Warrior Beat: Sharsh, Furuta, Padello, Se‘ei picked as Hawaii football captains

Three former walk-ons and a grayshirt have been selected as the Hawaii football team’s captains.

After today’s practice in Manoa, head coach Nick Rolovich announced the selections of slotback Jason-Matthew Sharsh, running back Dayton Furuta, rush end Kaimana Padello and nose tackle Azia Se‘ei. Rolovich said the picks were made in voting by the UH players.

Each of the captains is a senior.

Sharsh, a 2015 Moanalua High graduated, redshirted in his first UH season in 2017 while recovering from an ankle injury he suffered at Santa Barbara City College.

“I had a few times when I first came out here I wanted to quit,” Sharsh said. “It was kind of hard. I was really out of shape. I kept at it. That’s something my mom always taught me. She said to be committed in whatever I do. I stayed committed, and worked hard.”

Sharsh played in 11 games in 2018, starting three, including the SoFi Hawaii Bowl.

Furuta, a 2014 Mililani High graduate, joined the Warriors in January 2015 as a grayshirt. He initially played linebacker before moving to H-back and then to running back last season.

“Nothing really changes,” Furuta said of his selection. “I still need to continue to be a leader, grow as a leader, and I think I need to encourage others to fulfill that leadership role, as well.”

Padello, a 2016 Mililani High graduate, has developed into a chaos-causing pass rusher. In his first three seasons, 44.1 percent of Padello’s tackles have been in the backfield. Padello was awarded a scholarship last year.

On being named captain, Padello said: “I’m glad for the recognition from the team that they see me in that light. I’ve still got to work hard. Nothing changes.”

Se‘ei grew up mostly in Honolulu’s Salt Lake area. But he moved to Salt Lake City, Utah, as a high school sophomore to help care for a relative. He graduated from West High, then attended William Penn University. He transferred to UH in 2017, spending that season as a redshirt, and then played in nine games, including the final seven in a row, in 2018. In April, he was awarded a scholarship.