Ryan Mouton figured he'd get a chance to contribute on offense at some point this season.

He just wasn't sure when ... or how much.

“;I've been asking in earlier weeks when I might get on the other side of the ball,”; said Mouton, a starter at cornerback in Hawaii's first seven games. “;When (head coach Greg McMackin) called me in his office that Monday morning, it was what I was waiting for, telling me I could play a little offense.

“;Didn't think it would be full-time, though.”;

Actually, Mouton would have a case for overtime pay.

In his first game as a two-way player, Mouton was on the field for 78 snaps last week against Nevada, 58 as a starting slotback and 20 in the secondary as the Warriors' nickel back.

He'll again play on both sides of the ball when the Warriors (4-4, 3-2 Western Athletic Conference) face Utah State (1-7, 1-3) tomorrow at Romney Stadium in Logan, Utah.

“;We were calling him 'deuce,' “; McMackin said, a reference to Mouton's jersey number. “;Now we might call him 'iron man.' “;

Still, McMackin would like to keep Mouton's play total closer to 60 to keep the senior from wearing down in his new roles over the second half of the season.

“;He will just keep going ... and won't say a word and will compete until he falls over,”; McMackin said, “;so we as coaches have to monitor that.”;

Mouton displayed his explosiveness with the ball in scoring three touchdowns in his UH career, two on kickoff returns and another on an interception.

McMackin said the staff initially planned to use him in spots to give the offense a spark, “;but we felt we needed another playmaker full-time.”;

“;His future is as a DB and he's got a great future,”; McMackin said. “;But he's a team guy and he didn't even hesitate when I talked to him about moving over to offense and what we were planning.”;

Mouton showed up for practice last week in a white jersey rather than his familiar green, signaling his crossover to the Warrior offense.

Since then, his defensive mates haven't missed a chance to give him grief over his wardrobe change.

“;I hear it every day,”; said Mouton, who engaged safety Erik Robinson in an entertaining trash-talk exchange during a red-zone period in yesterday's practice.

“;I'm surrounded by defensive guys in the locker room. They always tell me, 'traitor, traitor.' They'll take a shot at me every now and then. But it's all in good fun.”;

The offense, meanwhile, has welcomed him warmly.

Mouton caught five passes for 58 yards in his debut as a slotback and coaches noted more pep in the other receivers following the move. Mike Washington posted his second 100-yard game of the season against Nevada and Malcolm Lane had his most productive game.

“;That's a blast,”; Lane said of lining up next to his close friend rather than across from him in practice. “;He brought that fire to the offense, and with his speed he opens up a lot of things in our offense.”;

As Mouton bucks the trend of specialization in the sport, he's also defying that axiom about guys with bad hands playing defense rather than receiver.

He couldn't handle the first ball thrown his way in last week's game, but made key catches to extend drives in the second half and has latched onto most everything thrown his way in practice.

“;Being a defensive player you want to try to get the ball anyway,”; Mouton said. “;So when you know some of the plays might come to you and you end up getting the ball, it excites me a lot.”;

As he continues to adjust to playing dual roles, Mouton's move also created a series of shifts in the lineup.

Jameel Dowling, previously a contributor in nickel packages, moved into Mouton's starting spot at cornerback. Lane took over kickoff return duties and picked up 115 yards on three returns last week.

Aaron Bain, the starting Y receiver in the first seven games, sparked the Warriors on punt returns and rolled into the offense off the bench.

“;I like having the pressure on to try to make plays,”; Bain said of his first shot at returning punts. “;I like getting the emotions high. If you get a good return it just pumps everybody up.”;

Bain is also helping Mouton acclimate to running routes in practice instead of covering them.

“;I'll ask them to refresh my memory. Those guys have been a great help to me,”; Mouton said of his fellow receivers. “;Guys like Aaron, his unselfishness, is the best thing for me right now.”;