Early Candidate for Big 12 Name of the Year: Alesana Alesana

Warm up the "so nice they named him twice" references. If things go well Kansas State's starting left tackle this fall just might be named, Alesana Alesana. The 6-6, 295-pound junior-college transfer arrived in December from City College of San Francisco and is already taking snaps with the first-team offense.

"That name thing is a little odd," [quarterback Josh] Freeman said, "but he's got really good feet. He can play."

Alesana comes from Western Samoa, which is known for its double-naming tendencies. Unfortunately the practice is less common here, meaning that no matter how well he plays, he will always be overshadowed by his name. So far, however, Alesana seems to be taking it in stride:

"Oh yes, I get a lot of questions about my name," Alesana Alesana says. "It's normal where I come from. But it's not normal around here. I am proud of my name. I love my name."

The Kansas State coaches won't care what he's called as long as he improves the team's offensive line play. The Wildcats overmatched offensive line gave up 28 sacks in 2006.