"I did my best during the season, but I wasn't able to pass my grades down the stretch, so I have to suffer the consequences, I guess," LaBoy told The Advertiser yesterday morning.

LaBoy, a senior defensive end from San Rafael, Calif., said it was "a little disturbing" that his academic status has gained widespread attention.

"It's kind of taken away from the players and the bowl, you know," LaBoy said. "I think there are more important things right now than to focus on whether I'm going to be eligible or not. You have all of the other hundred guys on the team. The focus should be more on them, on them playing in the bowl, not whether I'm playing or not."

As UH's most decorated player — he was voted by teammates as the Warriors' most valuable player and he has received an invitation to the Senior Bowl — LaBoy has been under media scrutiny since last Friday, when he told reporters he was trying to meet the Western Athletic Conference's six-credit rule.

The WAC, of which UH is a member, requires its football players to earn at least six credits — the equivalent of passing two classes — during the fall semester to play in a postseason bowl. The NCAA enforces the WAC rule. UH's fall semester ended last Friday, the last time LaBoy attended a practice.

Saturday, UH coach June Jones said LaBoy would not play in the bowl game. Sunday, Jones said LaBoy would be allowed to suit up if he met the six-credit requirement. Yesterday, Jones said, "I haven't seen him (since Friday), so he won't play."

When asked about missing practices, LaBoy said: "I'm not eligible, that's the thing, whether I'm here or not. ... It's all grades, you know. I didn't pass the six credits. I came back and took my finals, you know, and did the best I could. I just didn't pass the six credits so I'm not going to be eligible."

LaBoy admitted to "sacrificing" his academic work to focus on improving as a football player during the fall semester. He led the WAC with 13 sacks.

"I did what I could during the season to help them out," LaBoy said. "It sucks I can't be there in the end. It's a sacrifice, I guess, whatever."

As an ineligible player, LaBoy is not allowed to stay with the team in Waikiki this week nor participate in any bowl-related functions. But LaBoy said "there are stuff I have to work on, things I have to take care of."

LaBoy said he is registered for classes for the spring semester that begins in January.

LaBoy can play in the NFL-run Senior Bowl, which pays its participants. The game is Jan. 24 at Mobile, Ala.