A year after being named the NFL’s 2001 Special Teams Player of the Year, Denver Broncos kicker Jason Elam was assigned a training-camp locker next to a promising rookie quarterback from Hawaii.
“He did really well,” Elam said of Nick Rolovich. “It would have been awesome to have him on the team.”
Brian Griese and Steve Beuerlein had secured two of the quarterback jobs. Jarious Jackson, with a strong game in the 2002 preseason finale, edged Rolovich for the final spot.
“What a great experience,” Rolovich said. “Denver had good people, a good organization. They treated me really well.”
Elam and Rolovich, both former University of Hawaii players, formed a friendship.
“We’re buddies,” Rolovich said.
On Thursday, Elam returned to the UH campus for the first time in 10 years to attend the Rainbow Warriors’ spring practice. Elam marveled at the changes from his UH career that went through 2002, from videos being shot from elevated platforms instead of apartment rooftops and a grass field that was not peppered with golf balls from a physical education class.
“This brings back memories and friendships,” said Elam, who was accompanied by former UH kicker Zerin Khan and receiver Leonard Lau.
Elam said Rolovich has done “incredibly well” since that Broncos’ camp.
“I’m happy for him,” Elam said. “I’m happy to have him as a head coach here.”
After a 17-year NFL career, Elam spent five years living in Alaska. He then studied theology for a year at Oxford University in England. Elam is working on his PhD at a seminary in North Carolina. Elam, who is married and has six children ages 19 to 2, also performs missionary work in the Middle East. He recently joined medical and dental teams in providing aid in refugee camps on the Syria-Jordan border.
“We love doing it,” Elam said. “We’ve been doing it for a long time. I love that way more than I like football, and I love football.”
Sanchez, Elam talk turf
For nearly three decades, UH kickers would go to Ching field (formerly Cooke Field) and work on their place kicks while teammates practiced on the grass field.
“We used to do the same thing kickers are doing now,” Elam said.
It is a way to keep active, said Rigo Sanchez, who was used on punts, point-scoring kicks and kickoffs in 2015.
Sanchez said they prefer Ching’s artificial turf because it has football lines, as opposed to the grass soccer field.
Sanchez said Elam offered kicking tips.
“It was awesome to have conversation with an all-time great kicker,” Sanchez said. “He’s a great guy.”
Warrior lifeguards
A few weeks ago, quarterback Aaron Zwahlen and slotback Dylan Collie were tossing a football at Sandy Beach when they saw an elderly woman waving for help. Her husband was caught in Sandy’s strong tide, about 15 yards from shore.
Zwahlen and Collie raced into the water and pulled the man to the beach.
“It was something small, but we were happy to be there,” Zwahlen said.
Both players, who moved to Hawaii last year, said they used to be naive about the dangers of Sandy’s strong undertow. “We were those people who went out there and didn’t know what to expect,” Collie said. “But now we’ve been there so many times, it’s our favorite beach. It’s fun to be out there.”
