Letuli Gets 6th Year

Excellent news!

In a decision that hurt so good, the NCAA yesterday approved Hawai'i offensive lineman Laupepa Letuli's request for a medical hardship that will allow him to play as a sixth-year senior in 2010.

The confirmation came four days after the NCAA denied UH linebacker Brashton Satele's similar request, and it ended Letuli's quest that began in September.

"I'm very happy to be coming back," said Letuli, who is listed as the Warriors' No. 1 right tackle. "I'm happy for my family, too."

Stephen Tsai shares his thoughts on the matter.

The NCAA should be applauded for doing the right thing in granting a medical exemption that will allow UH offensive tackle Laupepa Letuli to play as a sixth-year senior in 2010.

Sure, it helped that Letuli's mother and UH trainer Eric Okazaki had ample proof — contemporaneous documentation, nitpickers call it — that Letuli suffered season ending injuries in 2005 (right shoulder) and 2009 (left knee). Heck, it would be tough to come up with documentation showing that the hard-luck Letuli was ever healthy during his UH career.

But documents or not, to know how much Letuli wanted to play and to know how talented he is, there is no way he would have sat out any games if he were not legitimately injured.