Background and career
Troy Aumua Polamalu (; born Troy Benjamin Aumua; April 19, 1981) is an American former professional football player who spent his entire 12-year career as a safety for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). An eight-time Pro Bowl and six-time All-Pro selection, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2020, his first year of eligibility. Polamalu played college football for the USC Trojans, earning consensus All-American honors in 2002. He was chosen by the Steelers in the first round of the 2003 NFL draft. He was a member of two Steelers' Super Bowl championship teams and was the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2010, helping them to another Super Bowl appearance. He was also the head of player relations of the Alliance of American Football. Known for his "range, explosiveness, and impact on the field," Polamalu is widely considered one of the greatest safeties in NFL history, and is credited with playing a key role in the Steelers' success during the 2000s.
Polamalu was born in Garden Grove, California. His mother is Suila Polamalu. Polamalu is of American Samoan descent. He is the youngest of five children. His father left the family soon after Polamalu was born. Polamalu spent his early years in Santa Ana, California. At age eight, Polamalu vacationed in Tenmile, Oregon with his aunt and uncle for three weeks; afterwards, he begged his mother to let him live in Oregon. Concerned about the negative influences in nearby Los Angeles, Polamalu's mother sent him to Oregon to live with his uncle, aunt, and cousins when he was nine years old. Polamalu described his uncle, Salu Polamalu, as a disciplinarian who kept him straight. Polamalu graduated from Douglas High School in Winston, Oregon. While there, he played high school football. Following his junior season, Polamalu was named to the All-State first team and was the All-Far West League Offensive Most Valuable Player for Douglas High, which achieved a 9–1 record. He rushed for 1,040 yards with 22 touchdowns and had 310 receiving yards. On defense, he made 65 tackles and had eight interceptions. Despite playing in only four games during his senior season due to injury, he was named to the 1998 Super Prep All-Northwest team, Tacoma News Tribune Western 100, and the All-Far West League second team. As a two-way player, Polamalu rushed for 671 yards with nine touchdowns and had three interceptions. Polamalu also played high school baseball and basketball, where he received all-state and all-league honors.
Polamalu received an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Southern California (USC), and played for the Trojans from 1999 to 2002. "I believe God named me Troy for a reason", he said (Troy was the ancient capital of the Trojans). "I was born to come here."
Polamalu began his college career in 1999 as a true freshman, playing backup at safety and linebacker, while also contributing on special teams. While playing in eight games, he recorded 12 tackles, two sacks, and two forced fumbles. Against Louisiana Tech, he showed his effectiveness on special teams, blocking a punt. His freshman season was cut short when he suffered a concussion at practice. The injury sidelined him for four games.
The 2000 season marked the beginning of Polamalu's career. He opened his season starting against Penn State, and recorded only two tackles but made an interception for a 43-yard touchdown. While playing against Colorado, he made five tackles and recovered a fumble that set up a Trojan touchdown. The next game, he again recorded five tackles and also sacked Oregon State's quarterback. During a game against Oregon, he ended the game with 13 tackles, two tackles for a loss, and one interception. Later on, against Stanford, he made 11 tackles in the game. He set a career-high with 14 tackles against Arizona State and tied that mark against Notre Dame. This marked his first year starting all 12 games at strong safety and he closed out 2000 with 83 tackles, five tackles-for-loss, one sack, two interceptions, and one touchdown.
In 2001, he had the best year of his college career. He started the season by being voted as the team captain, and in the season opener he recorded seven tackles and one tackle for a loss against San Jose State. Against Kansas State, he had a game-high 13 tackles, three tackles for a loss, and one forced fumble. Polamalu continued his dominance against Stanford, making a game-high 10 stops, one tackle for a loss, and his first blocked punt of the season. In the next game against Washington he had a game-high 13 tackles, two tackles for a loss, an interception that he returned for a 22-yard touchdown. Throughout the next four games, Polamalu continued to have the most tackles in each game. He had a streak of six games in a row and eight total in the season where he led both teams in tackles. Against Oregon State, he accumulated a game-high 11 tackles, two tackles for a loss, two pass deflections, one forced fumble, and a blocked punt that USC recovered. His streak ended against California, when he had four tackles, but made a game-deciding play with an interception that he returned for a 58-yard touchdown. The next week, the Trojans played their rival, UCLA. Polamalu had two tackles but made key plays when he blocked a punt and made an interception that set up key field goals for USC. He won his first PAC-10 Defensive Player of the Week. USC went on to the Las Vegas Bowl against Utah and Polamalu made a career-high 20 tackles, and three tackles for a loss. He finished his junior campaign with a team-high 118 tackles, 13 tackles for a loss, one sack, three interceptions, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, three blocked punts, and two touchdowns. Polamalu won USC's MVP award and was voted a first-team All-American by Football Writers and College and Pro Football News Weekly. The Associated Press voted him second-team All-American.
