Jonah Savaiinaea
Photo courtesy of Grant Shishido @MrFaster
The Rebels of UNLV aren’t ashamed to have the same plan that Hawaii does.
The new staff in “Hawaii’s ninth island” presented a scholarship offer to Saint Louis sophomore Jonah Savaiinaea on Wednesday. That came at virtually the same time the Rebels made an offer to his teammate in the trenches, La‘akea Kapoi. Savaiinaea lined up as the starting right guard last season. Kapoi was the starting right tackle.
“I can pull and I can dominate (inside),” said Savaiinaea, who is humble, yet honest.
The Rebels, with offensive line coach and running game coordinator Glenn Norcross at the controls, Savaiinaea could be a key part of the ground attack. Last fall, he was listed at 6-foot-3 and 320 pounds. Six weeks ago, he was 6-3 1/2 and 330. Now, he’s closer to 6-4 and tips the scales at 345 pounds.
Hawaii offered on Apr. 17. Like UH, UNLV has a new staff.
“Everything is new, so I don’t know what they’re going to bring to the team,” Savaiinaea said.
After UNLV made the offer, another call came.
“My mom called right after I got off the phone with Coach Norcross. I didn’t even know she knew,” he said. “They were happy and surprised.”
La‘akea Kapoi and Jonah Savaiinaea were offered scholarships on Wednesday by UNLV.
Photo courtesy of Grant Shishido @MrFaster
His cousin, Sonny Sanitoa, played at UNLV in recent years, but they haven’t been in touch yet.
Six weeks ago, when UH offered Savaiinaea, he was mostly doing cardio work with sister Yvette and younger brother Justin. Now, he’s working out with Saint Louis O-line coach James Hall five days per week.
“We’ve been lifting and most O-line stuff, and conditioning, most importantly,” he said.
At Coach Hall’s house, he reached a new high of 335 pounds on the bench. He has also squatted 455, close to his PR, and deadlifted 480 twice. His max on the deadlift is 495.
At UNLV, new head coach Marcus Arroyo hired offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Glenn Thomas, who expects a lot from his trench men. He was the co-OC at Baylor for the past three seasons.
For a young student-athlete, Savaiinaea is focused. He carries a 3.71 grade-point average.
“I’m not in a big rush. Just patiently waiting. I’m still a sophomore and I know that there are many more to come,” he said. “I’m still waiting for season and that’s my main focus.”
Savaiinaea’s lockdown staples
Top 3 shows
1. Avatar: The Last Airbender.
2. Coco.
3. Scooby Doos.
Top 3 food/snacks
1. Corned beef.
2. Ham.
3. Potato salad. “My mom makes the potato salad. My dad (Joe) cooks the rest. I can cook, but not like my dad.”
Top 3 Video Games
1. NBA2K. “I don’t play (Madden and Fortnite) now. Just NBA2K. After I beat AJ (Bianco), he didn’t want to play me again.”
Savaiinaea ohana (from left): Julian (brother), Joe (father),
Anette (mother), Jireh (brother), Jonah, Yvette (sister).
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