Hawai'i football player Jon Medeiros knows the road to a No. 1 job can be long.

Medeiros, who lives in Makakilo, awakens at 4:15 every morning. He then boards the 5 a.m. bus for the 35-mile, 90-minute ride to the Manoa campus. By 6:45, he is in uniform and on the grass practice field, ready for another spring-training session.

"It's tough, but it's definitely worth it," Medeiros said.

It paid off yesterday when Medeiros was elevated to No. 1 left slotback. He replaced Michael Washington, who experienced tightness in his left hamstring.

"It feels like somebody took a finger and poked it in my muscle," Washington said.

Medeiros said: "I feel bad for Mike. Hopefully, he gets well soon. We need him."

Offensive coordinator Ron Lee said it is fortunate that Medeiros has improved enough to easily ascend the depth chart.

"He's tough," Lee said. "He has a good understanding of what we're doing. I know he won't be shy on Saturdays. He'll be a guy we can count on. He's one of the guys who will be ready when the lights go on."

Medeiros took the circuitous route to UH. The Kapolei High graduate attended Western Oregon in 2005. He redshirted that season, then transferred to UH.

"The cost was outrageous — 17 grand," he said. "I came home, and figured I'd take my shot walking on over here. It's cheaper for my parents, too."

Medeiros, who will be a fourth-year junior in the fall, weighed 200 pounds at the end of last season. At 5 feet 9, he knew he had to lose weight.

"I did that through workouts and dieting," Medeiros said. "I lost 11, 12 pounds. I'm in the 180s. I feel better, faster, quicker. My legs feel a lot better."

NO MORE DETOURS

As the No. 1 strong safety, Keanemana "Mana" Silva is expected to deliver punishing hits.

It is a role he did not have as a Kamehameha-Hawai'i quarterback. "In high school," Silva said, "the players used to call me Mr. Detour because I used to always run out of bounds. I was the only quarterback at home. Now I'm trying to make plays and fly around the field."

Silva, who attended Oregon State as a freshman, transferred to UH last August. He was not allowed to work out with the team while redshirting last season. He was allowed to participate in offseason workouts in January. There were times, he admitted, when the big-picture vision was blurred.

"I would always ask myself: 'Why am I doing this?' " Silva said. "It finally makes sense. All of the hard work is paying off."

Associate head coach Rich Miano, who coaches the defensive backs, said Silva is the first on the practice field and the last to leave. Under the guidance of conditioning coach Mel deLaura, Silva has expanded his workouts to include yoga-like stretching.

"I can almost do the splits," Silva said. "I'm trying to work on that so I can get flexible. I need to keep my hips loose so I can make plays."

Silva's wife, Keilah, and their son, Kauahe, live on the Big Island. Silva commuted every weekend until the start of spring practice. He said his wife and son will move to O'ahu this summer.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS

As the leading returning receiver and a respected leader, it is jarring to realize one statistic about Malcolm Lane.

"This is actually only my fourth semester here," said Lane, who has not redshirted. "I just turned 20 (in December), and I'm going to be a junior (in the fall). It's crazy sometimes. I know everyone has high expectations of me. I'm glad they do. It shows they think highly of me. I've got to live up to the expectations."

Last season, Lane caught 14 passes, but averaged a team-high 19.3 yards per reception. What's more, he led the Warrior receivers with a yards-after-catch average of 9.4 yards.

Lane excelled on inside slants. Even if he were not the intended target, the route forced defenses to collapse, opening the way for a slotback to loop into the flats.

"We're counting on Malcolm," offensive coordinator Ron Lee said.

Last week, Lane suffered an injury to his right ankle. His participation in two practices was limited. Dylan Linkner and Royce Pollard played well in Lane's absence. Lane dropped to No. 3 on the depth chart.

"He's still working his way up the ladder," Lee said. "Royce has really stepped up. I'm not afraid to play Royce. This has been good for Royce and Dylan. They're taking full advantage."

But Lane is prepared to reclaim the No. 1 job. "I wanted to show everybody I was hurt for a minute, but now I'm back," Lane said. "It's still me."

Lane has endured several injuries during his UH career. But none has been significant enough to disable him for an extended period. He played most of last season with a dislocated finger.

"It's funny, everybody looks at me like I'm this injured guy," Lane said. "I've always been injured, but you rarely see me miss practice. I had a dislocated finger. I taped it up, and I practiced. Stuff like that. You can't call somebody injury-prone if they don't miss practice. I play through it. It's hard to go out there and push it when you're injured. But you have to fight through it, man. I'm the type of person who wants to make a play, and I can't make a play if I'm on the sideline."

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