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The Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Hawaii’s Jamih Otis earns Mountain West honor after a not-so-roaring start
- Story byThe Honolulu Star-Advertiser
- Hawaii’s Jamih Otis earns Mountain West honor after a not-so-roaring start
The Lion did not sleep on Saturday night.
After a sluggish start, Hawaii linebacker Jamih Otis roared back to produce six impactful tackles and a momentum-crushing interception in the Rainbow Warriors ' 29-19 victory over New Mexico State . On Monday, Otis' reward was being named the Mountain West's Defensive Player of the Week.
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"It feels good," said Otis, a key member of the linebacker unit known as the Lion's Den.
Associate head coach Chris Brown, who coaches the linebackers, said Otis was not playing to his usual heat-seeking standard, despite recovering a fumble on NMSU's opening drive.
"I had to get on him," Brown said. "For the first quarter, I don't think I ever yelled at him so much. Usually, he's really sharp at picking things up and feeling the offense out. For some reason, he was kind of slow. My job as coach is to bring out the best in him."
When the Warriors were on offense, Brown would use an iPad to point out lapses to Otis.
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"Made him see certain things he was missing," Brown said. "Once he actually got it, he started playing fast."
Otis also received unabashed encouragement from middle linebacker Wynden Ho'ohuli. During the offseason, Otis and Ho'ohuli swapped spots. Otis moved to dime linebacker, where he plays more in space.
"Wynden was jacked for that game," Brown said. "Wynden was the one who got (Otis) to go. Wynden was encouraging him and being a great teammate and a fellow lion to him out on the battlefield. It happens to everybody — all 'backers, to me when I was a player — where you're having a bad time seeing certain things and playing slow. Once Jamih picked it up, he started hunting like a lion should."
Down 10 points in the fourth quarter, the Aggies desperately tried to narrow the gap. Brown told Otis to track slotback T.K. King on a crossing route. On first-and-10 from the UH 37, Otis recognized the formation to find King.
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Earlier, Otis noticed, "they hit the hash, and completed it. If it's not broke, why fix it? I figured they would go back to it. I followed the eyes (of quarterback Trey Hedden)."
Aligned on the wide side, Otis drifted toward the middle. Otis intercepted Hedden, then ran 15 yards before being tackled with 3:58 to play.
"Any time the ball's in my hands," Otis said of his return, "I'm trying to make something happen with it. That's my mindset."
Later, Brown said of Otis' pick: "I think he was more afraid of dropping the ball. He knew he'd have to do push-ups in front of the whole team."
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Earlier, Ho'ohuli broke up a pass near the sideline. Although it was a difficult pass to secure, Brown had imposed a rule: If you touch the football, you have to catch it. Ho'ohuli did push-ups.
"Jamih didn't want to do push-ups," Brown said. "He was going to make that interception. Sure enough, he caught it. He had some smooth hands with it. He did a great job."
Last Nov. 21, Otis suffered a torn ACL and meniscus in his left knee. On Dec. 4, he underwent surgery. By this past April, he was sprinting. He received full medical clearance in July.
"Just blessed to be back on the field playing again after a long road to recovery," Otis said. "I'm just grateful."
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