Mosi Tatupu, one of the finest and most feared running backs to come out of Hawai'i who later played 14 seasons in the NFL, died in Massachusetts, a family member confirmed last night.

He was 54.

Tatupu, a multi-sport star at Punahou School in the 1970s, set a Hawai'i career rushing record that stood for 17 seasons. He played four seasons at USC and was drafted in 1978 by the New England Patriots.

He played for the Patriots from 1978 to 1990 (he also played a season with the Rams) and had a following called "Mosi's Mooses."

Tatupu played in one Super Bowl (a loss to the Chicago Bears) and was selected to the 1986 Pro Bowl.

A fierce special teams player, Tatupu would later have an award bearing his name and given to College Football's Special Teams Player of the Year.

In 2009, Tatupu was named to the New England Patriots 50th Anniversary Team as a special teams player.

Tatupu's son, Lofa, plays linebacker for the Seattle Seahawks.

In his senior season at Punahou, the 200-pound Tatupu set state records in rushing (1,483 yards), total offense (1,497 yards) and scoring (139 points on 21 touchdowns and 13 PATs).

In his three varsity seasons, he amassed 3,367 yards rushing, 37 touchdowns, 3,406 total yards and 246 points, and was named to the all-state team twice and the Interscholastic League of Honolulu all-star team three times.

Tatupu also was an ILH basketball all-star and a starting outfielder on the Buffanblu baseball team, earning second-team ILH all-star honors.