BYU OL Kingsley Suamataia Cracks Top 3 on Bruce’s Feldman’s Freaks List

A former 5-Star recruit, BYU offensive tackle Kingsley Suamataia had a great first season in Provo after transferring in from Oregon. Kingsley was BYU’s starting right tackle as a redshirt freshman and will switch over to left tackle this year to replace Blake Freeland.

Kingsley has already received recognition prior to the season, receiving first round NFL draft buzz and being named Preseason All-Big 12. He got another recognition from The Athletic’s and Fox Sports’ Bruce Feldman Wednesday.

Feldman is one of the top college football journalists, and his annual Freaks list — which is coming up on 20 years — is one of the most researched and respected offseason pieces. Below is how Feldman describes the Freaks list.

“The original idea was to spotlight the players whose athleticism blew the minds of folks inside their own college football programs. At first, there were just 10 Freaks. Now, this has turned into something so much bigger, as I’ve expanded it to try to cover all of college football beyond FBS, with submissions from schools, coaches, teammates, parents, NFL scouts and agents.”

Kingsley Suamataia was earned the number three spot on the list, only behind wide receivers Nyckoles Harbor and Marvin Harrison Jr. Below is what Feldman wrote about Kingsley.

Coaches have always been great resources for this project over the years. That said, it’s been awhile since I stared at a response as long as I did the one I received from BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick this month.

“Kingsley Suamataia is the most athletic and violent OL I’ve ever coached. More athletic than Garett Bolles when I was at Utah. More athletic than Blake Freeland,” he wrote.

Bolles was a first-round pick and has started all 82 games he’s played in the NFL, and the 6-8, 302-pound Freeland, BYU’s left tackle last year, lit up the combine last spring by running a 4.98 40, vertical-jumping 37 inches — a combine record for offensive tackles — and broad-jumping 10-0, which was 1 inch away from the combine record for that, too. More athletic than Freeland, especially in that Suamataia weighs 23 pounds more, seemed like a mouthful.

The 6-6, 325-pound Suamataia didn’t allow a sack last season, a run of 361 pass plays.

“Kingsley is off the charts,” BYU sports scientist Skyler Mayne says. “He’s faster than our linebackers. He’s just a Freak in the weight room. What makes it look different from Blake is that Kingsley just makes it look a little more effortless. Blake was a better jumper, but Kingsley was our fastest lineman by a good bit.”

According to Mayne, Suamataia hit 21.5 MPH last year as a 318-pound freshman. That’s really good for a 218-pounder, much less an athlete 100 pounds more than that.

“He’s so fluid and smooth,” Mayne says. “I think he could run in the 4.8s. He’s definitely a sub-5 guy (in the 40). He’s super explosive and can throw a ton of weight around. You watch him on the field throw a big defensive end around with one arm, and he doesn’t even break stride. If he wanted to be a tight end or fullback, because he’s so naturally gifted and has the agility, he could.”

Kingsley getting the highest rating for a non-WR will land him more on the radar nationally. Don’t be surprised to see his inclusion as a talking point on most BYU FOX broadcasts this season. BYU will need guys to step up this year to compete year one in the Big 12, and having the biggest lineman athletic freak in college football is a good start.