Get to know Florida State freshman offensive lineman Manasse Itete, a blue-chip multi-sport Congolese athlete with an inspiring experience.
Dane Draper
In an effort to better familiarize Florida State fans with members of the remaining newcomers from the 2024 recruiting class who did not enroll early for the spring, Noles247 is speaking with as many of these new 'Noles as possible prior to their summer enrollment in Tallahassee.
We're calling this series New Noles, and we hope that FSU fans are able to get a better understanding of who each newcomer is, on and off the gridiron.
We will begin with a former Top247 offensive prospect who has an inspiring international origin, Manasse Itete. While the 6-foot-3.5 and 286-pounder only visited Tallahassee twice as a recruit, the Seminoles' staff flipped Itete from a short USC commitment in July, and they held on firmly until he officially signed in December.
Itete attended high school in Modesto, CA at Central Catholic High School, and he is talented as a multi-sport athlete and blue-chip prospect who speaks six languages.
Get to know Manasse Itete.
Where did you grow up?
"I was born in the Congo, Kinshasa – the Democratic Republic of Congo. I was born and grew up there, and then I moved up here like five years ago now, back in 2019. I was 14 (years old), close to 15."
What was that experience of moving to the U.S. like for you at such a transformative age?
"It wasn't that good. Growing up, I was always with my parents. Then living without them in a different country without knowing anybody was tough. You have to overcome a lot of tribulations and a lot of stuff – growing up on my own. It can be tougher with a lot of things, like the diversity. It was not a fun time."
Has it gotten any better?
"Day-by-day, I try to figure things out, how to live on my own. So, it's getting better day-by-day, year-by-year."
Have you been able to see your family since you moved to the States?
"The last time I saw them was in 2021. I went home in 2020, and I was still there in 2021, so that's the last time I saw them."
What’s the most different thing between the Congo and the U.S. from what you have experienced?
"It's different people, but the culture is always different and will never be the same. The people are different, and everything is different, so it was like a new place for me that I have to learn how to be with people I was with. You have to learn everything and do your best to be good with everybody."
How did you get the opportunity to come to the U.S?
"Basically, back home we have an academy, like a school program. They recruit athletes and I was playing basketball at that time, so we had the chance to come play tournaments in different countries. We went to some African countries, and we went to some countries in Europe, and then we had the chance to come here to the States to play a tournament. We played that tournament, and we played well, and coaches from that tournament talked to coaches from back home. They were like, 'hey, this kid played good, but we really want him to come play for our program. We'll take care of tuition and all that stuff, and that's how I had the opportunity to come over here."
When did you start playing football?
"I started playing football in sophom*ore year, but I didn't play in any games. In the summer going into my junior year, I started going to camps and getting trained. That's how I started. Then in my junior year, I played the whole season and I kept working. Then was my senior season, obviously, so I'd say two years."
How quickly do you feel like you improved?
"I still have a lot to learn, I'm still new to the game. I'm just trying my best, day-by-day, to get better. Then just compete. But the past two years, you have to overcome a lot of stuff because I was playing against people who have played since they were little. So I had to learn the game, learn the plays, learn everything, so that was kind of challenging. But I did it and have just been learning."
You visited FSU twice during your recruitment. What do you think about Tallahassee?
"It's not about the place, it's about the people. I don't care where I'm going, because all I want is to be in a good position to find something good for myself. It's not about the place, it's more about the people. The people make the place better."
So what attracted you to Florida State?
"The people. From the head coach to every single person that I had the chance to meet at Florida State, they were 100-percent honest with me. They didn't want to be like, 'oh, you're the best,' but they were telling me stuff that I needed to work on, how to get better, and how it's going to be as a D1 player. Some schools will tell you how great you are and all that stuff, but Florida State was great. They were great, but they were 100-percent honest with me. At the top, we have (FSU general manager) Darrick Yray, he's a guy I have known since like my freshman year, and he's my guy. One of my friends, (FSU linebacker) Blake Nichelson is from here, and to see him go through the process and everything he has done over there, and how he's overcome some stuff and progressed, I was like, 'yeah, this is a good place to be.'"
It's been almost six months since you signed with FSU. How do you feel about that decision now?
"It's been great. First of all, just the opportunity to have a free education. Then second, the people you compete with. I'm very excited to be with coach Atkins and coach Norvell, because those people give you love, but it's tough love. Tough love is the one that makes people stronger who have a good mindset and helps you to work hard, to earn everything. Those are the people I want to be with because my life has always been like this. My life has never been easy. Everything was a struggle, and you have to work hard to earn stuff."
You have had to persist through many struggles in your life, but do you think that can work to your advantage in any specific ways as you strive for success in football?
"'Success', I feel is a big word for me to this point, but I would say it is a situation of getting better and it's one opportunity I can be able to do some stuff, but it's not success, it's the process of success."
What are you looking forward to most when you enroll at FSU?
"Getting better and competing at a high level. Be able to handle a lot of stuff. Be a good student athlete and earn some play time."
What are your expectations for yourself in year-one?
"For my year-one, to be honest, I don't have a lot of expectations. I just want to go down, do whatever I can do to make myself better every day, and be a better version of myself. I don't have any expectations like, 'I need this,' or 'I need that,' the goal is to get better and earn play time because everything has to be earned."
Who is the most influential person in your life? Why?
"On that one, I can look at it from a lot of different perspectives, because I have some mentors life-wise, I have mentors football-wise, I have mentors school-wise. It just depends, but I would say my host family has been a big mentor, the most influential people in my life so far. Then one of my coaches at my school last year, those are two people that really impacted my life."
How did your coach impact you positively?
"I've had times where I quit or give up on myself, but he was there. And not just to support, but telling how hard life is. He was there any time I needed somebody to talk to, and he would always give me some advice to see things differently from a lot of people. And the thing to myself would be like: I cannot bring myself down. He's like, 'it is what it is.' I have to know how to overcome it and go to the next."
What motivates you?
"My big motivation, I always say, is my family. One thing I realize is everything I do; I always have the mindset of 'I'm doing this to retire my parents.' Because I know how hard it is where I came from to even have something to eat for the day. I see all the hard work they've been doing since I was little. All of their struggles they had. And here, I have a place to stay, I know I will eat, but I don't know how they live up there. I know they struggle, so that's my big source of motivation. I need to retire my parents someday."
How do you handle adversity?
"I would say every time a situation's going on and it's bringing me down, I always like to listen to a lot of Steve Harvey. He's the guy who I listen to a lot, because he has some great speeches. And there's a lot of guys I listen to… Many people are in a worse situation compared to me, but they always find a way to overcome it. When I hear those speeches, it always gives me some motivation. Like, I can do it. It is what it is, and it's hard, but I have to move on."
What kind of teammate are you?
"I care about my team. Wherever I go, my teammates know that I've got their back. I'm a quiet guy, I don't really talk a lot, I can make jokes, but I don't take it super far. But I just have all my teammates' backs, and when it comes time to do some things and it's like, 'oh, we need somebody to do stuff,' I will do it."
How would you describe yourself?
"Well, I'm a funny guy. A lot of people like my accent, especially at school where I go. I like to make all the people laugh, because I know how important it is to make people have a good time, and those are the moments at some points of my life I was looking for: just somebody to make me smile. I like to make people smile a lot."
Do you have a favorite food from back home?
"Oh yeah, I definitely do. It's called Fumbwa. It's like spinach, but we add some peanut butter sauce on it with some meat, and we have something called Fufu that we eat with it. That's my favorite dish right there."
(Fumbwa is the main dish, and he prefers Fufu as his favorite side dish)
Do you have a favorite song or music artist on game days?
"Oh, that's a good one. So anyways, people at my school think I'm kind of weird, because I just listen to French music all day, and I listen to music from back home, so that's on my playlist. English music is cool, like sometimes I can go with Drake, Rod Wave, some (NBA) YoungBoy, but I don't really enjoy it because I feel like the vibe is different."
Do you have any secret or hidden talents?
"I don't know if I have any secret talents, but I just know that I can do whatever it takes to be successful. I can do everything. If I have to play soccer, I will. If I have to play basketball, I will. I'm very flexible. Anything like community service, like anything. I'm very flexible. I can do all of the stuff."
