RAINBOWS NOTEBOOK

Defensive back
commits to UH

A transfer from Washington State committed to the University of Hawaii yesterday.

Defensive back Phil Austin, who played last season at Pasadena (Calif.) City College, will get a chance to compete for the Rainbows in August's fall camp. The 6-foot-2, 190-pounder was recruited by secondary coach Mickey Pruitt.

''He's a player who we believe can help us right away,'' Pruitt said after yesterday's practice. ''He's a good athlete, who we wanted, but we weren't sure if we had a scholarship available to him.''

Austin is the 28th player to commit to the Rainbows this season. Hawaii can sign only 25 recruits for the 1998 class. But it's believed that three incoming recruits might not make it academically.

''We don't want to say who those guys are because any one of them might make it and another guy, who we believe to be academically sound now, might not,'' UH head coach Fred vonAppen said. ''But we have several junior college and high school recruits who aren't there yet.''

Austin was originally signed by Washington State. Things didn't work out there for the projected free safety, so he returned home to California. He played high school ball in Santa Monica, Calif., with tight end Adrian Klemm. Pruitt was pleased the Rainbows were able to sign him.

''We have an experienced front seven, but the secondary is a little different story,'' Pruitt said. ''We're going to have to find some guys this spring and in fall camp who can get it done. Phil will have an opportunity to show us what he can do.''

Klemm helped convince Austin that UH was for him.

''He loves it here and knows he'll have the opportunity to play right away,'' Klemm said.

TIGHT BUDGET: VonAppen said yesterday that the Rainbows' upcoming summer school program was facing some stiff budget cuts.

''Everybody is having to tighten their belts a notch or two,'' vonAppen said. ''We'll have enough money to make it work, but it's going to be very tight. The problem is, a lot of the players we need to keep eligible are junior college transfers from the mainland. And that costs money.''

Recent NCAA rules state that fourth-and fifth-year players must have a certain percentage of classes completed toward their major to remain eligible. Because so few junior college courses count toward a degree at UH, transfers are often faced with large class loads in the spring and summer.

''This is a critical area for us,'' vonAppen said. ''We need to have enough money for summer school or face the possibility of losing some of our junior college players to the percentage rules of eligibility.''

MAKING MONEY: The annual Na Koa Club golf tournament last Friday at Hickam Air Base netted the football program nearly $20,000.

''It was a roaring success for us, the best one since I've been here,'' vonAppen said. ''I can't say enough about (Na Koa Club president) Ed Gayagas, who had this event organized down to the last letter.

''The coaches enjoyed themselves and I believe our Na Koa members did, too. We had some women over from the Hard Rock Cafe and from Hooters. I think the gals enjoyed themselves and we didn't have the coaches lugging their golf bags like last year, so that was good.''

VonAppen said the money would go into a general fund. This summer, an auction at Murphy's will be held to raise money to cover the costs of a training table for the football team this fall.

INJURY REPORT: UH quarterback Josh Skinner returned to practice for the first time since suffering a concussion a week ago.

The top signal caller this spring only took part in some noncontact drills. He didn't wear his helmet and won't be cleared for full contact until this August's fall camp.

''His head still hurts him a little bit,'' vonAppen said of Skinner, who was knocked out by safety Daniel Ho-Ching in a routine drill. ''The injury won't hurt his chances of winning the quarterback job this August. His health is our primary concern.''

Tight end Zeff Ah Quinn returned to yesterday's practice after missing nearly a week with a pulled hamstring. Running back Afatia Thompson and cornerback Donnell Williams weren't as fortunate. Both are sidelined with nasty hamstring injuries.

Cornerback Jason Vaughn also is still sidelined with a bruised neck. He said last week that he would be back in the lineup yesterday, but the UH training staff opted not to rush things. He is still listed at day-to-day.

Offensive tackle Jose Martinez underwent successful surgery last Thursday to repair two broken bones in his hand. He said yesterday that he could move his fingers again, which was a good sign.

JERSEY DISCUSSIONS: VonAppen said that school officials would be consulted before any permanent changes were made to logos on the helmet and the jersey.

''We won't make any final decisions until everyone is consulted,'' said vonAppen, who confirmed earlier this month that the new Rainbows' uniforms will be a dark green along the lines of the Philadelphia Eagles.

Players also want to remove the Rainbow logo from the helmet and replace it with block letters U and H. The letters will be in green and linked together much like the O and the U on the University of Oklahoma helmets. The helmets will be white.

''We want to put the Rainbow logo above the thigh pad on our pants,'' UH tailback Charles Tharp said. ''I like the new look.''

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--By Paul Arnett