Of the many reasons behind outside linebacker Makani Kema-Kaleiwahea’s transfer from Arizona to the University of Hawaii football team, one of the most significant was the woman on the red scooter.

Physical disabilities did not prevent Leialoha Kema from attending her grandson’s varsity football games. She arranged rides on The Handi-Van, then watched from the disability section.

"She had a distinct red motor scooter," said Kema-Kaleiwahea, a 2012 Kamehameha Schools graduate. "We played in Waianae my sophomore year, and she was there, in her scooter, watching me play."

When he played at Arizona, "she’d watch on TV, and call me after every game," he said. "She never had the opportunity to watch me play college football in person. Now she can watch me play. When Coach (Norm) Chow offered me a (UH) scholarship, my grandma was the happiest she’d been in a long time."

Kema-Kaleiwahea requested — and received — a release from his Arizona scholarship. He successfully petitioned the NCAA not to count the past season, in which he was on the active roster for three games. He joins the Warriors next week, and will have three years to play two seasons. There is a possibility he might receive a waiver that would allow him to play without redshirting this season.

For now, Kema-Kaleiwahea — who legally changed his name from Keoni Bush-Loo this past year — is looking forward to a "fresh start."

He was raised in the foster system. When he and his high school sweetheart, Brianna, married last summer, he decided to go back to his birth name, Makani. Kema is his biological grandmother’s surname, and Kaleiwahea is his mother-in-law’s maiden name.

"We have a little bit of myself and a little bit of (my wife), and we put it together, and just made our own (surname)," Kema-Kaleiwahea said.

He was recruited to Arizona as a tight end, but that changed during the one-on-one board drills in practice.

"They made this line in the grass, put two guys in front of each other, and you just drive each other back until the other guy gets laid out," he said.

He was undefeated despite facing offensive linemen and linebackers. He was told he had a "defensive player’s mentality." Early in a practice, head coach Rich Rodriguez tossed a dark jersey at Kema-Kaleiwahea and told him to give defense a shot. He responded with a sack on the first play.

"It was funny because I never played defense my whole life," he recalled.

As a freshman in 2012, he played 12 games on special teams and as a third-down pass-rusher. He played 13 games in 2013. He was penciled in as a starting outside linebacker exiting 2014 spring training.

During training camp, he decided he wanted to return to the islands.

"My decision to come home was nothing about playing time, nothing about the success," he said. "We were doing awesome at Arizona. It was a decision that would benefit not only me but my family. It was something personal that we felt would be better for us in the long run. It would work out better for everyone."

Rodriguez granted Kema-Kaleiwahea’s request for a scholarship release. Rodriguez and Chow are friends who spoke several times before the UH scholarship was offered.

"I’m excited," Kema-Kaleiwahea said. "It’s time to come home."