Ikaika Woolsey wears reminders of both his upbringing and heritage when he suits up in the locker room.

On the back flap of his shoulder pads is a sticker of a California flag with "Norcal" printed within the bottom stripe.

Over that goes his No. 11 Hawaii jersey and finally the "H" emblazoned helmet.

Woolsey’s roots are planted in both states and provide inspiration when he emerges from the tunnel.

"The Bay Area will always be my home, that’s what made me who I am today and I’m grateful for where I was born and raised," said Woolsey, who also has the 510 area code of his hometown tattooed on his left biceps.

"At the same time I’m also playing for the state of Hawaii because of what it represents."

Woolsey’s mother (Luka) grew up in Kaneohe and his father (Tripp) in Kahaluu. They met at King Intermediate and started dating as seniors at Castle. They eventually moved to Northern California, where Ikaika, his two brothers and a younger sister were born.

An opportunity to play quarterback at a Division I school drew Woolsey back to Hawaii and he’s now poised to take on the Rainbow Warrior program’s most celebrated and scrutinized role.

Woolsey is well aware of the legacy of Hawaii quarterbacks before him, having tracked the exploits of Timmy Chang, Colt Brennan and Bryant Moniz while following the Warriors from afar.

He arrived on campus just after Moniz completed his career and was dubbed "Baby Mo" by some of his teammates given his similarity in stature, athleticism and hairstyle.

The long hair that once flowed out of the back of his helmet has been gone for a while now and he’s looking to make his own imprint on the position.

"We stand on the shoulders of the great players who came before us and that’s something I take very seriously," Woolsey said.

Woolsey spent a semester at City College of San Francisco in 2011 before transferring to UH. After a redshirt year, he saw his first game action as a holder on place-kicks and ran in a 2-point conversion in last year’s opener against USC.

His first appearance at quarterback came late in a loss at Nevada and he made his first career start the following week against Fresno State.

That stint ended in the third quarter after he completed seven of 19 attempts for 56 yards with an interception returned for a touchdown on his final throw of the night. Sean Schroeder took command of the offense from there and Woolsey attempted just five more passes in 2013. Even so, Woolsey counts the experience as an asset entering his sophomore season.

"I feel like it helped me tremendously," Woolsey said. "I definitely learned some things from last year. Obviously Fresno State wasn’t the result I wanted, but it is what it is. You can’t concentrate on that; you just have to move forward and learn from your mistakes."

With Schroeder completing his eligibility, Woolsey emerged as a front-runner for the starting job in the spring and affirmed his status in the first week of fall camp.

"I feel I have a lot better command of the offense and understanding what needs to be done," Woolsey said. "I understand what all 11 (offensive) players are doing and what the opposing 11 players are doing."

Experience has taught Woolsey to "take what the defense gives me and make smart decisions." Once he’s done with football, Woolsey —who plans to double major in family resources and sociology — hopes to steer youngsters in choices that could impact far more than a final score.

"A lot of people when I was growing up helped guide me … and I want to do the same thing to give back to kids," Woolsey said.

"Anything can happen over the course of the season. Any time you have depth at any position that’s always good, especially at the quarterback position. "(The returnees) have been in the system, they know what’s expected, they know what needs to get done. They’re getting through everything a lot quicker; that’s allowing them to play naturally, which is what you want. They’re not back there thinking, they’re back there playing." STRENGTHS / WEAKNESSES With UH implementing a spread offense, Ikaika Woolsey’s skill set broadens the options available to Jordan Wynn. While the quarterback competition was still open entering camp, the staff had a spring and summer to craft a scheme with Woolsey’s blend of arm strength and athleticism in mind.