By Stephen Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer
A true football busybody has managed to slow down and accept a football scholarship from the University of Hawai‘i.
Tyrone Brown of Highland High in Palmdale, Calif., said he will make his commitment official on Wednesday, the first day national letters of intent may be signed.
At Highland, Brown rarely left the field. He was used as a running back, linebacker, place-kicker and punter. Brown said he expects to play outside linebacker for the Warriors.
Still, he said, he continues working on his running back and kicking skills. He said he can kick field goals from 40 yards.
The 6-foot-2, 225-pound Brown can bench press 380 pounds. He was timed at 4.43 seconds over 40 yards last fall, although his fastest 40-yard time, recorded electronically at a football combine last summer, was 4.39 seconds.
Brown received scholarship offers from Texas A&M, Washington, Oregon State and Nevada-Las Vegas as a high school senior in 2000. But he did not earn a qualifying SAT score to play as an NCAA freshman, and many schools assumed he would attend a junior college.
Instead, Brown did not enroll in school last fall, spending the semester studying for the SAT. He visited UH last week and accepted the Warriors’ scholarship offer yesterday. If he is declared eligible, as expected, he will have five years to play four seasons for UH.
"I primarily chose Hawai‘i because it’s far from home, and I wanted to try to be on my own," Brown said. "Plus, it’s a paradise. I love it there."
Brown also said he likes the UH coaching staff, particularly assistant Rich Miano. "He’s a great guy," Brown said. "He’s very straightforward and blunt. I like that."
Brown was hardly idle last fall. In addition to studying, he worked out daily and also raced cars and motorcycles. "I like to keep busy," he said.
UH will fill its three remaining available scholarships in the next two days. UH has 17 new commitments. Two scholarships are reserved for players who signed last year but delayed enrolling at UH until this semester. Another two will go to Division I transfers Travis Laboy and Wayne Hunter. Also, punter Mat McBriar, who paid his own way to school last fall, will be awarded a scholarship.
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