In a true story that is all bull, Hawai'i defensive end Victor Clore suffered a shoulder injury and will not play in the Jan. 1 Sugar Bowl.

Clore suffered a separated acromioclavicular joint and a fracture in his right shoulder when he was thrown while riding a bull Friday.

He has been told he will not be allowed to resume workouts for six weeks.

He does not need surgery.

He still will travel with the team to New Orleans.

"You've got to accept the fact that it's injured and move on," Clore said. "But it's kind of embarrassing."

Clore asked if he could tag along with linebacker Brad Kalilimoku, who is a paniolo.

"He wanted to come to the ranch (at Whitmore Village), so I took him to the ranch," Kalilimoku said.

Kalilimoku said he put Clore on a bull that has "good and bad days."

"He said I wouldn't get hurt," Clore said. "I ended up getting hurt, anyway."

Kalilimoku said he feels "a little bit" guilty.

"But I'm like, 'If you want to try, go ahead,' " he said. "They see little ol' me doing it. He tried to do it and he got hurt."

Clore said: "Brad is a pretty intimidating guy. See him? Big arms."

But Clore said he has no regrets.

"There's first time for everything," Clore said.

And now the bull has a new name.

"Before we used to call him 'Kaipo,' " Kalilimoku said. "Now we named him 'Victor.' "

DEFENSIVE SWITCH

To accommodate defensive end Karl Noa's sore left hand, Noa and Amani Purcell have switched sides. Purcell, who has started every game at left end, will play Noa's usual position on the right side in the 4-3 alignment.

Noa said he is more comfortable at left end, where he played his first two UH seasons. He was an outside linebacker in 2005 and 2006 when the Warriors were in a 3-4 formation.

At left end, Noa goes into a stance in which his right hand is on the ground. His left hand is heavily wrapped, although there is no fracture.

"It feels more comfortable to be on the left side," Noa said.

Purcell, who played defensive right end at Penn State before transferring to UH, said he does not have a preference. He also has been used as a nose tackle when the Warriors go to a three-man line in certain passing situations.

"Karl loves that (left) side," Purcell said. "We're letting him have that chance so he can perform better."

The bookends proved to be bookworms, too. Both were graduated Sunday in a commencement ceremony in the Stan Sheriff Center.

"It feels awesome," Noa said of joining the alumni mailing list. "It's another accomplishment added to my life. A lot of people don't see what we've got to do. It makes it a lot more rewarding for us to put in the time and work in the classroom."

Purcell follows his older brother, former UH defensive end Melila Purcell, as a UH graduate.

Purcell transferred from Penn State in 2005. Unfortunately, not all of his credits came along with him.

"Only half of my credits were accepted (by UH)," Purcell said. "I had to make up a whole year and a half of classes (before being eligible to play for UH). I had to take a whole bunch of classes."

Purcell credits his parents for pushing him to graduate. Sauimoana and Melila Jr. have traveled from American Samoa every week to watch their son's games.

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