold nothing back, that his father and I were proud of him simply because he gave it everything he had and that was all that mattered."
Falo had a spectacular final scrimmage, made the team, and began the 2004 season as a scout special teams player. He was officially listed as a safety, perhaps the smallest on any Div. 1 roster.
But don't tell him that. Last season, he was named the Broncos' special teams scout player of the year after recording 11 tackles (five solo) as a starter on the kickoff and punt teams.
"I don't mind special teams at all," he said. "In fact, I love it. Wherever I can help, that's the kind of attitude you have to have to be a part of this team."
BSU special teams coach Kent Riddle said that after no one could block him in practice, they figured, "hey, maybe we should give the guy a chance."
Falo's quickness and ability to avoid blockers serves as an inspiration to his fellow teammates.
"Ia is a monster," freshman running back and fellow special teams player Ian Johnson said. "He knocks people down all over the place."
This season, Falo recorded 12 tackles (six solo) and was recently honored by coaches and teammates at the team's annual banquet. Falo was called up in front of everyone and awarded the Denny Erickson Award for Valor, presented by Hawkins himself.
Falo was touched by the recognition and said that his biggest accomplishment thus far in his career was earning the respect of his teammates and coaches.
"In this game, respect is everything and I feel I've earned that from them," he said.
Hawkins also had another surprise for the sophomore when, after presenting the award, he announced that Falo would no longer be a walk-on. As of January, he will be a scholarship athlete.
"We are so proud of him," his mother said. "Every goal he has ever had, including this one, he has reached."
Being an undersized athlete in such a high-profile program has never bothered Falo. To him, walking on was just another challenge.
"I knew it was going to be hard when I decided to come here," he said. "But in order to succeed all I had to do was let them see me, let them see the size of my heart. That far outweighs the size of my body."
Falo also enjoys being so close to Mountain Home and having his father, Jay Falo Tiumalu, in the stands for many of his home games.
"He came with me on my recruiting trip, so it's fitting that he gets to come watch me play," he said.
Falo, who is half Samoan and half Cherokee, has, according to his mother, "always had the energy of four children rolled into one." The football field seems to be where he gets a chance to release that energy.
Hawkins also touched on Falo's energy and work ethic. "As soon as he came out I could feel this kid would do whatever it took, he would never give up," he said.
"I could feel his soul."
His mother felt it way back in Lincoln, Neb., as the two of them sat in the stands of Memorial Stadium. She would watch her son remain absolutely still, fixated on the players; a smile etched on his face.
She knew that one day she would once again be sitting in the stands, watching him. Only now she gets to come in through the family entrance and her son is the one making other people smile.