Jake Patek got a 2-year deal with the CFL!

HA Note: “Former UH safety Jake Patek is set to receive a two-year contract from the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League. Patek, who completed his UH eligibility at the end of the 2008 Sugar Bowl, participated in last week’s Pro Day in Carson, Calif. It was there where he met Richard Wade, an area scout for the Tiger-Cats. Patek then learned the Tiger-Cats were holding tryouts the past Saturday in Dallas. With the help of former UH coaches June Jones and Jeff Reinebold, Patek secured an invitation to the tryout.”

About his performance at the Tiger-Cats tryouts, Patek said:
“I didn’t run my 40, but I did position drills, did a little one-on-ones. I was a little rusty in one-on-ones, but they liked my footwork.” (HA)

About being offered a contract today, Patek said:
“Today, (a Tiger-Cat official) called me and told me they would offer me a contract. I’m blown away. I’m ready to play some football.” (HA)

J.J. McDermott (former NMSU QB) says that everyone knows about Colt

CUSA = CSUAfans.com

About how everyone knows about Colt, McDermott (who was at NMSU when Colt was at UH) said:
“Everybody’s familiar with that guy. You see somebody throw 60 touchdowns, or whatever he did, it’s pretty fun to watch and something you’d like to do, I guess.” (CUSA)

http://www.cusa-fans.com/articles/cusa-football-2009/smu-spring-football_040709.html

Feature on John Fonoti

About his hard work and focus on the season, Fonoti said:
“It’s going to be my senior year, and I’m trying to do my best, better than I did last year.” (HA)

About how he will miss not having David Veikune at DE opposite him, Fonoti said:
“He was like a big idol for me. I’m trying to be like him — his speed rush, his power. I want to get a better work ethic.” (HA)

About his mother undergoing chemotherapy to battle cancer, Fonoti said:
“It’s a big shock for us. She’s always trying to tell us she’s OK, that she’s getting better. As time goes on, we can see what’s really going on.” (HA)

About how his mother’s cancer makes it difficult to focus sometimes, Fonoti said:
“She’s always been with me. I want to be there for her.” (HA)

About how everyone has tried to help him deal with the demands on his time, Fonoti said:
“The coaches, the mentors, the tutors have helped me out big time. They work around my schedule.” (HA)

About how he didn’t lift weights at Farrington High School, Fonoti said:
“I was only in the weight room twice, maybe four times.” (HA)

HA Note: “He was on the active roster as a UH freshman in 2005. The next year, he was restricted from participating in football practices or games to focus on academics.”

Fonoti said that his redshirt year:
“helped me a lot academically. … And it got me into the weight room.” (HA)

HA Note: “Now Fonoti can bench press 385 pounds and power clean 314 pounds.”

http://sports.honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090407/SPORTS0201/904070341/1312&template=UHSports

Feature on Viliami Nauahi

About how more than $47k in cash and prizes he won on the Wheel of Fortune, walk-on player Nauahi said:
“It’s totally a blessing. I can eat some meat instead of saimin.” (HSB)

About taking reps with the first team D (Blaze and Paipai are not participating this spring), Nauahi said:
“I’m not used to getting all the reps. Now I’ve got an opportunity to show what I’ve got and hopefully get some playing time. From day to day I’m getting more comfortable, but there’s a lot more to work on.” (HSB)

About how the extra reps are helping Nauahi adjust to LB (he was at safety until midway through last season), Mac said:
“He’s a hitter and smart, he’s picking it up real well. He gets a lot of reps so we really can see how he can be when (Soares and Falemalu) come back.” (HSB)

HSB Note: “Nauahi, listed at 215 pounds last season, checked in at 230 for the spring as he adjusts to taking on offensive linemen more often. But he doesn’t want to sacrifice speed for added bulk.”

About having to adjust to the direction of his first step when the ball is snapped, Nauahi said:
“At safety you’re reading pass first. Linebackers are reading run first so instead of going back I’m coming forward. So now we’ve got some linemen I have to deal with. I wouldn’t say it’s a big difference. The coaches are always saying the linebackers are just big DBs, so I have to get that mentality.” (HSB)

HSB Note: “As for his turn on The Wheel, Nauahi said he didn’t mention his role on the football team during the audition process and cleared the appearance with the UH compliance office before agreeing to play. He said the winnings are in the bank and he’s no longer worried about finding the funds for summer school or his next semester.”

About how his teammates never forget about his Wheel of Fortune win, Nauahi said:
“It doesn’t get old. (My teammates) are always asking for loans.” (HSB)

http://www.starbulletin.com/sports/sportsnews/20090407_UHs_Nauahi_makes_shift_in_fortunes_and_direction.html

Rodney Bradley likes the WR screen

HA Note: “During team drills yesterday, Bradley, aligned to the left, broke inside, caught a screen pass from Greg Alexander, juked safety Spencer Smith and sprinted for a long gain.”

About his long gain yesterday on a WR screen, Bradley said:
“It was my first time running it. I like it.” (HA)

“I’m getting used to the offense more and more every day. We just put in that screen today, I liked that.” (HSB)

HA Note: “The inside screen was a pet play between quarterback Colt Brennan and wideout Jason Rivers in 2006 and 2007. The route causes chaos for defenses set in a two-deep zone, and opens the way for slotbacks or running backs to curl into the flats. Most important, it gives a big wideout, like Rivers or Bradley, a running start.”

About Bradley’s effectiveness with the WR screen, Greg Alexander said:
“You saw what he did to Spencer. If you get him the ball in space, he’s going to make some things happen. He’s going to be fun.” (HA)

Bradley (who can run the 40 in 4.4 seconds) said that the:
“offense will allow me the chance to use a lot of my talent.” (HA)

HA Note: “Now Bradley, who rotates with Joe Avery, is getting used to the workload. This spring, UH is using a platoon system, in which a second offensive unit sprints onto the field when the first team finishes a play. UH head coach Greg McMackin said the constant rotations double the number of plays the Warriors can run in team drills.”

After being in a run-oriented offense at his JC, Bradley said that UH throws:
“five times more in practices. (At Navarro) it was a lot of blocking.” (HA)A

HSB Note: “Having Navarro teammate Melvin Hopkins on the roster has helped Bradley get comfortable in Hawaii. They are among among five JC transfers who enrolled at UH for the spring semester, giving them a head start on making the transition to Division I.”

About enrolling in the spring to get a head start on adjusting to D-IA football, Bradley said:
“It’s a good opportunity to come in now because I get to pick up the offense a lot faster and I have more time to do it because this is a pretty hard offense. At first it was a little frustrating because this stuff is so different from what we ran in junior college. Every day it’s getting a lot better.” (HSB)

Feature on new GA Mike Smith

About Ray Lewis, Mike Smith (who was drafted for the Ravens to back up Lewis) said:
“One of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet. He has a lot of passion and he’ll hit you, but off the field he’ll come give you a hug. He’s a good guy.” (HSB)

HSB Note: “McMackin coached Lewis during his tenure as defensive coordinator at the University of Miami and later recruited Smith to Texas Tech. Smith kept in touch with McMackin after they moved on in their careers and gave his former coach a call when an injury led him to call it a career after four years with the Ravens. Now he’s taking in his first coaching experience as a graduate assistant on the Hawaii staff, assisting Cal Lee with the Warriors linebackers during spring practice.”

About his role as GA (he has the spot that David Gilmore had last year), Smith said:
“We have some good players, they listen and they try to take what we learn from the film room to the field. We’ve got some good guys and it makes my job a lot easier.” (HSB)

About working under DC Rex Ryan, with Lewis, Bart Scott, and Adalius Thomas at LB, Smith said:
“It was just a blessing to be around those guys and that kind of defense. That kind of violent defense.” (HSB)

About his intensity during practices, Smith said:
“I’ve got a lot of intensity. I don’t want anybody to ever question the effort of our guys.” (HSB)