The Centurions: #28 Rich Miano

The Star-Bulletin's countdown of UH football's "Centurions", the 100 greatest players in the University of Hawaii's 100 years of football, continues with #28, safety Rich Miano.

Dave Reardon has an excellent profile of Miano.

WHEN MIANO auditioned for UH defensive coordinator Bob Wagner, he was to secondary play what William Hung was to singing, without the perverse fame. He was terrible, couldn't backpedal correctly. "(Wagner) wanted so much to laugh, he had to turn around," Miano says. To top it off, he wasn't even academically qualified.

He made grades in the summer and, despite the bad workout, Miano somehow got on the fall camp roster -- or so he thought.

"My name's not on the dinner list, my name's not on the dorm list, my name's not on the equipment list."

Of course that wasn't going to stop him.

"Nobody ever outworked me, I was obsessed," he says. "I wanted acceptance in Hawaii. I wanted to be good so people would like me."