Stanford linebacker Levani Damuni lines up for a play during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Washington State.
Stanford linebacker Levani Damuni lines up for a play during the second half of an NCAA football game against Washington State, Saturday, Oct. 16, 2021, in Pullman, Wash. Damuni, a Utah native, announced Friday he is entering the NCAA transfer portal as a graduate transfer. | Young Kwak, Associated Press

By Brandon Judd

One of the more talented defenders to come out of the Utah high school ranks in recent years is headed to the NCAA transfer portal.

Stanford inside linebacker Levani Damuni made the announcement Friday, indicating he will enter the portal as a graduate transfer after playing the past four seasons for the Cardinal.

Damuni was a three-star recruit coming out of Ridgeline High and he served a two-year mission in New Zealand for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints prior to enrolling at Stanford.

Over the past four seasons, the 6-foot-2, 242-pound linebacker played in 31 games for Stanford and worked his way into a starting role as a sophomore. 

As a junior, Damuni had a career-high 88 tackles and two sacks.

This season, he served as a team captain for the Cardinal and had 76 tackles to go with two forced fumbles, two pass deflections, a sack and an interception.

Damuni had scholarship offers from BYU, Utah and Utah State, among others, when he was a part of the 2017 recruiting class, according to 247 Sports.