When slot receiver Greg Salas picked up his copy of the University of Hawai'i playbook this fall, he found more than a binder of Xs and Os set before him.

There, on the cover, one word succinctly set out the Warriors' hopes for the role they envision him assuming in the passing game: "Checkmate."

Ostensibly it was Salas' code name, a "Top Gun"-like touch added by quarterbacks coach Nick Rolovich to spice up meetings for receivers and quarterbacks, who each received one. But in choosing Salas', Rolovich so aptly summed up the junior's big play potential that it endures as a nickname.

Salas is the Warriors' most accomplished returning receiver, a veteran of 14 starts, 57 catches and 831 yards who grew before our eyes as an outside receiver last season. At 6 feet 2 and 205 pounds, the move inside this year is expected to only expand his opportunities and enhance his game-breaking value.

To put up points, the Warriors understand that they have to get the ball in his hands more often, as much as doubling the 4.7 catches per game he averaged in 2008. To win, they know they'll have to dial him up on third-and-long situations and get him in the end zone more than three times (his 2008 total).

Running inside, not hemmed in by the sideline, offers the prospect of more single coverage and mismatches to exploit. "He's a big target over the middle; something we haven't had," said offensive coordinator Ron Lee. "We've always had the little guys (in the slots) and he presents a problem for the defenses, the linebackers, because he is big and can run."

It is a move Salas, who initially viewed it as a means of extending his knowledge of the passing routes, has come to see the wisdom of and embrace as a permanent address.

"On the outside some plays you're not really even an option, you're just running somebody off," Salas said. "On the inside, you're looking to get open and, if the quarterback can find you, you get a lot of balls."

And Salas, who patiently waited his turn behind three of UH's all-time leaders in receptions (Jason Rivers, Davone Bess and Ryan Grice-Mullen) is all about seizing opportunity and becoming a 1,000-yard man himself.

He has thrived in fall practice, where his touches have been more plentiful, his circus catches have been more frequent and his runs longer. "I feel like I'm making a lot more catches in practice and, hopefully, it will translate into games," Salas said.

So, too, do the Warriors. "We plan to move him around in motion and vary his routes, make a lot of moves with him," Lee said.

The kind that signal "Checkmate."