ASSOCIATED PRESS
Steelers running back Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala pointed to the sky after scoring to honor his brother, the late Nick Ma'afala. Teammate Alan Faneca, left, then tackled Fuamatu-Ma'afala.
Tommy Maddox is being hailed as the hero in Pittsburgh, but it was Hawaii's own Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala who punched in the winning touchdown yesterday against Cleveland in the AFC wild-card playoffs. Fu answers the call
for Steelers
By Nick Abramo
nabramo@starbulletin.com"I don't know why they called my number," Fuamatu-Ma'afala said yesterday after the dramatic come-from-behind victory. "We were in there for the two-minute offense and I was shocked. But thank God I was able to execute."
The former Saint Louis School standout missed eight games this year, battling cracked ribs and a torn pectoral muscle, and was used sparingly since returning in December.
After Maddox guided the Steelers to the Cleveland 3, Fuamatu-Ma'afala bolted into the end zone with 58 seconds left.
"Two plays were called in the huddle and Tommy could have audibled to either a passing or a running play," Fuamatu-Ma'afala said. "When I heard the number 42, which meant a running play to me to the right side, my heart started beating really fast. I knew I had to get it in.
"But I panicked once I got the ball. I started right and then looked left and thought that I could get in if I could just beat the safety to the left. So I challenged him by cutting to the left and made him miss."
After scoring, Fuamatu-Ma'afala went down on one knee and pointed skyward in a salute to his brother, the late Nick Ma'afala. The moment was cut short when a teammate bowled him over in celebration.
"Our Pro Bowl lineman Alan Faneca just laid me out," Fuamatu-Ma'afala said. "It was awesome."
After the game, the fifth-year pro made tentative plans to go out with his teammates for some merrymaking last night, but he was still awaiting his wife's permission.
Fuamatu-Ma'afala and the rest of the Steelers move on to play at Tennessee in a divisional playoff on Saturday. A year ago, they were bounced by New England in the AFC title game.
"Now we know what it tastes like to be so close," he said. "That loss motivates us to not overlook anybody. It (yesterday) was really Cleveland's day, but our team was so resilient and we took it away. Now we've just got to keep it up and get ready for Tennessee.
"We know we can't start like we did against Cleveland. We were lucky to make it up in the end, but you can't give a team like Tennessee -- or even Cleveland -- that many points in the beginning."
Fuamatu-Ma'afala also had two 10-yard, fourth-quarter receptions and a special-teams tackle to go along with his 4 yards rushing on two carries.
Notes: Pittsburgh defensive end Kimo von Oelhoffen, who grew up on Molokai, made one tackle in the victory. ... San Francisco linebacker Jeff Ulbrich, a former Hawaii star, made three tackles in the 49ers' win over the Giants. ... Two other players with Hawaii connections are still in the Super Bowl chase -- Atlanta starting guard Kynan Forney (Hawaii) and New York Jets starting center Kevin Mawae (father grew up in Hawaii).
National Football League
