Posted on: Sunday, August 15, 2004

Faavi's the heart of UH offense

By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Columnist

He has entertained them around a piano and by picking up a guitar and strumming an ukulele. And, he has doubled them over with laughter from quick-wit one-liners and the jokes he pulls.

Yet, it is when the University of Hawai'i offense takes the field that Derek Faavi is really the Warriors' center of attention these days.

As the center on the offensive line and the one charged with calling the crucial blocking assignments, Faavi is blossoming in a position of prime responsibility, becoming the man the Warriors have increasingly come to look to to lead the charge of their sub-300 pound light brigade.

Often overlooked by fans who are, unless the snap goes awry, more focused on what takes place behind Faavi with quarterback Tim Chang, the Warriors know better.

"He is the man," says offensive line coach Mike Cavanaugh, gesturing across the practice field the other day. "He's the field general out there. He's so smart you tell him something and he retains it. He sees what the problem is and he corrects for it."

"He's become our leader out there (and) he's looking better than he ever did," said senior guard Uriah Moenoa.

Last year the Warriors fielded a young, rebuilding offensive line that included Faavi as a sophomore. This year, with the whole cast returning, the expectations have risen and Faavi, who has started 17 consecutive games, is being counted upon to set the example.

"With the way he played last year, especially in that Alabama game, he's raised the bar for himself this season," Cavanaugh said. "That's what he's capable of and what we're asking for now."

Of course, the Warriors are becoming used to demanding big things from Faavi, who, at 6 feet 1 and 273 pounds gives up two inches and 20 pounds to most other centers, figures to be, again, the smallest starting center on any field they play on.

His first start, as a freshman, came against Alabama. Last year against the Crimson Tide, he graded high, holding his own against Anthony Bryant, a 6-foot-4, 345-pounder the Warriors called "Sasquatch."

It wasn't the first time Faavi amazed and surprised some. "(Other coaches) take a look at his size and they probably think they can take advantage of him because he's undersized," Cavanaugh said. "But he has good technique, he's gritty and fights his (rear) off."

For Faavi, the biggest battle was just getting on a field. Overlooked out of Campbell High because of his size (6-1, 240), Faavi's only Division I offer was from UH after a coach sent the Warriors some tapes. Even then, Faavi had to walk on and prove himself to earn a scholarship.

"Honest, when he first came in he wasn't very big and we all looked at him like, 'You're a center?' " Moenoa recalls. "But, then, we saw what he could do. He's proved he can play with the big boys."

And, at UH, lead them, too.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.