Rainbows are beginning
to make the grade

The football team has raised
its overall grade point average from ’96

By Paul Arnett
Star-Bulletin

If the University of Hawaii football team makes as dramatic a turnaround on the field next fall as it did in the classroom this spring, head coach Fred vonAppen's problems will be over with very quickly.

Last summer, vonAppen lost a dozen players to grades, which played an intricate part in the Rainbows finishing 2-10.

This summer, the Rainbows don't anticipate losing any players to academics. In fact, they raised their overall GPA a half-point over a year ago.

UH quarterbacks coach Guy Benjamin, who also handles the academic end of things, was pleased with the progress report.

"Last spring, our team GPA was 2.08," Benjamin said yesterday. "This spring, we had a 2.58. We also had three players who had a 4.0 and 33 players who had a 3.0."

Benjamin said two junior college transfers had to go to summer school to take care of the NCAA rule that states juniors must have at least 50 percent of their credits completed toward their major.

Several other players wanted to attend summer school so they could work ahead. It's a far different scenario than a year ago.

"When you expect to have certain players in there and then you lose them like we did last summer, it really sets you back," vonAppen said.

"Going into fall camp, we weren't sure who we were going to have, and that can't work."

One of the three players who had a 4.0 was senior linebacker Rufus Ayeni. VonAppen said yesterday that he was back on the team. He was suspended last semester after being arrested for possession of steroids. His case is still pending.

The other two players with 4.0 averages were quarterback Dan Robinson and safety Chris Shinnick. Shinnick was an academic All-American last year.

"We inherited a difficult situation last year," Benjamin said. "But Fred told the guys that school came first and he meant it. The players who thought we were just paying lip service found out quickly that if they weren't making it in the classroom, they wouldn't be on the team.

"What's even better, is now we have a situation where these guys will get their degrees. And that's the most important thing."

Benjamin gave a lot of credit to academic advisor Adam Lockwood. The former UH volleyball player kept close tabs on players who needed help the most.

"What will also help is the study center that's being built and the fact that our tutor program will be even better next year," Benjamin said.

"What our athletes must understand is that it's education first and football second. Most got the message, and as a result, we're in much better shape than we were a year ago."