The UH freshman,
a Kamehameha alumnus,
came out ready to play
after a redshirt year

In their University of Hawaii dorm room, Abraham Elimimian appreciates having a roommate as quiet and courteous as Karl Noa. On the football field, he'd rather see the freshman defensive end show a bit more of a nasty streak.

Karl Noa: The freshman defensive end is listed as a backup to Mel Purcell

"I'm trying to tell him, 'You have to be mean out here, you can't be nice all the time, you have to switch it on and off,'" said Elimimian, a senior cornerback with the Warriors. "He has ability but he's just too nice. If he would have that mean attitude he'd be phenomenal."

Noa, by nature a mild-mannered kind of guy, is working on bringing a little more attitude to his game. But with injuries hampering a Warriors green defensive line, the UH coaches are hoping he'll start raising a ruckus on the line of scrimmage starting this week.

Noa is listed as a backup to Mel Purcell at defensive end entering Saturday's season opener against Florida Atlantic at Aloha Stadium. But with Purcell nursing a sprained right ankle, Noa could see extended playing time against the Owls.

"(The coaches) have been asking me to step it up more, especially with a lot of injuries plaguing our D-line," Noa said. "They're doing all they can to prepare me and I'm just trying to take it all in."

Purcell suffered the injury last Saturday and is listed as questionable for this week's game. He had just returned from a foot injury when he turned his ankle during practice.

"It's frustrating," Purcell said. "I really want to practice, I'm really hyped for this game and I really want to play. It's a matter of time, we'll just see if it'll be ready by Saturday. If not, I'll probably just sit out."

Even if Purcell can play on Saturday, UH coach June Jones said Noa will be in the rotation at the defensive end spots along with Nkeruwem Akpan and Kila Kamakawiwo'ole. Ikaika Alama-Francis may soon be in that group, but continues to recover from offseason back surgery and will miss this week's game.

"(Noa's) a good guy that has a lot of ability and potential," Elimimian said. "I've been trying to teach him some stuff. Opening day he might be a starter, so that's what I'm trying to let him know, to be ready for it."

Noa was a solid, if unheralded, contributor on the Kamehameha defensive line in high school. He walked on with the Warriors last year and used his redshirt season to steady himself at the college level.

"I feel more comfortable. I'm more familiar with the program and the plays," Noa said. "When I came in last year I was swamped with the playbook and stuff."

There's still a lot Noa needs to learn, but having an All-Western Athletic Conference candidate as a roommate certainly helps.

"(Elimimian's) got a lot of experience with the game and the program, so he always teaches me the little things I can use later on when I get more experience," Noa said. "He's always on me, trying to give me the edge."

On the mend: Senior Paul Lutu-Carroll, a projected starter at linebacker entering fall camp, participated in yesterday morning's workout after missing two weeks of fall camp with a knee injury.

"I don't feel 100 percent," he admitted. "My knee is still a little loose. They want it to be tighter than it is, but they said if I can move it just try because it'll make the muscles around my knee stronger."

Lutu-Carroll suffered a partial tear of the medial collateral ligament in his right knee on Aug. 15. Since then T.J. Moe and Chad Kapanui have worked with the first unit at the outside linebacker spots. Jones said Ikaika Curnan, slated to start at inside linebacker, will also slide outside at times, with Watson Ho'ohuli playing inside.

"You can't just come back off an injury and be like, 'I'm on the first team,' " Lutu-Carroll said. "I just have to show them that I'm ready to play."

Elimimian had been hampered by a neck injury, but returned for yesterday's non-contact workout.

"I was hurting a little bit I wanted to run hard and see where I was at," Elimimian said. "Everybody's hurt, but you have to work through it. If the younger guys see you taking a day off, it's monkey see, monkey do."

Chang watch: UH quarterback Tim Chang is among 22 candidates for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, presented to the nation's top senior quarterback.

The Western Athletic Conference's preseason offensive player is being promoted as a candidate for the Heisman Trophy and has also been named to the preseason watch lists for the Davey O'Brien, Walter Camp and Maxwell Awards.

Short yardage: With Justin Ayat still nursing a groin injury, punter Tim Wright handled kicking duties during the kickoff coverage period yesterday ... Florida Atlantic is scheduled to arrive in Honolulu on Thursday. ... Former UH cornerback Kelvin Millhouse was waived by the Miami Dolphins yesterday. ... Two suspended Tulsa football players, including the team's leading tackler last season, avoided prison when a judge sentenced them on felony burglary charges yesterday. Kedrick Alexander, who started at defensive back, and reserve Terrance Thomas were sentenced to two years of unsupervised probation and 120 hours of community service. Tulsa coach Steve Kragthorpe declined comment on whether they could rejoin the Golden Hurricane, who open the season Saturday at Kansas.