'He's the real deal': Tongan origins, family sacrifice propel UBC's Giovanni Manu to NFL opportunity

In a historic iteration of the NFL draft, the Detroit Lions orchestrated one of the event's biggest surprises by trading up to select Giovanni Manu.

A surprise nearly as big as the 6-foot-7, 350-pound offensive lineman from the University of British Columbia, himself.

Flying quietly under the radar throughout the pre-draft process, little was promised to Manu ahead of the three-day spectacle hosted in Detroit.

"I didn't know if I was going to be drafted, but I knew I was going to get a shot," Manu told CBC Sports. "And I told myself, if I get that shot, I'm going to prove to people that I deserve to be in the NFL — I'm going to make a roster."

WATCH | UBC blocker Manu readies for NFL opportunity with Detroit Lions:

Not only did Manu get his shot, but his opportunity arrived with an abundance of security, as the Lions dealt a coveted future third-round draft choice in order to pick the Pitt Meadows, B.C., product with the 126th-overall selection.

Manu became the first ever UBC player drafted to the NFL, as well as the first NFL draft pick directly out of U Sports since 2016 — when Manitoba Bisons defensive lineman David Onyemata was chosen by the New Orleans Saints, also in the fourth round.

Manu credits Thunderbirds head coach Blake Nill for instilling in him the belief that the NFL was a height he could aspire to reach upon entering the school's football program.

"He saw the potential within me and he and he told me, 'Hey, kid, if you take this serious for the next four to five years, you could be the next big thing out of U Sports; you could be potentially drafted into the NFL.'

"To hear that from an experienced head coach, a well-decorated coach, I told myself at that young age, my first year of college … if he