The most difficult adjustment was losing his friendly demeanor on the field.

"He used to be real polite," said Vantz Singletary, who coaches the defensive linemen. "He'd say 'excuse me' and 'pardon me' during practice. I tried to get him in a foul mood. I gave him the basketball example: 'On the football field, you have to foul someone every play. You have to be physical.' "

As punishment for passive play, Akpan would have to "bear crawl" — moving with his hands and feet on the ground — the width of a football field. Further politeness would result in the "scalded dog" punishment of moving with both hands and one foot on the ground.

"I have a different personality," Akpan said. "I mean, violence? For me, it's a learning process. I struggled a lot with striking (an offensive lineman). You have to strike people you like, people you see every day. I had trouble being that aggressive."

But Singletary's tough love eventually wore on Akpan.

"He kept on yelling at me," Akpan recalled. "He told me: 'If you don't want to be mean, turn your stuff in and just quit.' He told me I could be a nice guy outside, but in the game, I had to be nasty. I went out there and did what I had to do."

Akpan showed his aggression in the 44-16 victory over Tulsa. Both of his tackles were in the Hurricane's backfield.

On one play, the 6-foot-7, 273-pound Akpan knocked back Aaron Danenhauer, a 6-foot-5, 299-pound left tackle. UH coach June Jones circulated an enlarged picture of that play to Akpan's teammates.

"He's not Mr. Nice Guy anymore," Singletary said. "I took the label off. He's become a violent football player. He took (Tulsa's) tight ends and mauled them."

Singletary said Akpan has learned to bend his knees and lower his shoulders to avoid upper-cut blocks from shorter offensive linemen.

"He had a hard time because he's so tall," Singletary said. "He has really turned the tide."

Singletary said the original plan called for Akpan to play 15 to 20 snaps against Tulsa. "He was doing so well, we left him in," Singletary said of Akpan's 46 snaps.

Ex-Kamehameha QB returning as receiver

As a recruit, wide receiver Caleb Spencer brought a lot of baggage — and that was perfectly fine with the Nevada football coaches.

Spencer believed there was a strong likelihood he would commit to the Wolf Pack during his recruiting trip to Reno in January.

"After the first night, I knew I was staying," said Spencer, who immediately enrolled for the spring semester.

His wardrobe consisted of sweatpants and sweatshirts. "It was cold during the spring," he said.

Spencer was a standout quarterback and basketball player at Kamehameha Schools. During the 2002 football season, what was originally diagnosed as a bruised right shoulder turned out to be a torn rotator cuff in his throwing arm.

Although calcium deposits braced the injured area, enabling him to play basketball, his football scholarship offers dwindled. He underwent surgery a day after Kamehameha's basketball season ended in 2003, and then committed to Palomar Community College in San Diego with the intent of redshirting last season. Frustrated by his limited role during football practices, he volunteered to play wideout. He led Palomar with 45 receptions for more than 800 yards in 2003.

As an academic qualifier out of high school, Spencer was eligible to transfer to an NCAA school without having to earn an associate degree. San Diego State and Boise State wanted him to stay at Palomar for another season.

His childhood dream of playing for the Warriors was dashed when he was told he could join only as a non-scholarship player.

"I wish financially it wouldn't be a problem (to join UH as a walk-on)," said Spencer, who has a younger brother and sister. "I wanted to think of my parents. I didn't want to put them in a bind. I didn't want to put pressure on them."

Nevada offered him a recruiting trip, a football scholarship and a chance to compete for playing time in spring practice.

"They thought I could play right away," he said. "That's what made my decision."

Spencer, who is 6 feet 1 and 185 pounds, is the Wolf Pack's second-leading receiver with 31 catches for 279 yards and two touchdowns.

"I'm looking forward to coming home," he said of this week's game against UH at Aloha Stadium.