Muir plays through ailments, has started every game

There was an oh-not-again image as Hawaii’s Blake Muir stood to the side while the other offensive linemen went through football drills.

“It’s just a stomach flu,” Muir reassured. “I’ve had it since Sunday afternoon.”

It would not have been unique for more misfortune to strike the offensive line. There have been six different starting lines in the past six games. Every offensive lineman except center Ben Clarke and Mike Milovale has suffered some sort of injury this season.

Muir has not been immune from the injury bug. Since late September, he has played despite an injured shoulder that will require surgery in the offseason.

“I had to play though it,” Muir said. “I’ll do whatever I can. It’s affecting me, but I’m doing the best I can.”

Muir, a second-year freshman, is doing better than expected, having started every game at left tackle.

It has been an impressive debut season for a lineman who played only one year of football in his native Australia and had never worked out of a three-point stance until this year. 

Muir has been helped by enrolling at UH a semester earlier than scheduled, redshirting in 2011, and spending last summer training in Australia.

“Staying home the entire summer, I think that was key for me,” Muir said. “It helped prepare me for fall camp. I think I did really well in fall camp.”

While Muir has improved his footwork, he needs to work on his weight. In September, he weighed 300 pounds. Now he weighs 280.

“I’m struggling to maintain my weight,” said Muir, who previously played rugby and Australian rules football. “In those other sports, you don’t need to be as heavy. I’m trying to gain back the weight.”

Muir had played only one year of American football in an amateur league when he received a scholarship offer from the Warriors. Australian high schools do not compete in football.

In Australia, the seasons are flipped, and Muir completed his studies in November. Rather than wait until the summer of 2011 to enroll at UH, Muir paid his tuition and school expenses to enroll at UH in January 2011.

He worked in a liquor store in Australia to help pay for college. In Australia, the legal age to work is 14.

“It raised money for it,” Muir said. “It definitely gave me a look of what it’s like to pay your own way through college. It was a humbling experience.”

Muir went on scholarship in July 2011.

This season, the investment is paying off.

“It’s been a good experience,” Muir said.