Things shaping up
for senior

Running back West Keli'ikipi putting
offseason distractions behind him

West Keli'ikipi concedes he didn't report to fall camp with the Hawaii football team in prime condition. But it's understandable that the senior running back might have been a bit distracted this offseason.

West Keli'ikipi: The UH running back is working his way back into game shape

"I haven't trained the whole summer because I had some stuff going on and I thought I wasn't even going to be on the team," Keli'ikipi said after the Warriors' practice yesterday morning.

The rough translation of "some stuff" includes the birth of his second child, a court case which led to his suspension from the team, and his recovery from knee surgery.

While the court case is pending and likely won't be resolved before the end of the football season, Keli'ikipi's suspension was lifted and he's savoring the time he spends with his sons, Journey, who is going on 2 years old, and 2-month-old Tryton.

On the field, rather than risking further injury by rushing back into action, he's taking things slow during fall camp. He's working to build strength in his knee and is aiming to be ready for the Warriors' opener against Florida Atlantic on Sept. 4.

"What I planned to do was take some time going through a lot of rehab, icing it down a lot and hopefully I'll be ready for the first game, if not, then be ready for the second," he said.

Keli'ikipi joined the UH program last season and gave the Warriors' ground game a boost by rushing for 254 yards and six touchdowns in UH's first 10 games. He also caught 20 passes and racked up 154 yards and a touchdown.

His junior season ended in a loss at Nevada when he suffered a torn meniscus in his left knee in the first half of the game.

Keli'ikipi saw limited action during spring practice as he recovered from surgery. Then in May he was indicted by an Oahu grand jury and charged with second-degree felony theft for alleged involvement in a scam against Kaiser Health Foundation Inc.

The indictment brought with it an automatic suspension by the UH athletic department. He wasn't allowed to use the school's weight room or training facilities during the suspension, which was lifted Aug. 4, four days before players were to report to camp.

Keli'ikipi weighed in at 280 pounds and took part in drills early in practice, but didn't join the rest of the team in full pads yesterday.

"Being reinstated really made me happy, but I knew I was out of shape and I knew my knee wasn't 100 percent," he said. "I'm just trying to get stronger. I did all the drills and I feel a little bit weaker on my left side.

"I'm very happy to be playing. Now I just have to get focused and lose some weight, get healthy and stay strong."

Seniors Mike Bass and Michael Brewster got most of the first-team reps yesterday.

Health report: Slotback Nate Ilaoa could be closer to suiting up for practice after testing a tender hamstring by running some routes during passing drills early in yesterday's session.

Ilaoa said he needs to strengthen the muscles in his leg as he continues his comeback from a knee injury suffered in last year's season opener.

"I'll come out here (today) and do the same thing and maybe the next day I'll get suited up and maybe see some looks with the defense," Ilaoa said.

He's been running during practice to try to drop some pounds after weighing in at 240 to start fall camp. He said a shoulder injury that had also been bothering him is fine.

"Mentally I have the playbook down pretty well, I just have to get back physically," he said.

Defensive end Ikaika Alama-Francis made his first appearance at practice since undergoing back surgery prior to camp. He's back on his feet and will begin working on his conditioning this week.

"I didn't want to walk on it too much and just let the healing work," Alama-Francis said.

"Any kind of injury kind of scares you, but the back is where everything happens. So I was a bit concerned, but I had to have the surgery."

Aloha means good-bye: Former UH defensive tackle Abu Ma'afala stopped by practice yesterday to bid his Warrior teammates farewell before leaving for California on Friday.

Ma'afala said he was granted a scholarship by California and will join the Golden Bears program next week. Because he's transferring to another NCAA Division I-A school, Ma'afala will have to sit out this season. He is scheduled to have knee surgery for a torn patellar tendon next week.

"I'm going to miss Hawaii, but I have to do what I have to do," Ma'afala said. "It's bittersweet, it's always hard to leave the islands, but I got a second chance so I have to do my best with it.

"I'm very blessed to have this opportunity. I thought I wasn't going to end up with anything and I'm going to play for the No. 13 team in the nation. It's a shock."

Ma'afala played in 21 games and recorded 22 tackles in two seasons at UH. He said his high school position coach at Kamehameha connected him with a member of the Cal staff after he was released by UH. Ma'afala declined to elaborate on the circumstances that led to the parting of ways between the Warrior program and himself.

"There's some stuff that went down and I want to leave it at that," he said. "I did not leave for family reasons, my family is fine. It was a personal decision between me and what was going on here."