It will be another month until the Hawaii football team finalizes a post-spring depth chart, but early indications are there will be few changes from the end of the 2019 season.
Todd Graham, who was hired as head coach in January, has not conducted a single on-field practice because of the pandemic. In March, UH’s campus was essentially closed, with the classes moved to online instruction, the weight room shuttered, and the Rainbow Warriors’ spring practices and spring game canceled. The UH coaches have had regular online meetings with players, and reviewed video of the Warriors’ games and practices the past season.
“We haven’t had any practice, so we have no evaluation,” Graham said of efforts to craft a placement chart entering training camp. Until otherwise told, Graham is planning for training camp or, at least, group workouts, to begin in July.
“We were basically looking at last year’s film, and a lot of guys we have didn’t play or redshirted,” Graham said. “We have a general idea (of a rotation to open training camp). Finalizing some preliminary depth charts of where people are going to start in. But it’s pretty much where they ended up.”
Cortez Davis and Mike Washington, who opened in place of Rojesterman Farris II, were the Warriors’ starting cornerbacks in the 2019 SoFi Hawaii Bowl. “They’ll start off at the two corners,” Graham said. “At the safety position, you’ve got Eugene Ford and Khoury (Bethley), as well as Kai (Kaneshiro). Then at linebacker, you’ve got Penei (Pavihi), Darius (Muasau), (Jeremiah) Pritchard, Paul Scott, and also Isaiah (Tufaga), the transfer from Oregon State. You have great potential there.”
Pavihi missed the 2019 season because of an injury, opening the way for Muasau to start as a freshman.
“Up front, you’ve got Blessman (Ta’ala) and Makai (Manuwai),” Graham said. “I think Jonah (Laulu) has an opportunity to be really good on the defensive line. … The guys who played a bunch — (defensive end) Derek Thomas, guys like that — they earned the starting roles last year, and they’ll have an opportunity to start there. And there’s going to be competition.”
The offensive line returns eight players who started games in 2019. “I think the offensive line is the strength of our team,” Graham said. “That’s a good sign.”
Jared Smart is the lone returning full-time starting receiver. But slotbacks Lincoln Victor and Jason Phillips are back, and Melquise Stovall has been reinstated.
“Jared Smart is a great leader,” Graham said. “He’s a guy I think is a leader of that group. We’ve got talent there. Obviously, Miles Reed, at tailback, is a returning starter.”
Graham said Chevan Cordeiro, who was 4-0 as a starter the past two seasons, is the leader of the offense.
“I would be really stressed if I didn’t have him,” Graham said. “No question, he’ll come in leading our team and taking the snaps. He’s our starting quarterback. … He’s a special kid. These players respect him. He’s, no doubt, a guy they’ll rally behind. He elevates people around him. He reminds me of Taylor Kelly, who won 29 games in three years at Arizona State. They have a lot of similarities.”
A pre-camp depth chart probably will not be written in ink because of the newcomers, development of last year’s redshirts and reserves, and the different schemes. Graham said the defense will have multiple looks. The offense, renamed the “run and gun,” is rooted in last year’s run-and-shoot concepts but will add some wrinkles.
“Right now, the reps we’ve had, the practice time we’ve had, is what they did last year,” Graham said. “We have to build upon that.”