From Samoa to the NFL, Ravens rookie shares football journey

Vega Ioane’s Journey to Football Started With Family — And a Little Resistance Football was always around Vega Ioane, even before it became his path. Growing up watching his brothers play, he was surrounded by the game. But when his family moved, the focus shifted, at least temporarily.

When asked how he fell in love with football, Ioane shared how that connection developed over time. “I watched a lot of football growing up. My older brothers, they play football, in high school and all that.

I was a young kid watching them play on the islands [of American Samoa], and I didn't really ... Not much came from that with them, but from then on, I knew the game was a big part of our family, our culture, things like that. I came to Washington state, and my mom said no football, no nothing like that, and [that I need to] focus on school.

She's right here, but she loves football now, and that's all that matters to me. ” That’s how it usually works. The game finds you, and once it does, everything else starts to fall into place.