Hawaii football makes staff changes official with coach hires

The University of Hawaii football team hired a defensive coordinator, brought back two former coaches, named a new associate head coach, and signed a receiver transferring from Kentucky. Dennis Thurman, a two-time All-America safety at USC who played and coached in the NFL, will serve as defensive coordinator and cornerbacks coach. Thurman was Colorado’s quality-control coach for defense under head coach Deion Sanders last year.

He also has been the defensive coordinator for the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills. Dan Morrison will be the co-offensive coordinator, pass-game coordinator and quarterbacks coach. For nine seasons through the 2008 Sugar Bowl, Morrison was UH’s quarterbacks coach under June Jones.

He helped develop record-setting quarterbacks Nick Rolovich, Timmy Chang and Colt Brennan. Chang is starting his third year as the Rainbow Warriors’ head coach. Morrison earned the nickname “Smooth” for his detailed but easy-going coaching style.

Jeff Reinebold, who was the Warriors’ defensive line coach and recruiting coordinator in 2006 and 2007, is the new defensive tackles coach. He coached in the Canadian Football League last year. Linebackers coach Chris Brown also has been promoted to associate head coach.

Brown was a standout linebacker for the Warriors through the early 2000s. He was an undrafted free agent who was affiliated with the Baltimore Ravens for three years. Staff vacancies were created when UH did not renew the expiring contracts of co-offensive coordinator Ian Shoemaker, co-defensive coordinator Eti Ena and cornerbacks coach Steve Irvine.

Their contracts are set to expire this month. Special teams coordinator Thomas Sheffield was associate head coach during Chang’s first two seasons as head coach. Jacob Yoro, who will continue coaching the safeties, held the defensive coordinator’s title the past two years.

Receiver Dekel “Kel” Crowdus, who entered the portal in December after three seasons at Kentucky, is enrolled at UH and will participate in the Warriors’ spring training beginning Jan. 29. Crowdus, who is 5-foot-10 and 171 pounds, received a 4-star rating from 247Sports as a Frederick Douglass High (Lexington, Ky.

) senior in 2020. Because of an injury, Crowdus redshirted as a freshman in 2021. He played 10 games in each of the next two seasons.

In 2022, he had a 50-yard reception in Kentucky’s upset of Mississippi State. .