 Named the L. Wait Rising Defensive Lineman of the Year award at the team's postseason banquet.Regarded as one of the few two-gap nose tackles, Ta'amu was projected as a third-to-fourth round draft pick in the 2012 NFL Draft.Dane Brugler of "CBSSports.com", however, described Ta'amu as "a pass rushing three-technique stuck in a zero-technique's body," who "struggles to hold his ground at the point of attack".