On The Plains with Fa’Najae Gotay: ‘I'm here to give it all I have’

AUBURN, Ala. – “I’d been at Maryland six years and kind of felt like my time had come to an end there. I felt like maybe I was holding myself back and not giving myself the chance to further my career. 

“I got comfortable there and I wanted, for my last year, to go feel uncomfortable and see if that made me work harder.” 

Such was the thought process of new Auburn linebacker Fa’Najae Gotay when he looked for the place to finish his college football career. After six seasons, 42 games played, 133 career tackles, 10 starts, 7 tackles for loss and a pair of interceptions as a Maryland Terrapin, Gotay decided to spend the 2024 season as an Auburn Tiger. 

Gotay, the Terps’ leading tackler in December’s Music City Bowl with six stops, was quite familiar with Auburn and even more familiar with its new defensive coordinator DJ Durkin. 

“When I talked with Coach Durkin, it was familiar. He was the head coach when I committed to Maryland, so I didn’t see anything wrong with committing to him again and making my decision process easier,” Gotay explained. “I already trusted him and knew him.”

Ultimately, Gotay had to show the most trust in himself. “When I hit the portal, I was just like, ‘OK, this is a risk I have to take.’ These are risks you have to take in life sometimes. If you don’t take them – well, I don’t want to live with the regret of I wish I would have done that.” 

Gotay, who won the spring Headhunter Award at Maryland, has no regrets about committing to a sport he loves. 

“I started playing football when I was 7-8 years old and that was my thing,” he said. “In high school, I played basketball and ran a little bit of track, but I did those mostly to stay in shape and to have fun.

“My mom Donna is a big sports lady and with her, it was get good grades or play sports – or do both was even better. She supported us and pushed us and my brothers Manzy and Dartanian were playing the game. I wanted to be like my older brothers and follow their shoes and keep playing. 

“My freshman year in high school I knew I could really keep going with football,” added the product of North Fort Myers High in Fort Myers, Florida. “I played varsity coming in as a freshman and got some playing time, and since then, I knew things would take a turn in my life if I was dedicated.”

That dedication comes from a true love of the game and its physical aspects. 

“I like to hit people – that’s why I play defense – I like to run and hit,” Gotay said with a smile. “Football is a sport where everything can be balled up inside you, and on a Saturday, you can let it all out without physically hurting someone else or hurting yourself. When it’s game time, you can let it out and just feel relieved.”

Gotay, one of just a handful of players nationally beginning their seventh collegiate season, already has two significant achievements to his credit. 

“I got my bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and my master’s in public health and leadership administration at Maryland. I’m very proud of earning those degrees,” he said.

“I came to Maryland for the 2018 season and redshirted, then played a year, then COVID hit. In 2021, I suffered a torn pectoral muscle, but after doing lots of paperwork, I’m able to play for year seven.” 

 

With that extra season, Gotay – who arrived on the Plains in July and turns age 26 in November – has goals in mind. “My goals are to do the best that I can do. I came here knowing that this is my last year, and I just want to do the best I can. Anything further than where I’m at right now is a blessing in my eyes, when you look at my age and everything else. I’m here to give it all I have.

“In 20 years from now, hopefully I’ve created success for myself where I don’t have to work all day, all hours. Even if you are very successful, you don’t want to sit around the house all day bored – I’ll always have something to do.”

Part of that sense of purpose stems from his own young family. Gotay, his sweetheart since right after high school Rebecca Brust and their three-year-old son, Fa’Najae Jr., will be moving to Auburn very soon, and they are looking forward to experiencing the Auburn Family together.  

“This is a new atmosphere for me, a new environment, so I’m looking forward to the crowd, how loud it gets, all the things I’ve been hearing about,” he said.  

“I’m looking forward to having a great successful year here at Auburn. Coming in, I could feel it in my soul. I can feel the bonds. People welcomed me in with open arms right away, so I could tell this is a family. This is truly a team, and those are the teams that create success for themselves.”