These players can make a difference for football team

Early this morning the University of Hawaii football team holds its first practice of fall camp, with less than four weeks to prepare for its season-opening game against Cal at Sydney, Australia. It’s also the first game for Nick Rolovich as head coach.

Here are some of the players I’ll focus on today, and who I think the Rainbow Warriors will need superior performances from in order to improve on last year’s three wins. For many of them, it’s a matter of remaining healthy enough to play.

Athlete Keelan Ewaliko: Get him in the game, please! One of the biggest criticisms of former coach Norm Chow was not getting Ewaliko the ball more often.

Not that the coaching staff didn’t try to find him a home. He may have broken Chad Kapanui’s record for most positions attempted in a UH career, and Ewaliko is only a junior. It’s easy to see the Warriors need his breakaway speed on the field somewhere, and not just returning kickoffs — although in recent years that’s been a busy post with all the scores Hawaii has yielded.

He’s currently listed as a second-string slotback.

Safety Trayvon Henderson: His season-ending knee injury against Ohio State in the second game of the season was one of the biggest blows to the Warriors in 2015. He had five interceptions as a freshman and sophomore.

He’s yet another player UH needs to remain healthy. He is slotted as a first-string safety, and will make his 14th career start against the Bears if that assessment — and his knee — hold up.

Outside linebacker Jerrol Garcia-Williams: At 6-feet-2 and 215 pounds, the fifth-year senior has got the measurables and the experience to be a major force at outside linebacker. He was second on the team with 89 tackles despite missing the final three games of 2015.

Garcia-Williams missed all but the first two games of the 2014 season with a knee injury.

Running back Diocemy Saint Juste: The speed demon from Florida has been electric when available to play. The problem is those occasions have been rare in his first three years at Manoa due to injuries. He was out all last season with a lingering hamstring problem, but looked very good in spring practice.

Defensive tackle Samiuela Akoteu: An ankle injury in fall camp forced him to redshirt last year. UH knows it will get solid play out of veteran Kory Rasmussen up front. But it also needs this 6-foot-2, 320-pound second-year freshman to be a force in the middle and at the very least move the line of scrimmage and keep blockers off the linebackers.

Defensive end David Manoa: Yet another defensive player whose progress was slowed by injury. But the fourth-year junior got plenty of run at the end of last season and is starting to look the part of a starting rush end at 6-3, 240.

The seven quarterbacks, especially Ikaika Woolsey: Even if he’s not named the starter, you know Woolsey will eventually play at some point of the season. He’s got all that experience. Sure, mostly losses … but you have to admit the guy is resilient.

And it will be interesting to see what he can do now that he finally gets to play under the coach who recruited him to UH all those years ago, Rolovich.

Reach Dave Reardon at dreardon@staradvertiser.com or 529-4783. His blog is at Hawaiiwarriorworld.com/quick-reads.