The odds of reaching the NFL were stacked against John Ursua. The Kailua-Kona native began his high school career at Kealakehe. His family then moved to Utah, where he played for two different high schools.
Ursua's college football career was delayed by a two-year church mission to Paris, France. After an additional year off, he enrolled at the University of Hawai‘i, where the 5-foot-9 slotback became one of the greatest receivers in program history, racking up 26 touchdowns and 2,674 yards in 33 games.
Knee injuries limited Ursua's NFL career to three seasons with the Seattle Seahawks, who took him in the seventh round of the 2019 NFL Draft. After a brief stint in the CFL, Ursua recently decided to call it a career.
Although his time in the NFL was shorter than he had hoped, Ursua making the league was still a rare accomplishment in itself. Ursua remains just the second NFL player born in the Big Island, joining three-time Pro Bowler Max Unger. Kea‘au alumnus Malaesala Aumavae–Laulu was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in 2023 but was born in Alaska.
Ursua was asked to be the keynote speaker at the 2025 HHSAA Hall of Honor ceremony on Sunday evening at the Sheraton Princess Ka'iulani's Ainahau showroom. He told the Class of 2025 that he was in their shoes not long ago. He emphasized that with hard work, sacrifice and keeping Hawai‘i at the forefront, great things are possible.
"I love opportunities like this where I can give back to the youth," Ursua told Aloha State Daily following the ceremony. "And like I said, I was once in their shoes. It was an honor for me to go up there and speak. I'm super grateful. I'm glad that I got to do it, and hopefully I get to do more things like this in the future."
In his speech, Ursua noted that his path to the NFL would not have been possible without his support system, which included his mother, Laurie. Ursua says her hard work in making sure she could afford all the equipment for all the sports he starred in, particularly basketball and football, kept his dream alive.
Despite being a graduate of Cedar High School in Utah, Ursua continued to be driven by representing his home state and home island. Both the Big Island and the University of Hawai‘i can be overlooked at times when compared to locales and schools with larger populations.
"My home state means everything to me, and that's why I decided to stay home at the University of Hawai‘i," Ursua said. "(The goal) was to represent everybody who came out of here and also being from the Big Island, not a lot of people make it out. And so being able to have achieved that, I want to show kids that it's possible to make it out.
"You can come from anywhere, you can be any size. I'm not the biggest guy in the world but if you have the desire and the support system to help you get there, it's possible. I love representing our home roots and the 808."
Ursua's older brother, Jared, is currently the receivers coach at UH, a position he's held since 2022. John is hoping to follow in Jared's footsteps in becoming a coach. He's starting off at the youth level, including a clinic on Moloka‘i at the end of the month.
"I've decided to kind of basically hang up my cleats," John Ursua said. "I'm gonna go back to school, get my schooling, and then I'm gonna try to get into coaching collegiately. "For now though, I am training kids and running camps, so I just try to give back and stay around the game as much as possible."
Christian Shimabuku can be reached at christian@alohastatedaily.com.
