In mid-December, the Warriors signed 13 recruits and reaffirmed three grayshirt commitments during the early signing period. Let’s take a closer look at the signees – and even the “blueshirts” whose scholarships will also count towards the 2019 class.
2018 GRAYSHIRTS:
Jonah Panoke: The St. Louis school alum will officially reunite with QB Chevan Cordeiro and join the Warriors in January. He will immediately bring depth to a receiving corps that loses its top receiver (John Ursua will forego his senior year and turn pro). Being in a run-and-shoot offense during his high school career, Panoke should be more familiar with the offensive scheme than other incoming receivers.
Thomas Wade: He was greatly undersized to compete on the offensive line last year, so it’s likely that this signing was meant as purely a long-term project, allowing Wade to take a year off to gain weight and work on technique, with hopes for a big payoff.
Michael Washington: Washington is a speedster who should compete for playing time at cornerback. UH continues to search for a shutdown corner, and while the highly rated prospects will likely head to Power 5 schools, adding speed might be a solution.
2018 BLUESHIRTS:
Basically, a blueshirt is not formally recruited and joins the team like any other walk-on, but the player is put on scholarship later, such as around fall camp. That scholarship counts towards the following year’s class.
James Green III: Green joined the Warriors in July 2018 and was not formally recruited. He not see action in 2018 but was a contributor on the scout team. Initially seen as a possible receiver, Green was moved to cornerback in the practices leading up to the Hawaii Bowl. Green should hopefully add more speed to a secondary that gave up a lot of yards through the air the past few seasons.
JoJo Ward: Ward joined the Warriors at the same time as James Green and immediately shot up the depth chart. Ward, who will be a senior in 2019, was third on the team in receiving yards in 2018. He and Cedric Byrd will be among the veteran receivers coming back next season.
2019 EARLY SIGNEES:
Zach Bowers: Bowers committed to UH over the summer and never wavered. He was rated a 3-star prospect out of Arizona. He notched good numbers, but nothing that pops out as insanely good. He should at least add more depth to a linebacker corps that loses its top defensive player (Jahlani Tavai).
Tauivi Ho Ching: This signing came out of nowhere. Ching played two seasons at Mt. San Antonio CC in California and will have three to play two. Being from American Samoa, Ching also solidifies that pipeline. Ching has good linebacker size (6’1″, 230 lbs) and will add LB depth. Rolovich also praised Ching for excellent academics, which is a plus.
Zach Daniel: Daniel committed to UH over the summer and never wavered. He’s probably about the same build as Cordeiro. I’m a bit confused that UH offered him, as Daniel doesn’t have real impressive high school numbers and UH already has guys firmly entrenched at the QB position. I understand a guy like Bryant Moniz shot up the depth chart, but also note that Moniz was a walk-on, the QB battle at the time was still a question mark, and a number of guys had to get hurt before Moniz became the starter. No question Daniel would redshirt in 2019. Then again, we may need QBs to at least throw to all the receivers in practice.
Cortez Davis: The Warriors need help (badly) at cornerback, and if Davis is as good as the tape indicates, he should be playing right away. UH is finally reaching again into the South, where there is an abundance of football talent. Davis is a speedy corner (4.43 40-yard dash and 10.69 100-meters) who will have two years to play two seasons. As for our other corners, Roe Farris will be a senior in 2019, Eugene Ford switched to nickelback, Manu Hudson-Rasmussen graduated, and the others have little to no FBS experience.
Steven Fiso: A former teammate of UH lineman Blessman Ta’ala, Fiso played numerous positions at Faga’itua High School, including kicking and punting. He may project as a safety for the Warriors, but Rolovich could consider him as an emergency kicker or a guy to use on fake punts/kicks.
Arasi Mose: This was literally and figuratively the biggest signing so far. An All-State offensive lineman for St. Louis School, Mose is an imposing 6’5″ and 345 pounds. He likely will compete at guard or center, as Kohl Levao and J.R. Hensley will be seniors in 2019. Mose will reunite with former Crusaders Cordeiro and Panoke.
Darius Muasau: A local all-state signing out of Mililani High School, Muasau projects at linebacker. Rated a 2-star prospect on 247sports, Muasau will add depth to a deep linebacking corps. I project him to redshirt in 2019.
Tiger Peterson: A local recruit out of Kamehameha-Kapalama, Peterson probably projects at safety, but he could play at other positions. He was ranked in the top 15 for Hawaii high school prospects. Peterson also graduated high school early and will enroll later this month, giving him extra reps to learn the defense before his true freshman season begins.
James Phillips: UH continues to sign smaller and speedier slotbacks with this signing. Phillips, who is 5’9″ and 155 lbs, is one of those coveted JUCO guys with four years to play three seasons. He has speed (10.7 seconds over 100 meters), so I’m more interested if the guy has great hands. Phillips could redshirt in 2019, but if he becomes an instant playmaker, I wouldn’t mind that at all.
Jared Smart: Smart is another JUCO guy from Laney College who projects to compete at wideout. He has two seasons of eligibility. Smart’s coach at Laney was John Beam, who coached Davone Bess at Skyline High School. Beam told Rolovich that Smart has Davone Bess-like hands, which could be a great sign. Bess, of course, was one of UH’s best possession slotbacks and caught just about every ball in range. With the departure of Marcus Armstrong-Brown to graduation, this could be a good pickup.
Melquise Stovall: This might be the most intriguing UH football signing during the early period. Stovall, who will have two years to play two seasons, will enroll at UH in January and participate right away in offseason conditioning and spring ball. In 2016, Stovall played for Cal as a true freshman against UH when the two teams faced off in Australia. He took a medical redshirt in 2017, then left the team to play for Riverside CC in 2018. With Ursua’s departure, Stovall could easily step right in at slotback, or if Rolovich dares to be more creative, could switch Stovall to be a running back and catch some passes in the flat.
Mason Vega: UH needs to improve its pass rush (as in help Kaimana Padello and replace Zeno Choi), and Vega can help right away with that. Vega has good size to play on the defensive line (6’3″, 265 lbs) and will have two seasons of eligibility. He played only one season of high school football, which probably helps explain his lack of recruiting offers. Vega played at Portland State his freshman season, then spent last season at Chaffey College in Rancho Cucamonga. Vega enrolls at UH later this month.
Kaimana Wa’a: The cousin of former Warrior John Wa’a, Kaimana had a good junior season on defense at Crescent Valley High School (Corvallis, OR). His senior season defensive numbers were not as impressive, but he may have played more on offense, as UH projects him as an offensive lineman. I’m happy with the signing, as a team can never have too many linemen.
UH still has a few scholarships to give during the regular signing period, which resumes in early February. The biggest needs right now remain linemen (both sides of the ball) and defensive secondary. If the Warriors can steal a speedy receiver who can catch, or a running back who can gain a lot of yards, that would also be welcome.
In other news:
Jeremiah Pritchard redshirted in 2018 but was activated for the Hawaii Bowl. He still has two seasons of eligibility. So yes, we lost Jahlani Tavai. But UH still has a ton of linebackers who can make plays. Pritchard rejoins a crew that includes Penei Pavihi, Scheyenne Sanitoa, and Solomon Matautia. Kana’i Pinanco also impressed me on a few plays. Don’t forget Paul Scott, who just completed his redshirt freshman season and was a top tackler on special teams.
Kumoku Noa also redshirted in 2018, but we got a good preview of his skills the previous season. After Ursua tore his ACL, Noa stepped up and caught several big passes from Dru Brown. With Ursua turning pro, it may be Noa’s time to shine again.
Yes, Zeno Choi graduated. But guys like Doug Russell and Justus Tavai are ready to step up. Also, Kendall Hune made a number of plays this season, including a fumble recovery and an interception in the Hawaii Bowl. The Warriors should be fine in 2019.
Aaron Loves Hawaii Football 