In the chill of the Front Range, there was another heated battle during Wednesday’s Hawaii football practice.
Defensive tackle Ezra Evaimalo and left guard Sergio Muasau continued their on-going clash in the trenches during team drills in Fort Collins, Colo., where the Warriors are training ahead of Saturday’s game in Laramie against Wyoming.
“We have good battles every day,” Muasau said. “We go at it full speed. It’s iron sharpening iron. It’s always battling. It’s good for us.
Evaimalo said : “Sergio is so hard to go against because he’s so low.”
Both are not prototypical-built linemen. Muasau, who is 310 pounds, is optimistically listed at 6 feet. Evaimalo, who plays the 3 tech (across from the guard and tackle ), is 6-2 and about 240 pounds.
“Leverage is everything in this game,” said Muasau, who launches blocks below shoulder-pad level.
But Muasau learned a few years ago that Evaimalo, who is considered light for an interior-line defender, is surprisingly strong. Their first encounter was in a high school game when Muasau played for Mililani and Evaimalo for Kamehameha.
“I was running, and I thought I was that guy in high school,” Muasau recalled. “I had to pull and hit him. I went head up with him and ‘boom!’ That was the first I ever got stalemated in high school. And he probably was 220. I was like 330. He stood me up. That’s crazy.”
Evaimalo was recruited to UH as a rush end. But after Evaimalo signed, Nick Rolovich left as head coach. With a glut of edge defenders, new head coach Todd Graham decided to move Evaimalo to 3 tech.
“But, honestly, I like 3 tech,” Evaimalo said. “There’s a lot more banging in there. I like that I don’t have much space to work. It’s quick. It’s one strike.”
Defensive line coach Eti Ena said Evaimalo has the most powerful punch among the D-linemen. The hand strength allows him to fend off grasping blockers.
“I think what makes him different and special is his mentality and his approach to doing his job,” Ena said of Evaimalo. “He’s very detailed oriented, very smart. He’s a student of the game. Lack of size or whatever, he can figure out what works for him versus an opponent. He’ll meet with me. We’ll talk and kind of organize a plan for him. At the end of the day, it’s the way he plays the game.”
Despite missing three games because of a leg issue, Evaimalo has been credited with 12 pressures, contributing to three sacks and amassing nine hurries.
“What I like about him inside is he’s a difference-maker,” Ena said. “His skill set in there works for him to be productive and very disruptive in the defense we run.”
Evaimalo has trained for one-on-one matchups since the third grade. After every youth football practice, his father encouraged him to line up against a brother who was four years older.
“He won all the battles, but it got me ready to go against bigger guys,” Evaimalo said. “My dad always played me upper. Even though I was younger, I was playing with older guys. I thought it was good. You pushed yourself.”
Now it is Muasau who helps Evaimalo’s game. They also are housemates.
“They’ve got plenty of time working together, talking things,” Ena said. “They’re working with their limitations, but at the same time they’re efficient in helping this team get some wins.”