HONOLULU — If everything goes according to projections, the Hawaii football team will have many “Boogie” nights in the coming seasons.
“So, yeah, I committed to the University of Hawaii,” said Elijah “Boogie” Henderson, a 6-foot-5, 300-pound offensive lineman from Junipero Serra High in Gardena, Calif.
Henderson said he will ink his letter of intent on Feb. 7, the first day of the spring semester’s signing period. He said he will join the Rainbow Warriors in June.
It has been a long ascent for Henderson. As the pandemic eased and schools re-opened to in-class instruction, Henderson enrolled at Dorsey Senior High in Los Angeles. At the time, he ballooned to 380 pounds.
But a concussion abbreviated his sophomore season to five games in 2021.
To play at a higher level, he transferred to Junipero Serra High in 2022. Henderson was told he met the transfer qualifications to play in 2022. But on the day of the season opener, he was told he needed to sit out five games. The restriction extended to 10 games, and then the entire 2022 season.
“My whole junior season was gone,” he said.
He received invitations to several camps last summer, but attended only the combine in Redlands, Calif., because of financial constraints. By then, he lost 80 pounds through intensive training and weighed 300.
At the Redlands camp, Roman Sapolu, UH’s co-offensive coordinator and O-line coach, watched Henderson go though every drill. “By the time we finished the technical workouts,” Henderson recalled, “he introduced himself and said, ‘I just want you to know you’re offered (a scholarship) by Hawaii.’”
But Henderson delayed providing an answer. “I didn’t want to make a decision too fast,” he said. “This was all new to me.”
Because he did not play in 2022, Henderson said, “I guess it pushed me to grind harder (in 2023). I finished the year off as an all-league lineman.”
Henderson had received interest from several schools in the Mountain West, of which UH is a member. On Tuesday night, Henderson told Sapolu he wanted to be a Warrior. He officially accepted on Wednesday.
Henderson played left guard, right tackle and defensive tackle for Serra. He said he is willing to play anywhere on the O-line for the Warriors.
“I’m not scared to learn new things,” he said. “I can pick up things pretty fast once I put my mind to it.”
