Tylan Hines undergoes position change for Hawaii football team

Tylan Hines entered the 2023 season as one of the team’s most intriguing players following a 2022 freshman campaign in which he was ranked second on the team with 634 rushing yards on 83 carries with two touchdowns.

The plan for Hines in 2023 was to shine for the University of Hawaii football team as a running back and receiver hybrid, but his season was short-lived due to injury, appearing in just four games in which he ran for 93 yards on 27 carries while hauling in seven passes for a total of 26 yards.

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After utilizing a redshirt, Hines returns to the team as a full-time receiver. The redshirt sophomore is hoping his skills, particularly his speed, will help to ease the transition.

“I’ve recovered well, just been with the trainers. Just focusing on my body,” Hines said on Friday. “I’ve been playing a lot of receiver, too. It’s new, but I’ve been adapting real well. Just been in the film room with my coaches and throwing with the QBs, so it’s coming along well.

“I just want to add value wherever I can. The coaches are helping me reach my full potential, so it’s going well.”

Hines isn’t the first member of the University of Hawaii program to go from running back to receiver. It’s a move Kealoha Pilares made prior to the 2008 season, one that paid extreme dividends. Pilares finished his Hawaii career nine yards shy of 2,500 receiving yards, hauling in 22 touchdowns before becoming a fifth-round NFL Draft pick by the Carolina Panthers in 2011.

“Yes, he is (making the move full-time to receiver),” UH receivers coach Jared Ursua acknowledged. “And he’s doing a fabulous job. It really started during the offseason. He’s got a good amount of time as far as learning and now we just gotta get him up to speed with a couple of the reads. That takes time, but he is so smart. He’s a bright football player, he understands the particulars of the game, he has a ton of experience. We’ve really excited for what Tylan brings from a speed standpoint and playmaking. He’s been great.

“There’s already a proven track record, and that’s why it became so natural. One thing about the run and shoot, it’s about playmakers. It’s really what the offense is designed to do, is bring playmakers in space to playmakers. I think he’s really excited about it. We’ve shown him a couple of the different guys in the past over the last 20 years that have been really, really special players to do it. He’s really, really excited and he’s gonna make some big plays for us.”

With less than a month before the team’s season opener against Delaware State, Hines is eager to make up for lost time while putting in more if it. Following Friday’s morning practice, he stayed behind on the field, catching extra passes.

“I try to stay after, work on my weaknesses. It’s always room for improvement,” he said. “It’s a big role, and I can’t wait to take it on and show everyone what I can do.”