Jeremiah Masoli

Jeremiah Taeatafa Masoli (born August 24, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Omaha Nighthawks of the United Football League. He was signed by the San Francisco 49ers as an undrafted free agent in 2011. He played college football at the City College of San Francisco, University of Oregon and the University of Mississippi.

2008
Masoli transferred from CCSF to the University of Oregon in 2008. In 2008 for the Ducks, Masoli emerged from the 3rd string quarterback to starter as injuries plagued the depth chart. He threw for 13 touchdowns and 5 interceptions, while also rushing for 10 touchdowns. His 714 rushing yards in 2008 set an Oregon record for quarterbacks. Masoli led the team to a 42-31 victory against Oklahoma State in the 2008 Holiday Bowl.

2009
Masoli was named to the Davey O'Brien Award watch list for the 2009 college football season. He also appeared on the cover of a regional August 2009 issue of Sports Illustrated, along with center Jordan Holmes. In October 2009, Masoli helped lead the Ducks to an upset over the then #5 USC Trojans with 222 passing yards, 164 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Masoli helped the Ducks win the Pac-10 Championship, advancing them to the Rose Bowl where they lost to the Ohio State Buckeyes 26-17. Masoli was 9/20 passing with 81 yards and an interception, while rushing for 9 yards and a touchdown. For the season, he completed 177 of 305 passes for 2,147 yards and 15 touchdowns, and ran for 13 scores. His 2,815 yards of total offense stands eighth on the school's single-season list.

2010
On January 25, 2010, Masoli and teammate Garrett Embry were identified as suspects in a theft on the University of Oregon campus. On March 12, 2010, Masoli pled guilty to felony second-degree burglary, receiving 12 months probation. Masoli was then suspended for the entire 2010 season by head coach Chip Kelly. In June, 2010, Masoli was cited for misdemeanor drug and traffic offenses, and was dismissed from the team. He later pled guilty to marijuana possession and a moving violation stemming from the traffic stop. Prior to his being kicked off the team, he would have been eligible to play in the 2011 season had he satisfied the requirements set forth by Kelly. Media outlets reported on July 25, 2010, that Masoli had sent his scholarship release papers to a number of schools, notably Ole Miss. The report included Ole Miss rival Mississippi State, Hawaii, UNLV, Louisiana Tech, and Syracuse. Masoli would presumably be eligible to play in the 2010 season after completing his undergraduate degree at Oregon; he would need to enroll in graduate study not currently offered at Oregon in order to be eligible at the next institution. On August 31, 2010, the NCAA denied Jeremiah Masoli's waiver for immediate eligibility at Ole Miss. In a press release, the NCAA stated that the transfer exception cited in Masoli's case is intended for students pursuing new academic study, not avoiding disciplinary punishments. Ole Miss appealed the decision, and school officials expected a response from the NCAA before Ole Miss's second game of 2010. Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt expressed his disagreement with the NCAA's ruling; some reports suggested that Masoli was likely to be named a team captain for 2010 given his eligibility. On September 3, 2010, the ad hoc NCAA Subcommittee for Legislative Relief granted Ole Miss's appeal, allowing Masoli to play immediately in the 2010 home opener versus Jacksonville State University. Ole Miss subsequently lost the game. The following week Masoli started at quarterback and led the Rebels to victory over Tulane. Masoli had 190 passing yards and 104 rushing yards in the Rebels' third game, a 28-14 loss at home to Vanderbilt. On September 18 vs. Vanderbilt,he became the first Ole Miss player since Archie Manning in 1969 to rush and pass for at least 100 yards. He ran for a team-high of 104 yards, had a TD on 19 carries and threw for 190 yards on 19-of-35 attempts, with two interceptions. On September 25 vs. Fresno State he completed 8-of-12 passes for 153 yards with two TDs and a pick and also rushed for 59 yards on eight carries, including a long of 56. On October 12 vs. Kentucky (10/2)he accounted for a career-high four touchdowns including a career-best three passing scores, and threw for 90 yards on 9-of-17 passing and rushed for 43 yards on nine attempts. On October 16 vs. Alabama, he completed 18 of 40 passes for 110 yards, had a TD and an interception and rushed for a team-high 40 yards on 10 carries. On October 23 vs. Arkansas he piled up 425 yards of total offense (the second-highest game total in school history). Had 21 completions on 36 attempts for a career-high 327 yards and a career high-tying three TDs with no picks. He ran for a team-high of 98 yards on 15 carries, and booted a 45-yard punt. On October 30 vs. Auburn he completed 20 of 33 passes for 189 yards,got a TD and an interception, and rushed for 29 yards on 14 carries. On November 16 vs. Louisiana-Lafayette he Went 5-for-8 for 72 yards and a TD, rushed three times for 17 yards and a TD and left the game with a concussion in the second quarter. On November 13 at Tennessee he went 7-for-18 with three interceptions, passing for 80 yards. He also rushed seven times for 22 yards,had one punt for 46 yards, and downed inside the 20. On November 20 at LSU he went 15-for-23 with two interceptions and 177 yards passing, passed for one TD and rushed 11 times for 64 yards and two TD. He caught one pass for seven yards from Brandon Bolden,and punted once for 40 yards. On November 27 vs. Mississippi State he completed a career-high 24 passes on career-high 44 attempts for 261 yards and one TD. He also rushed 11 times for 12 yards.

2011
Competed in the Eastham Energy All-Star Game following his senior season where he completed 13-of-27 passes for a game-high 229 yards with one TD and no interceptions. He also rushed six times for 25 yards. At the Ole Miss Spring game on 4/9/11, Jeremiah Masoli was honored with the 2010 Leadership Award from the Birmingham Alumni Club.

Professional career
Masoli signed with the San Francisco 49ers as an undrafted free agent, but was waived on August 22.

On August 25, 2011, he signed with the Omaha Nighthawks.

Awards and honors

 * 2008 Holiday Bowl MVP
 * Pac-10 offensive player of the week for the week of November 21, 2009
 * AT&T ESPN All-America Player of the Week for November 21, 2009 . As of August 6th, 2011 San Francisco 49ers Head Coach, Jim Harbaugh announced during a press conference that Jeremiah Masoli would remain at the quarterback position, 3rd on the depth chart.

Legal issues
In 2005, Masoli was incarcerated for three months at the Hillcrest Juvenile Hall in San Mateo, CA, for participating in a robbery. Members of his high school football team were also involved.

On the morning of January 24, 2010, a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house returned home and witnessed Masoli and teammate Garrett Embry leaving an area of the house near his room. When he realized a projector and two laptop computers were missing he took chase. The victim chased down Embry, who returned the projector and subsequently reported the incident to Eugene police. Police interviewed Masoli the next day, where he said he was not at the fraternity house. On March 12, 2010, Masoli pleaded guilty to second-degree burglary before Lane County Circuit Judge Maurice Merten, who sentenced Masoli to one year probation and 140 hours of community service. As part of the plea agreement, this charge was later reduced to a misdemeanor. Oregon head coach Chip Kelly immediately suspended Masoli for the 2010 football season, his senior year, but allowed him to remain on the team (he still had a redshirt season available).

On June 7, 2010, Masoli was pulled over by Springfield police for a traffic violation. After inspection Masoli was cited for driving with a suspended license, failure to stop, and possession of one ounce or less of marijuana. Two days later he was dismissed from the team for "failure to adhere to obligations previously outlined". Masoli later entered guilty pleas to both the marijuana and failure to stop charges (both non-criminal violations in Oregon).