Rodney Bradley commits to the Warriors!

About his commitment to the Warriors, 6′1″, 190-pound WR Rodney Bradley (Navarro JC) said:
“I am a Warrior.” (HA)

Asked about his 40-yard dash time, Bradley said:
“it’s 4.3 (seconds) now.” (HA)

Confirming Bradley’s 40-yard time, Navarro assistant coach Kevin Curtis said:
“He’s extremely fast.” (HA)

About how Bradley is able to use his speed in games, Navarro head coach Nick Bobeck said:
“He carries that speed over to the game. Rodney is an extremely explosive receiver.” (HA)

About how he will earn his associate degree this month so that he can enroll at UH in January and participate in UH’s offseason conditioning program and spring practice, Bradley said:
“I’m looking forward to that.” (HA)

HA Note: “As a senior at Dallas’ Lake Highlands High in 2007, Bradley signed a letter of intent with Southern Methodist. But he did not go there because of academic issues, and instead enrolled at Navarro.”

Happy for Bradley, Bobeck said:
“He’s a very good player on the field and a great person off the field. He’s a pleasant guy to be around. He has a great sense of humor. I couldn’t be happier for Rodney. He’s the kind of guy you want good things to happen for.” (HA)

HA Note: “Bobeck said Bradley has excelled despite Navarro’s limited passing attack. The past season, Navarro ran 70.3 percent of the time. Still, Bradley caught 29 passes for 555 yards, an average of 19.3 yards per catch.”

About Bradley’s yards per catch average, Bobeck said:
“At one time, he was averaging a little more than 25 yards per catch.” (HA)

HA Note: “Bradley accounted for nine of Navarro’s 10 touchdown receptions.”

About how their offense didn’t give Bradley much of a chance to get passes thrown to him, Curtis said:
“We’re an offense that ran the ball a lot, and he didn’t get the opportunity to catch the ball because we didn’t put the ball there. We ran the ball very well. But when the ball’s in the air, he made a lot of plays.” (HA)

About Bradley’s “separation” speed, Curtis said:
“Time after time, being at the same level as the defensive back, when the ball’s in the air, he has another gear that other people don’t have.” (HA)

HA Note: “Bradley said he received interest from Pittsburgh, Kansas State, Memphis and Tulsa. Then two weeks ago, Curtis called his close friend, UH head coach Greg McMackin. McMackin was the defensive coordinator when Curtis played safety at Texas Tech and then, for two seasons, with the San Francisco 49ers.”

About his close relationship with Mac, Curtis said:
“I’ve known coach Mack for a long time. I love that guy. He’s a good guy. I look out for him. I knew Rodney would be a perfect fit for coach Mack’s offense.” (HA)

About his host during his recruiting visit, Navarro alum Erik Robinson, Bradley said:
“He’s a really cool guy.” (HA)

About how he enjoyed attending the Washington State game, Bradley said:
“That was a great game. I enjoyed it.” (HA)

About how he liked UH’s offense, Bradley said:
“I really like the way they throw the ball a lot. It’s a good offense.” (HA)

About how he felt comfortable with the Warriors, Bradley said:
“I liked the vibe better (in Hawai’i). I like the players and the coaches. And the people in Hawai’i are cool. It’s family-oriented. That makes it better. I feel comfortable there.” (HA)

Bobeck predicted that Bradley is:
“going to do a great job out there.” (HA)

About how he thinks that Bradley will be well at UH, Curtis said:
“Rodney is going to go out there and work hard every day in practice. He’s a competitor. He wants to get better.” (HA)

“Rodney did a great job for us. He’s going to be a great asset to the University of Hawai’i. He’s going to get an opportunity to catch a lot of balls in Hawai’i. He’s going to shine. You’ll hear about this kid in the next couple of years. Hawai’i got a steal right there.” (HA)

HA Note: “Bradley’s cousin is Bethel Johnson, a wide receiver who was selected by the New England Patriots in the second round of the 2003 draft. Johnson won two Super Bowl rings with the Patriots. During the first half of the past season, Johnson served as a volunteer coach at Navarro.”

About how Bradley learned all he could from Bethel Johnson, Curtis said:
“Rodney soaked up everything Bethel said. He wanted to learn. He wanted to be a sponge. He’s going to adapt to his environment.” (HA)

Quotes from the local papers

About how all they need now is for Arizona State to beat Arizona in order to have a Pac-10 team in the Hawaii Bowl, David Matlin said:
“We went into the (last) week needing three things to happen in order to get a Pac-10 team. Now, we only need one.” (HA)

About how the Hawaii Bowl gets the 6th pick of Pac-10 teams, Matlin said:
“our hope has always been to have a Pac-10 team.” (HA)

“We’d be thrilled to have a Pac-10 team if Arizona State wins. If not, then what’s really exciting is there’s a lot of possibilities and opportunities.” (HSB)

HSB Note: “At-large teams with 7-5 records must be selected before those at 6-6, a group that includes Notre Dame.”

About the uncertainty over who the Hawaii Bowl will get, Matlin said:
“We’ve never had an experience like this (in the Hawaii Bowl’s previous six years).” (HSB)

Not thinking about the Hawaii Bowl yet because of the Cincinnati game, Mac said:
“I’m just taking it one game at a time right now and the next game is Cincinnati.” (HSB)

About facing BCS-bound Cincinnati, Mac said:
“This gives us a chance to show what we’re capable of doing against this type of team. I think we’re playing at our peak right now and it’s the best time to face this kind of opponent.” (HSB)

About how the Cincinnati game will be for their seniors, Mac said:
“It’s going to be the seniors’ game, so it’s going to be important for us. They’ve contributed so much to the program and to this season with leadership for the team.” (HSB)

About being told Friday night that we could be one of their captains for the Washington State game, senior Tyson Kafentzis (who lived in eastern Washington and followed Washington State) said:
“That was awesome. That was an honor, it meant a lot to me. Obviously, I grew up being a fan of them and I couldn’t wait to play these guys. I was ecstatic when I saw them on the schedule years ago. The last time I walked out as a captain was five years ago in high school. So it was pretty special.” (HSB)

About his TD reception to put UH ahead 7-0 over Washington State, Greg Salas said:
“The curl was wide open. The safety had bailed. I knew I had room to run. We definitely wanted to jump on them fast.” (HSB)

About how they got ahead and the crowd helped keep them going in the Washington State game, John Fonoti said:
“We got off to a good start and then we began to feed off the crowd. We couldn’t have done it without them.” (HSB)

About his fumble recovery at the Washington State 4 yard time, Josh Leonard said:
“All of a sudden I saw a ball right between my legs, so I sat back and just grabbed it.” (HSB)

About his 44-yard TD
Washington: “I was thinking touchdown from the way the defense was playing me. So I just ran my route and executed.”

5. Giving it back
The Setup: Hawaii 24, Washington State 10, 6:43 remaining, fourth quarter, Hawaii ball, fourth and 17 at Washington State 31

The Play: Matt Eichelberger blocks Kelly’s 47-yard field-goal attempt. Washington State’s Devin Giles recovers, and, as he is being tackled, tries to pitch to Chima Nwachukwu. Nwachukwu doesn’t catch the high toss, and UH’s Clarence Tuioti-Mariner recovers at the WSU 23.

The Impact: Instead of taking over with enough time to conceivably score twice, Washington State fritters away a big play. Hawaii fails to score, but takes 3:04 off the clock, severely crippling possibilities of a comeback.

Washington State coach Paul Wulff: “We teach that, you know. No. That was a microcosm of our whole deal this year.”