When Ozzy Pollard saw his phone ring with the area code 808 last December, he thought it was a spam call.

Now he’ll get to play at the stadium where spam musubis get thrown into the stands.

Pollard is one of the newest members of the University of Hawai’i Rainbow Warriors football team after transferring from Marian University in Indianapolis.

As a true freshman for the Knights, Pollard dominated up front and earned MSFA Midwest League Second Team honors as a defensive lineman. The 6-foot-4, 290-pound defensive tackle recorded 32 tackles, with eight tackles for loss, five sacks and four pass breakups.

“The Rainbow Warriors are getting a hard worker,” said Pollard. “I’m hungry to prove myself and I know my best football is in front of me.”

Pollard came off the bench in his collegiate debut before getting promoted to the starting lineup in game No. 2. Coincidentally, the Knights went undefeated in their next 11 games with Pollard starting and reached the quarterfinals of the NAIA Football Championship Series. The season came to an unfortunate end however after Marian self-reported the use of an academic ineligible player and had to forfeit the team’s final three wins.

Pollard entered the transfer portal shortly after Marian’s season ended and was able to start the recruitment process before the main NCAA football transfer portal opened in January because he played for a NAIA school.

Within hours of posting that he was in the portal on Dec. 4, Pollard received offers from FCS schools Eastern Kentucky and North Alabama. A day later, Indiana State and Central Arkansas followed suit. He got his first FBS offer on Dec. 8 from the University of Buffalo of the Mid-American Conference before the offers took a pause.

Pollard’s recruiting picked up ten days later when Jacksonville State offered him before that fateful call from Hawai’i from then-defensive tackles coach Jeff Reinebold during preparation of the Sheraton Hawai’i Bowl.

“My first reaction when I got the call was thinking it was spam, ‘who’s calling me from Honolulu?’ But I picked up, talked with the coach and we immediately hit it off. It was a great conversation,” Pollard said.

Pollard added an offer from North Texas — who finished tied atop the American Conference standings and is currently ranked 25th nationally — on the first day of 2026 before it was time to start choosing his next team.

He said the recruiting process was “crazy and very stressful” with multiple recruiting visits in a short time, but is excited for the next chapter of his playing career.

“What ultimately made me choose Hawai’i was the coaching staff and how they treat their players and everyone involved with the program. I love the Braddahhood,” said Pollard. “I’m really looking forward to learning the culture and lifestyle out here.”

Pollard hails from Carmel, Ind. and played a number of positions at Carmel High School before graduating in 2025. He also competed in track and field with the longest discus throw of his career having a distance of 183 feet and 10 inches.

What the defensive lineman was most known for growing up was being the son of 11-year NBA veteran Scot Pollard, who won an NBA title with the Boston Celtics in 2008 after spending most of his career with the Sacramento Kings and Indiana Pacers.

“It’s cool that my dad was well known — and I’m grateful for that — but I’ve always felt like I was in his shadow being ‘Scot’s kid,’” said Pollard.

“I’ve wanted to make a name for myself in football and be my own person. That said, I’d be lying if I said he didn’t help shape me growing up, especially with the mentality needed to be great. My dad, my mom and everyone in my family constantly remind me how proud they are of me.”

He drew offers from a multiple of FBS teams before signing with Marian where he could make an instant impact playing in the Mid-States Football Association, the same conference where former Hawai’i pass rusher Jackie Johnson III started his collegiate journey.

Throughout his time with the Knights, Pollard saw most of his snaps come as either a 1-tech (lining outside of the center’s shoulder) or a 3-tech defensive lineman (lining outside of of the guard’s shoulder).

In Pollard’s first two collegiate starts against Lawrence Tech and Defiance College, he was able to record a sack in back-to-back games. The next three games saw Pollard record a pass breakup in each one, culminating with a season-high seven tackles against Taylor. He ended his freshman season in style with a TFL in four of his final five contests.

The ability to terrorize opposing offenses starts with his mindset, Pollard said.

“My mindset is to have a couple of moves in mind before the snap, but at all costs, I want to beat the guy lined up across from me.”

Pollard added that he doesn’t model his game after one-specific player, but does look up to multi-year NFL Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald of the Los Angeles Rams.

“He has grit,” Pollard said of Donald. “He’s a hard worker and he plays with a high motor.”

Pollard is currently undecided on his major, but he does know that he wants to pursue a career in law enforcement when it’s time to hang up the pads.

Fortunately for Hawai’i football fans, it will be a few years till that time comes.