Vince Manuwai, who was widely regarded as one of the best offensive linemen in University of Hawaii football history, died on Sunday, a family spokesman announced. He was 38.
Manuwai was diagnosed with a heart ailment a year ago, according to the spokesman. It has not been determined if that condition led to Maunwai’s collapsing while completing a move into an apartment in Kakaako on Sunday morning. He was pronounced dead at Straub Medical Center, the spokesman said.
Manuwai was a 1999 Farrington High graduate who played eight NFL seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars and was on the Atlanta Falcons’ practice squad in 2012. But it was at UH, where he played guard, that served as inspiration for his strength of body (he could bench press 500 pounds) and character.
Mike Cavanaugh, who was Manuwai’s position coach at UH, was overcome with emotion during a telephone interview, finally whispering, “he was like a son. … He had a great heart.”
Dennis McKnight, a former UH assistant coach who also helped with the offensive line, described Manuwai as a “special player. … To me, he was the greatest linemen to ever play in Hawaii.”
Rich Miano, a former UH assistant coach, recalled the one-on-one drills between Manuwai and Isaac Sopoaga during UH practices. Sopoaga was a defensive tackle who eventually played in the NFL.
“It was like two of the nation’s most explosive players practicing,” Miano said. “People would stand and watch. He was a spectacle. He was a phenomenal talent.”
When Manuwai was a Farrington senior, he was set to honor an oral agreement to sign with Utah. But on a January night in 1999, after listening to newly hired head coach June Jones’ plans for reviving the Warriors, Manuwai opted to become Jones’ first recruit. The Warriors went on to win nine games in 1999, nine more than they did in Fred vonAppen’s last season as UH coach.
Former Farrington coach Randall Okimoto said Manuwai served as inspiration for players from hard-scrabble backgrounds. Even as a Farrington student, Okimoto recalled, Manuwai “was really mature. I knew he would go places because of his attitude.”
At UH, Cavanaugh picked out the plays that would be used for Manuwai’s highlight tape. As part of the recruiting pitch, offensive lineman John Estes was shown the tape.
“That was the most unreal highlight tape I’d ever seen,” said Estes, who signed with UH. “I wanted to be like Vince.”
In 2010, Estes signed a free-agent contract with the Jaguars. Manuwai volunteered to be a mentor. “He took me under his wing,” Estes said. “I ended up living with him that whole season. He taught me a lot. He helped me be a pro.”
McKnight said Manuwai’s influence endures. Now coaching with Hamilton in the Canadian Football League, McKnight said, “We have a block that Vince Manuwai invented that we still have to this day. We call it the ‘Manuwai Technique’ for a screen play.”
McKnight said Manuwai should be remembered for his ability to use his strength as a strength. “Vince was one of those rare individuals where his strength on the field probably was greater than in the weight room. … He was just a powerful man. They talk about lock-down corners in the NFL. Vince was a lock-down O-lineman. When he put his hands on you, it was over. It was done. He was that good. And he was that good in the NFL. He was a dominant guard. If not for the politics in the NFL, he should have been a Pro Bowler many times.”
Miano praised Manuwai as “one of the best — if not the best — offensive linemen to play at UH. It’s a sad day for everyone affiliated with Hawaii football who knew Vince Manuwai.”
