In a game of “Name That Play,” few are better than Hawaii football coach Todd Graham.
Graham is a cinephile who has watched video of every play and drill the Rainbow Warriors have executed in practices this fall.
“I evaluate the film every day,” Graham said, adding, “I think (the players) like that. They know I’m evaluating. I watch every play of practice, every individual drill, everything that’s been videoed. In practice, we video everything. I watch every day. I do that because I think our players deserve that. … You can find the guys who, day in and day out, are doing the little things right.”
This past weekend, those grades led to offensive lineman Micah Vanterpool making the first start of his four-year UH career, Jonah Panoke opening at wideout, and freshman lineman Sergio Muasau aligning as a fullback in the short-yardage formation.
“It doesn’t matter what you did last year,” Graham said. “It doesn’t matter what you did last week. You gotta go out and earn it every single snap.”
In previous seasons, Vanterpool was used as offensive tackle and guard. This season, Vanterpool entered as a tight end in short-yardage situations. But Vanterpool’s impressive practices and UH’s protection problems against San Diego State two weeks ago resulted in Vanterpool’s start at left tackle against Boise State this past weekend. Vanterpool’s ascension meant the end of Ilm Manning’s streak of 33 consecutive starts.
“The storyline here is all about Micah,” Graham said. “I don’t know if I’ve seen a guy improve as much as he’s improved. I thought he did a great job in the (Boise State) game and, man, he’s just got an amazing spirit and (he’s) a tremendous young man. I’m very proud of him.”
Vanterpool was at left tackle during Tuesday’s practice. As for Saturday’s game against 5-0 Nevada, Graham would only offer, “I would imagine Micah will be playing.”
Panoke was a reliable option for quarterback Chevan Cordeiro. Against Boise State, Panoke made three difficult catches and also provided clout as a perimeter blocker. Panoke and Cordeiro were teammates at Saint Louis School.
Graham said playing opportunities are awarded to those disciplined and productive in their assignments.
“You can’t compromise that,” Graham said. “The guys you see playing are guys moving to the top because they’re guys who have embraced those things. And Jonah’s one of those guys. Great speed. Great ability. He just a hard-working guy who does everything right.”
Graham, who has final say on personnel decisions after consulting with coordinators and position coaches, found roles for two backups. On two 2-point conversion plays, freshman running back Koali Nishigaya aligned as the right wideout. Nishigaya sprinted across the formation on a fake handoff while Calvin Turner, the wildcat quarterback, kept the ball and ran in the other direction for the conversion.
Muasau, a 6-foot, 340-pound freshman, aligned for a play at fullback, evoking recollections of William “The Refrigerator” Perry, a defensive lineman the Chicago Bears used as a short-yardage runner. “I asked (Muasau) the other day, ‘You’re the Fridge,’ ” Graham said. “He said, ‘who’s that?’ They don’t know who the Fridge is.”
