Warriors add more speed to wide receiver corps

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In a continuing effort to stock its run-and-shoot offense, the University of Hawaii football team is adding yet another fast receiver.

Joseph “JoJo” Ward of Tyler College told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser he is joining the Rainbow Warriors for the July 26 start of training camp. Ward is the third receiver this week to announce his pledge to UH, following John Johnson of Antelope Valley (Calif.) College and James Green of Cathedral City (Calif.) High.

All three will help fill the void created when wideouts Kalakaua Timoteo, Isaia Leeth and Karson Greeley did not meet the eligibility requirements to play for the Warriors this coming season.

Similar to Johnson and Green, Ward was told he will get a shot initially at wideout. But Ward also is an option at slotback, as well as returner. “I’ll try to be everywhere,” Ward said, “as long as I can help the team out.”

The Warriors are switching from a hybrid offense to a four-wide scheme they used from 1999 through 2011.

Ward is 5 feet 10 and 175 pounds. He has been timed at sub-10.8 seconds over 100 meters, 21.9 seconds over 200 meters, and 4.41 over 40 yards. He is a multi-sport athlete who played basketball and baseball at Midway High in Waco, Texas. He also is an avid swimmer.

“I got real close with the (UH) coaches,” Ward said of his decision. “There aren’t a lot of people from my town (Waco) playing football in Hawaii. I want to go there and have a different experience playing football than the other guys from my hometown. I’m interested in doing different things. And they pass the ball a lot. That’s why I fell in love with (UH).”

Ward said he grew up in a town that embraced the Friday night lights. “It was an unbelievable feeling,” Ward said of prep football in Texas. “There were pep rallies, and everybody coming out to watch you play. You have younger kids looking up to you and wanting to talk to you after games.”

For Ward, it is wideout Antonio Brown of the Pittsburgh Steelers who serves as inspiration. “He’s my favorite player,” said Ward, who tries to model his workouts after the cover player for Madden NFL 19.