After crossing over into the second half of the 20-practice training camp, the University of Hawaii football team has made a slight move in narrowing its quarterback field.
“We’re down to four,” UH coach Nick Rolovich said of the quarterback competition.
Cole McDonald, Chevan Cordeiro, Jeremy Moussa and Kolney Cassel are the finalists to succeed Dru Brown, whose 22-start UH career expired with his decision to join Oklahoma State as a graduate transfer.
Justin Uahinui, a second-year freshman, recently rejoined passing drills after being held out because of an ailment. Rolovich said Uahinui “didn’t get as many reps and we (had) to start moving forward.”
Uahinui took reps as a scout quarterback during defensive drills on Wednesday.
Earlier, Tanner Darling, a transfer from Moorpark College, moved from quarterback to wideout. Larry Tuileta, who has trained with the national volleyball team this summer, is competing in a series of exhibition matches in Argentina this week, according to UH officials.
Rolovich said the rotation turn and number of reps are not indications of a depth chart for the quarterbacks. While McDonald and Cordeiro took the majority of snaps on Wednesday, Rolovich said, “it could change at any time.”
On Wednesday, McDonald had one of his best performances, completing five of his first seven passes during a scrimmage-like session. Both incompletions were drops.
“The offense had a good day overall,” McDonald said. “The receivers ran the right routes. We had good communication. The O-line protected up front. You can’t ask for a better team to play with. The offense brought it today.”
Moussa, a freshman who enrolled at UH in January, threw two scoring passes. He also stretched the field with deep throws.
“We’re throwing a lot of balls every day in practice,” McDonald said. “(Quarterbacks) coach (Craig Stutzmann) and coach Rolo really emphasize accuracy, consistency and timing. Timing of drop(backs), timing of throws, timing of windows. And consistency in putting the ball on the outside or inside shoulder (of a receiver), and leading them up field, and protecting them with your throws. All of that comes into play. And the defense gives us a great look on that, challenging us on every play. It’s getting us better every day.”
McDonald is admittedly his toughest critic.
“You always try for perfection,” McDonald said. “If you fall short, you’re a little less than perfect, but that’s damn good. Sometimes it takes that extra push, not from somebody else, but from yourself. How bad do you want it as a player? As a person? And how bad do you want it for your teammates, and how bad do your teammates want it for you? It’s the playing-for-each-other mentality. That’s what I’m trying to bring to the team.”
