Lokahi Pauole: Things I Know

It’s no accident UCF ranked No. 1 nationally in rushing through the first two weeks of the 2023 season and stands second this week (299.3 yards per game) heading into the Knights’ first Big 12 league game at Kansas State. It has plenty to do with UCF’s veteran presence up front—in the person of 6-4, 305-pound, fifth-year right guard Lokahi Pauole from Kapolei, Hawaii (about 20 miles west of Honolulu), and his 38 career starts. No one on the Knight roster travels further from home to campus than he does (4,759 miles). Pauole in 2023 is on the Outland Trophy Watch List (by the Football Writers Association of America to the top interior lineman), the Polynesian Player of the Year Watch List—and he is a Phil Steele second-team preseason All-Big 12 choice, plus second-team by Pro Football Focus and honorable mention by College Football Network. A year ago, he was a first-team all-conference pick after claiming second-team honors in 2021. He’s also working on a second degree in sociology. This is the first-person story of his journey to and career at UCF.

I would say (former Notre Dame linebacker) Manti Te’o was one of those guys where recruiting Hawaii kind of took off and started booming because he was number one on the ESPN 100 back then. That was big news back home, especially on Oahu. Then when (former UCF quarterback) McKenzie (Milton) and that group were seniors in 2016, that’s when it really took off. Tua (Tagovailoa, former Alabama quarterback) was a junior so we had (then-Alabama assistant coach) Lane Kiffin and lots of other coaches on the Islands. Now there are more three-star and four-star recruits coming out of Hawaii. When I left it just started growing and growing because of those people who kind of kicked it off.

Dillon (Gabriel, current Oklahoma and former UCF quarterback) and I played against each other in high school, but we didn’t really know each other except the fact we were both highly recruited. I was going to Boise State—that was my second or third offer. I was kind of soft-committed to the coaches there. But Boise’s backup quarterback was injured the year I was going to go there. They needed a scholarship for another quarterback—they wanted a JUCO quarterback who was ready to play--and that left one less for the offensive line. And that was me. I was ready to go on my visit one weekend and they called and told me what happened. At that point, I’d lost all my other offers. I hadn't made any other visits because I wanted to play out my senior season. I was going to wait until after the season to visit schools. It’s hard to make visits during the season because of the travel to the mainland. 

So early signing day comes and Dillon signs with UCF. As soon as that happened I texted him and congratulated him. I had been offered by UCF during the summer—they just reached out to me on Twitter and then called me. Dillon reached out to (then-UCF offensive line coach Glen) Elarbee and said, “Hey, I've got this offensive lineman from Hawaii, I think you know him.” That’s how I ended up coming here.

Coach Elarbee re-offered me sometime in January—after Dillon did his magic. Elarbee came out and visited me during basketball season and in that game I scored 24 points. I told myself, “My future college coach is here—I need to put on a show.” But I was always going to play football. Coach Elarbee came over to the house and that kind of sealed the deal. I took an official visit here (to UCF) the weekend before signing day and the rest is history.

I was always confident in my abilities as a football player. I had played offensive line since I began playing flag football. I played both ways in Pop Warner, but by the time I got to middle school I was an offensive lineman. This is what I like to do.

In 2019 as a true freshman I played both left and right guard. I was competing for a starting job at one point, but I was just glad to play. I wanted to get on the field—that was my goal. I had texted the coaches once I knew I was coming to UCF—“What can I do? Because I want to get on the field.” I was about 350 then, so they told me the first thing I needed to do was cut weight. But they said, “We love the way you play.” So I went to work. I’d wake up at 4:30 in the morning and drive an hour to high school and get in the gym, on the treadmill, and run. After school I’d do my weights and there was also track practice during that season. I took it a lot more seriously when I was a senior. By the time I got to UCF in June I was at 315, so they knew I was serious.

When Coach (Gus) Malzahn was hired and Coach (Herb) Hand came in with the offensive line it’s a little like starting over even though I’d been a starter (in 2020). The first spring we would hit the five-man sled. Coach Hand kept pushing me and pushing me and I wasn’t doing it right. I finally got it done correctly and he said, “See?” That was a big thing as far as trust. At this point Coach Hand is like another father to me. He taught me to be a man on and off the field and taught me to play football the proper way.

As far as memorable moments, the Florida game was a big one—the bowl game at Raymond James Stadium. Some of the losses are what stand out to me—the one loss (in 2020) at home to Tulsa. It was storming--and that game just stuck with me. My game matured because we realized we had to step up. It was our sophomore year during Covid and we’re not the young kids anymore. It was our time and we had to step up and bring something to the table. I thought I became a better football player after that one.

When we start running the ball we can control the game. Where we have fun is when we’re running the football. We got the green light on that at halftime at Boise. It did not change our game plan but we were going to flip the switch and rely on our legs. That was the mentality we had--no matter what we call, if we know our assignment, we’re going to move down the field and score. That's the mentality you have to have upfront. 

Being named a captain was great because it’s guys I have been with forever trusting me to lead them. They know I've got their backs. It’s going to be one of the greatest accomplishments in my life. It means a lot to me. I like that weight on my shoulders.

I definitely would want to make my way back home at some point. That’s home and I can do my job, if it’s in the NFL, and be home in the offseason. There are a lot more training resources now back home in Hawaii. 

I like to go fishing—I didn’t start doing that a lot until I got to UCF. That’s kind of crazy when I lived in the middle of an island. Lots of bass out here. I surfed a little, but I really would boogie-board more. It’s hard to stand up and surf as a big boy. I like to play golf, too, and I’m a pretty good (video) gamer. 

My dad likes to come out for games. In previous years he’d come when we had back-to-back home games, but we don’t have any of those this year. But since it’s my last year, my dad has made it a thing to show up at my games—he came to Boise. It’s hard, but I appreciate it. My family means everything to me and they try to see me play as much as possible. I would not be here without them.