Genius Van Wilder linebacker is starting his 9th year of college

Nothing but respect for linebacker Solomon Tuliaupupu, a 25-year-old about to embark on his ninth year of college in Montana. Jokes about a Van Wilder-esque college career of the adult in the dorm might linger, but Tuliaupupu has mastered working the system in his favor and pivoting from a once-promising football career, into multiple degrees.

Tuliaupupu seemed to be on a path for the NFL out of high school in 2017. He was named an All-American, won the Dick Butkus high school linebacker of the year, and the USA Today defensive player of the year. Committing to USC, a linebacker incubator, it seemed a matter of time before he’d be suiting up in the NFL with incredible lateral quickness, unreal football IQ, and idea size.

Unfortunately, everything went off the rails when he arrived in college. Tuliaupupu was poised to start as a true freshman, but was forced to redshirt after suffering a preseason foot injury that caused him to miss the entire season. Then, as a sophomore, he sustained a season-ending knee injury in preseason, which required surgery. Moving to defensive end to lessen the chance of injury, Tuliaupupu saw no playing time in his junior season — then suffered another injury in preseason the following season, which caused him to miss another year.

Tuliaupupu finally got to play in 2024, but had a limited impact. He then transferred to Montana to get more playing time, and take on more opportunities. That has led us to him now aiming to compete again in 2026.

So why is Tuliaupupu a genius? It’s simple: Instead of being locked on football with the blinders on, he realized that the laundry list of injuries would either make him undraftable, or throw his stock so low that the chances of a life-changing NFL career were slim-to-none. During this entire time he was racking up his studies, and attaining multiple degrees. So why it might seem like this 25-year-old is refusing to grow up, he’s set himself up for the future.

• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from USC’s Marshall School of Business
• Master’s degree in Project Management from USC’s Brovard College
• Graduate certificate in entrepreneurship at the University of Montana (in progress)

With his college football career coming to a close, there’s no doubt he’ll have some disappointment that his football career didn’t pan out, but instead he’s turned his eligibility into multiple debt-free degrees. In addition, he’s showing companies that he knows when to pivot from a negative situation and turn it into a positive, which is a massive boon for his career chances.