Mahalo for supporting Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Enjoy this free story!
Before “Pride Rock” and “Live aloha, play Warrior” and two Hawaii Bowl appearances in three years, there was the Hawaii football team’s 2015 recruiting class.
They were cobbled together on the heels of a 4-9 season — a mixture of transfers, returning missionaries and wide-eyed freshmen. After the ninth weekend of a 2015 schedule that included road games to Wisconsin and Ohio State, Norm Chow had departed as head coach and an uncertain future loomed.
Four years later, there are seven remaining members from that class, all poised to enter what head coach Nick Rolovich has termed “Phase II” of the program’s development.
“It’s been a long journey,” defensive tackle Samiuela Akoteu said. “Thinking back to those days, the team has come a long way.”
The transfers have graduated, and John Ursua, who would have been a senior this year, is now with the Seattle Seahawks. Akoteu, nose tackle Eperone Moananu, left guard J.R. Hensley, running back Dayton Furuta, defensive end Pumba Williams, linebacker Solomon Matautia and cornerback Rojesterman Farris II are fifth-year seniors.
“We’ve been through ups and downs,” Farris said.
“Ups and deep valleys,” Williams added.
There was the disastrous 2015 season during which the seven watched as redshirts, and the shakeup following the season. But in 2016, Rolovich’s first season as head coach, the Warriors reached a bowl game for the first time in six years. And in 2018, the Warriors assembled their first winning season since 2010.
“It’s a lot different,” Akoteu said. “The feeling around the team is different.”
While acknowledging changes “are hard on everybody,” Rolovich recalled how the 2015 class embraced the new regime.
“With respect to the older guys,” Farris said, “me and Solomon talked about how we wanted to change the culture of the team, and actually love one another and bring each other up.”
Rolovich said: “The first year, you’re new to each other. They’ve really grown to be guys I trust, every one of them. They’re doing the right things for the program, trying to build it back up to a program people are proud of.”
Matautia said he has noticed the collective maturation from their freshman year.
“When we first got here, I was thinking like how some of the older guys were like gods, like uncles,” Matautia said. “Now that’s us. The younger guys … they’re more into social-media age. They’re a little different. It’s something we have to get used to.”
On becoming one of the elder statesmen, Williams said: “It’s like, dayum.”
Williams, Akoteu and Moananu are in the defensive line rotation. Hensley has started 25 games at guard the past two seasons. Matautia led the Warriors with 92 tackles in 2018. Furuta’s knock-down runs have drawn chants of “Froooot.” Farris’ 38 starts are the most among current Warriors.
“They believe in each other and believe in why they’re doing it — having a greater good and just improving themselves,” Rolovich said. “They’ve all become good men. They’re going to be good men the rest of their lives.”
78
