HONOLULU — Keahi Watson doesn’t mind that the coaches confuse him for his older brother Keala. “The coaches call me over, and then say ‘Oh wait, not you.’ But it’s fun,” he said. The 6-2 defensive tackle was recently added
HONOLULU — Keahi Watson doesn’t mind that the coaches confuse him for his older brother Keala.
“The coaches call me over, and then say ‘Oh wait, not you.’ But it’s fun,” he said.
The 6-2 defensive tackle was recently added to the University of Hawai‘i Warriors roster, where he joins Keala and the team as a red-shirt freshman.
Keahi, 19, started his college football career last year playing offensive line for Division I-Saint Francis in Pennsylvania. He transferred to Hawai‘i because he started to feel that the East Coast was a little far.
Keala, 21, has been with the Warriors since his freshman year.
“It’s good playing on the team with each other,” he said. “Everyone knows Keala, but they don’t know me.”
The brothers were both born and raised on Kaua‘i. The family eventually picked up and moved to O‘ahu, but they still claim Kaua‘i as their true hometown.
“We mostly lived in the Lihu‘e area. But we lived in Kapa‘a for a year and Kalaheo for a year,” Keahi said. “When people ask us where we’re from, we say Nanakuli because most of the time they’re trying to find out where we went to high school. But if they ask where we’re really from, we say Kaua‘i.”
They still come back to visit during the summer. Keala said he missed the more laid-back lifestyle of Kaua‘i but admits the move may have helped him with his football skills.
It’s not like he really needed it, though. He dominated during his two years playing football under Keli‘i Morgado at Kaua‘i High School. Transferring to Nanakuli only helped him develop.
“Up here it’s more competitive because on Kaua‘i there are only three teams,” Keala said.
But he sure left his mark in the Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation.
“He was a beast,” Morgado said of the now 6-3, 300-pound defensive lineman. “He was a little boy in a grown man’s body. In fact, the first game he played during his sophomore year, the coaches at Waimea (High School) said ‘Who’s that gorilla you got?’ He was beating up everybody. His brother was big too, but he was so young we didn’t get a chance to have him before they moved away.”
Keala was one of the few players who could run down the former Waimea standout and current inside linebacker for the Colorado Buffaloes Jordan Dizon.
“Pretty much he was the only one at the time who could run him down. He’d bury Jordan,” Morgado said.
“He was so much bigger than everyone, he was just tackling whoever he thought had the ball.”
Keala has a lot more control now. Last year, he played in 12 games, had a career-high four tackles (against University of Nevada, Las Vegas) and was named to the Academic All-WAC team.
At Saint Francis, Keahi started five games for the offensive line.
It’s very clear that the two enjoy being Warriors and playing on the same team, even if the coaches sometimes get the two of them confused.
The Warriors, who are trying to become WAC champs this year, play Louisiana Tech on Saturday.
Keala Watson
Birthday: May 19, 1986
Class: Junior
Position: DL
Height/weight: 6-3, 300 pounds
School: Kaua‘i High, Nanakuli High
Keahi Watson
Birthday: April 4, 1988
Class: Freshman
Position: DT
Height/weight: 6-2, 295 pounds
School: Kapa‘a Immersion, Nanakuli High
Family
Parents: Lei and Aaron Watson, three sisters
