While the Hawaii football has flexed its recruiting reach the past four months, head coach Todd Graham reaffirmed the talent search begins in the 50th state.
“A Hawaii tie is going to be our No. 1 deal,” Graham said of the Rainbow Warriors’ recruiting strategy. “The players from here and the players with Hawaii ties are going to be No. 1. And then geographically, California, Arizona, and, yes, Texas, will be secondary areas where we get people.”
Three weeks after Graham was hired as UH’s head coach, the Warriors signed seven players, including two from Texas and one from Florida.
Since then, quarterbacks Armani Edden and Jake Farrell and receiver Alonzell “Zelly” Henderson announced they would join the Warriors this summer. Edden, who played at College of the Canyons (Santa Clarita, Calif.), grew up in Florida. Farrell was reared in Arizona.
Two prep players from Texas — defensive back Cinque Williams and running back Da’Qualen James — announced they accepted 2021 scholarship offers from the Warriors.
At three of his four previous head coaching jobs, Graham established recruiting bases in the Southwest and West Coast. Graham’s ties in Texas helped the Warriors sign receivers Quin Bright and Riley Wilson in February. Graham had coached Bright’s high school coach. One of Graham’s close friends is the pastor at Wilson’s high school.
“Now Texas is going to be a part,” Graham said of the Warriors’ recruiting network, “but you can’t fill a roster at the University of Hawaii trying to recruit just Texas. … The further we move away from here, the harder it is to recruit. Our recruiting base is Hawaii.”
In addition to players from Hawaii high schools, Graham said, the Warriors are targeting available transfers from junior colleges and four-year schools “who are from Hawaii or have ties to Hawaii. There are people who call us from Colorado, Nevada, Utah, Texas, Louisiana, Florida — and they have ties to Hawaii. We recruit all the people that fit that have ties to Hawaii. They have to come first. Then geographically, it’s California, Arizona … the ones that are closer geographically make logical sense.”
Graham said he plays an active role in recruiting.
“The No. 1 job that I do is personnel,” Graham said. “That’s why you hire head football coaches. The kind of staff they can put together is going to determine their success and their ability to train and develop players and recruit players. When you talk to these recruits, they’re going to be talking to me. … They’re going to be talking to me as much as they’re going to be talking to anybody here. I think that’s important. It also shows them how important they are. When the head coach is calling you, and you’re being recruited by schools, it speaks volumes to how important you are to our program.”
Because on-campus visits are prohibited during this pandemic, Graham uses weekly video calls to evaluate recruits and meet with prospects’ parents or guardians.
“Diligence and evaluation are the keys to recruiting,” Graham said. “It’s not a sale pitch. I’m going to be the most diligent person here on phone calls and working and grinding in recruiting. I’ve got to be the lead recruiter.”
Graham also said he values calls with parents. “At the end of the day, they’re trusting you,” Graham said. “Parents are trusting me with their sons’ future. That’s a big deal. It’s important for me to build a relationship and get a feel for who I am, and what we’re about, and how we’re going to go about helping their sons accomplish their dreams.”
