The University of Hawaii football team filled a big need with a 6-foot-1, 300-pound nose tackle.
Nikko Taylor of Riverside City College told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser he has accepted a scholarship offer to play for the Warriors this coming season.
Last year’s top two nose tackles — Moses Samia and Calen Friel — graduated in December. This spring, Kory Rasmussen, a Kamehameha Schools graduate who transferred from Colorado two years ago, and Penitito Faalologo have taken most of the reps at nose. Kennedy Tulimasealii also can play nose in certain sub-packages.
"I see at Hawaii, nose tackle is a need," Taylor said. "I feel I can come in and help out. That’s another reason why I picked Hawaii."
Taylor took an official recruiting trip to Hawaii this past weekend.
"I love the place," Taylor said. "My host (offensive tackle Leo Koloamatangi) was great. I thought the defensive staff was cool. I felt very welcomed."
Taylor said he also wanted to play for head coach Norm Chow.
Tony Crutchfield, who was Taylor’s defensive coordinator at Summit High in Fontana, Calif., played at Brigham Young when Chow was the Cougars’ offensive coordinator.
Taylor said he will complete work on his associate’s degree in May. He will join the Warriors this summer. He will have two seasons of eligibility.
Taylor said he is capable of bench-pressing more than 400 pounds.
He also is at ease playing a position that often faces double-team blocks.
"You have to be a little crazy to play defense," Taylor said. "I love the trenches. I played it all throughout high school. I love that position."
As a Summit High senior, Taylor amassed 95 tackles, including nine sacks and 33 stops for losses.
He signed with Southeastern Louisiana, but played only a couple of games as a freshman before suffering a season-ending knee injury. He was awarded a medical hardship for the 2012 season.
He then transferred to Riverside, where he played the past two seasons.
The Warriors completed their fifth of 15 spring practices on Monday.
The quarterback competition is expected to extend through the spring and, perhaps, into training camp. Max Wittek, who redshirted last year after transferring from USC, took the majority of the snaps in 7-on-7, team and red-zone drills. The order was this: Wittek, Ikaika Woolsey, Wittek again and Beau Reilly.
Wideout Keelan Ewaliko, who missed three practices because of a staph-like infection, worked out as a right wideout on Monday.
