Signing Day: The Day After

Long Beach Post Sports has photos from signing day ceremonies at Long Beach area schools, including this one of George Daily-Lyles giving a shaka. Nice.

Mike Guardabascio has an accompanying article with a quote from GDL. Looks like it was down to the wire for him.

"I decided like…the day before yesterday," said Daily-Lyles of his commitment to the University of Hawaii. "I really like it out there, and the head coach is great. It hasn't really hit me yet…I think when I'm on the plane, and we've landed, and the pilot has said, 'Welcome to Hawaii.' Maybe then it'll hit me."

Wes Nakama writes about some local players who took it down to the wire, including linebacker Chad Lopati.

Lopati also had made a verbal commitment to UH in November, but Oregon State made a late push through assistant coach Mike Cavanaugh — a former Hawai'i offensive line coach — and defensive coordinator Mark Banker.

But after much deliberation with family, Lopati stuck with his commitment to UH and signed yesterday.

"I decided at about 2 o'clock (in the morning)," Lopati said. "I was thinking about it a lot and I talked with my parents, my aunties and uncles. I decided it's best to stay home and play in front of my family and friends, and for the whole state of Hawai'i."

Glad they both decided to honor their commitments. Whew!

The Union has an article about Zach Masch signing his letter of intent to UH.

The former Nevada Union High School standout said he’s never signed his name with such a sense of satisfaction.

“It really just shows that all my hard work paid off,” Masch said, who continues to work out in preparation of reporting to the team in May. “I’m ready to go to the next level and I keep on achieving what I want to do. But this is quite an honor.”

Joe Davidson of The Sacramento Bee talks to QB David Graves about signing with UH.

Graves didn't have the 'gotta-have' size of Peyton Manning so many major colleges seek, but he fits the Hawaii system at 6-1, 190 pounds with the ability to make all the throws and improvise.

"I don't know if I would have gotten a scholarship to a lot of places at my size, but with Hawaii, it was a great fit," Graves said. "I am totally at peace with this. The Hawaii coaches were telling me to enjoy the day, to celebrate this, because it's something special."

Stephen Tsai has an article about the recruiting class.

The UH coaches felt they needed to use this recruiting class to restock the defensive secondary and bring in young quarterbacks who can be developed over the next couple of seasons.

Nine defensive backs, including six on scholarship, completed their eligibility after the 2008 Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl. The Warriors redshirted six defensive backs last season.

While remaining true to a four-wide offense, the Warriors also wanted to add a complementary running attack. They signed three running backs — speedster Chizzy Dimude, and bruisers Alex Green and John Lister.

Those additions create a ripple effect. Kealoha Pilares now can focus on being a full-time slotback, and Jake Heun can move to rush end.

The Advertiser has a list of all the new Warriors along with comments about each of them from director of player personnel Tony Tuioti.

Billy Hull writes that the 2009 class is balanced and deep.

The recruits are split almost evenly between offense (14) and defense (15). Nine of the 29 recruits are junior college players, a trend that the coaching staff hopes to slim down in the coming years.

"Slowly we're trying to get to the point where we're balanced out every year," UH director of football player personnel Tony Tuioti said. "Last year it was offense. This year it was defense.

"We tried to get a balance and we want to get to the point that we're going with all high school guys, because they get into the program and have four years to develop."

Paul Honda highlights the Kahuku players who signed with UH, Kamalani Alo and Aulola Tonga.

Tonga, at 6-foot-3 and 205 pounds, is a Star-Bulletin All-State first-team selection and could have an immediate impact.

"I feel relieved it's over. I feel good. My mom probably feels relieved, too," Tonga said shortly after talking with UH coach Greg McMackin. "Coach Mack said, 'We're ready for you, No. 3.'

New Warrior Corey Nielsen has been named a national player of the year by Old Spice.

As one of the 50 Red Zone Players of the Year, Corey will be honored in a full-page congratulatory announcement in USA Today on Thursday, February 5, 2009 along with the newspaper’s coverage of National Letter of Intent Signing Day. He will also receive an Old Spice Red Zone Player of the Year awards package.

And KGMB's Tina Chau has a report from last night's signing day/100th anniversary celebration at Murphy's.