Kupono Fey and Charlie Wade both knew and hoped this day might come.

“He is one of a few players I’ve had discussion with about coaching with us, while he was still playing,” said Wade, the head coach of the University of Hawaii men’s volleyball team. “He comes from a coaching family, so you can say it is in his DNA to do this.”

Fey, who played outside hitter at UH from 2014 to 2017, was announced Tuesday as the Warriors’ new assistant coach.

He replaces Josh Walker, who coached Fey for two years, and left Hawaii for the Baylor women’s program after UH won its second consecutive national championship last month.

“I’ve definitely gotten to pick that guy’s brain,” Fey said of Walker. “Josh’s famous words were, ‘It’s all mental.’”

If that’s the case, Fey is ahead of the game. He graduated from UH with a degree in civil engineering, winning conference academic honors. He also received the Jack Bonham Award, which goes annually to UH’s top male and female student-athletes and community leaders.

Fey was a three-year starter at UH, including two NCAA Tournament teams. He appeared in 105 career matches with averages of 2.35 kills and 1.39 digs per set with 48 service aces.

During his senior year, he was named honorable mention All-Mountain Pacific Sports Federation and was second on the team with 2.75 kills per set. Fey helped lead the Warriors to the MPSF Tournament championship match and the NCAA Tournament semifinals.

After graduation, Fey played with the U.S. National Team, and professionally in Italy and Greece. For the past year he has worked as a project engineer at Nan, Inc., a Honolulu construction company.

“Kupono is leaving a career in engineering to come back and give back to the program and the state he has always proudly represented. … I am looking forward to watching him succeed at coaching the same way he has done with everything in his life,” Wade said. “He’ll be very familiar with what we’re doing, And he’s played at the highest level in the world.”

Fey said “it was always a thought” that he might return to coach at his alma mater some day.

“I’ll use my experience from playing overseas,” he said. “Hopefully I can help get a 3-peat. … I’m very excited to work with Charlie and (assistant) Milan (Zarkovic). The two of them and Josh have created an amazing program and my goal is to help however I can to continue their success.”

Fey is a third-generation coach and UH athlete. His grandfather, Harry “Clown” Kahuanui, starred in football and other sports at Manoa. His mother, Shelley (Kahuanui) Fey, played basketball at UH.

“This is the best place in the world,” Kupono Fey said. “And it’s the best place in the world to play volleyball.”