Warriors Add Five Mid-Year Transfers - Hawaii News Now - KGMB and KHNL

Warriors Add Five Mid-Year Transfers

HONOLULU – (Hawaii Athletics) University of Hawai‘i head football coach Norm Chow announced the signing of five mid-year junior college transfers, all of whom will enroll in January and are eligible for spring football and compete in the fall.

The signees are Julian Gener, a 6-foot, 230-pound linebacker from Mt. San Antonio College; David Griffin, a 6-foot-6, 315-pound offensive lineman from Mesa Community College; Vasquez Haynes, a 6-foot-2, 200-pound wide receiver from Blinn College; Tevita Lataimua, a 6-foot, 230-pound linebacker from College of San Mateo; and Josh Long, a 6-foot-4, 260-pound tight end from Riverside City College.

"This is just the start of what we think is a tremendous recruiting class," Chow said. "We're really excited about this group coming in. We realize there's a lot to get done and this is just the beginning."

Gener, a graduate of Bishop Amat High School, earned Central Conference Defensive Player of the Year honors and led Mt. SAC to the CCCAA Southern California championship game in 2012, falling one game short of playing for the state championship. The native of West Covina, Calif., tied for second in the conference and seventh in the state with 102 tackles, including 13.0 for loss, four sacks, three forced fumbles, four fumbles recovered and one interception. In 2011, Gener tallied 25 tackles, including 4.5 for loss and two sacks with one interception.

Griffin, of Tallahassee, Fla., and graduate of FAMU Developmental Research School, helped Mesa to the Valley of the Sun Bowl this past season and a turnaround from one win in 2011 to six in 2012. He earned first-team all-conference honors by both the Western State Football League and Arizona Community College Athletic Conference.

In his only season with Blinn, Haynes led the team with 15 receptions for 281 yards and four touchdowns in just three games played before his season was cut short due to injury. In his final game, the Houston, Texas native, had nine catches for 142 yards and two touchdowns against Northeastern Oklahoma A&M. A week earlier against Southeast Prep, he had 79 yards receiving and two touchdowns. Haynes, a graduate of Westbury Christian High School, redshirted in 2011 at Blinn and will have three seasons of eligibility remaining.

Lataimua, of San Bruno, Calif., and graduate of Mills High School, was a two-time all-conference pick for CSM. He finished second in the division and 21^st in the state with 89 tackles, including 9.0 for loss and 5.5 sacks in 2012. As a freshman, he led the division and 19^th in the state with 82 tackles and also had one sack, two forced fumbles, two fumbles recovered and one interception.

Long, a graduate of Norco High School in California, earned second-team all-conference honors in leading Riverside to a 9-2 record. He finished with 15 catches for 130 yards and two touchdowns. In 2011, he was part of Riverside's undefeated 11-0 and Golden State Bowl championship team. He played in one game with his only reception going for a four-yard touchdown.