Hawaii football training camp Day 1 notes, quotes and observations

HONOLULU – Off and running in the sun.

Day 1 of the University of Hawai’i football team’s training camp brought plenty of juice, getting active on Wednesday as the Rainbow Warriors open a season with championship aspirations and big expectations from the outside world.

Fifth-year head coach Timmy Chang was as energized as ever to begin camp, and the rest of his staff brought the same juice to the gridiron on the first day.

The quarterback controversy that swept over social media last week surrounding UH only having two rostered QBs can be put to rest. Four players trotted out in red no-contact QB jerseys on the opening day for the Rainbow Warriors, seeing KS-Kapālama alum Hazyn Botelho and West Virginia Wesleyan transfer Isaac Jaramilla-Phe join Micah Alejado and Bjorn Jurgensen for all the throwing drills.

Alejado, the preseason Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year pick, is the clear No. 1 at the signal caller spot for the second straight training camp. After fighting through a variety of lower body injuries last season, the third-year QB said he feels “better than 100% right now” as practices begin.

The same cannot be said about one of his favorite targets as senior all-conference WR Pofele Ashlock missed the opening day of workouts. Chang declined to comment in detail about Ashlock, but did acknowledge that the receiver was dealing with an injury.

“We hope to get him back here shortly,” Chang continued. “We’ll see how his progression goes, but he’s looking a lot better than when we ended spring [practices] to now … Just day by day with him.”

His absence from the field does allow for the variety of new receivers on the roster to work with Alejado and Jurgensen. After losing nearly 150 catches from the departure of four guys (two transfers, two graduations), there were already plenty of other targets to figure out how to divvy up.

Tama Uiliata will get plenty of chances to cement himself as a trusted outlet for Alejado, but transfers Devin Alves, Blaze Kamoku and Tre’ Griffiths are just a few of the pass catchers who will also look to soak up the targets from the left-handed gunslinger.

Overall, Chang was pleased with the first day of work from his team as the 2026 edition of the Rainbow Warriors try to set the foundation for a championship caliber season. He and his starting quarterback echoed the same message about goals for camp – staying consistent and staying as healthy as possible ahead of August 29 at Stanford.

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