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STAR-ADVERTISER FILE / 2018
Hawaii wide receiver John Ursua (5) catches a pass against San Jose State during the second half of an NCAA college football game in San Jose, Calif. The Seahawks traded a 2020 pick for the seventh-round spot used to select Ursua this year.
No news was good news for former University of Hawaii football player John Ursua.
By not being alerted by today’s 10 a.m. deadline to pare NFL rosters, Ursua has made the Seattle Seahawks’ opening-day roster.
“The process is different,” Ursua told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser in a telephone interview. “It’s opposite the draft. You don’t want to receive a phone call. If you receive a phone call, then you’re cut. They let you know by not letting you know.”
But 30 minutes after the deadline, Ursua receive congratulatory texts.
“It’s official,” Ursua said.
Ursua had decided to relinquish his senior season at UH to apply for the 2019 NFL Draft. The Seahawks traded a 2020 pick for the seventh-round spot used to select Ursua this year.
Ursua was used in the slot, where he played for the Rainbow Warriors, and wideout in the Seahawks’ preseason games. “I try not to be one-dimensional,” Ursua said. “I want to do it all.”
Ursua grew up on Hawaii island before before moving to Utah for the start of his sophomore year of high school. He attended three high schools in Utah, including two as a senior, before working for a year and then going on a two-year church mission in Paris.
“I’m extremely blessed,” Ursua said of making an NFL roster. “It’s a huge accomplishment for me. I have this opportunity they’re giving me, this chance to prove myself. I was a later draft pick. You’re always on the bubble when you’re a later pick. To have this opportunity is super cool.”
Former UH safety Trayvon Henderson was among the players released by the Cincinnati Bengals today.
>> RELATED STORY: Buffalo Bills cut running back LeSean McCoy as NFL teams pare rosters
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