They are Hawaii linebackers with the same last initial and equipped with speed, power and magnificently full beards.

The beards “are the No. 1 reason I let them on the team,” UH coach Nick Rolovich joked about Parker Higgins and Tauivi Ho Ching.

But both first-year Rainbow Warriors are expected to be significant contributors for the Sept. 7 game against Oregon State. With middle linebacker Penei Pavihi to miss the 2019 season because of a knee injury and a couple of players tending to nagging ailments, the linebacker reps have upped for Higgins and Ho Ching during practices this bye week.

“You always have to be ready,” said Higgins, who practices as a middle linebacker. “You never know when your time will come.”

Higgins grew up in a family of athletes. His father, Jim Higgins, was an offensive lineman, defensive lineman, tight end and long-snapper for the Warriors in the early 1980s. His older brothers were college quarterbacks — Cameron Higgins for Weber State and Jeremy Higgins for UH. His sister, Tayler Higgins, was a Rainbow Wahine volleyball setter.

Parker Higgins, a 2016 Kaiser High graduate, spent three years at Arizona State before deciding to transfer to UH. “Initially, I wanted to leave Hawaii for a little bit to experience the mainland,” he said. “As soon as I got there, I wanted to come back. I made it happen last year.”

>> Photo Gallery: University of Hawaii football practice

Rolovich said he was familiar with the Higgins family. In 2011, Rolovich was UH’s offensive coordinator and Jeremy Higgins was a redshirt quarterback. Rolovich and Jim Higgins also spent time together in American Samoa.

On Parker Higgins joining the Warriors, Rolovich said, “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. The two brothers were successful and good people — and that’s how we want to build this team with. It’s hard workers who want to be part of Pride Rock.”

Higgins said when he puts on a UH uniform, “I can’t even describe it. It makes everything so much more meaningful. And it’s close to home for me.”

Ho Ching also has UH ties. His uncle, Daniel Ho-Ching, is a lymphoma survivor who then played safety for the Warriors in the 1990s.

Ho Ching grew up mostly in American Samoa, where he knew future UH teammates Pavihi, Jeremiah Pritchard and Eperone Moananu. He also spent time in Utah. After returning from a two-year church mission in the Philippines, Ho Ching attended Mount San Antonio College in Walnut, Calif. He amassed 79 tackles, including 8.5 backfield stops, as a sophomore in 2018.

Rolovich said the Warriors were seeking a productive junior-college linebacker who could contribute on special teams and help the run defense. That led the Warriors to Ho Ching.

“There are a lot of things that factored in my decision to come here,” Ho Ching said. “It’s a great school, first of all, and an up-and-coming program with good coaches.”

Ho Ching has practiced at the will position in the Warriors’ two-linebacker base.

“I’m trying to step up and contribute to the team,” Ho Ching said.

“We have a lot of great players, a lot of veterans who have helped me out with learning the plays and the schemes. Even the guys who are out on the sidelines are helping us and making sure everything is in order. It’s a team here. We all have common goals.”