Rick Nomura admits there aren't many Punahou graduates who go straight to community college, but in doing so, it was just the beginning for him in becoming a trailblazer for one of the country's top collegiate baseball programs.
Despite having a solid high school career with the Buffanblu, Nomura was often overlooked during the college recruiting process. He eventually latched on at Alvin Community College, the same school that produced MLB legend Nolan Ryan. Play well at Alvin, located in the baseball hotbed of Texas, and more schools will notice.
Nomura made the most of his opportunity at Alvin, hitting .388 as a regular starter. In 54 games as a sophomore, he racked up 71 hits, 13 doubles, 10 triples, 43 RBI and nine stolen bases with a home run. The offers that eluded him in high school came in short order. Power conference schools such as Baylor, Michigan and West Virginia came calling.
Among the rest of his offers, a charismatic assistant coach at the University of Arkansas named Tony Vitello was in heavy pursuit of Nomura, telling him he liked the spirited way in which he played. After more conversations with head coach Dave Van Horn, Nomura was sold on the Razorbacks.
Rick Nomura's father, Ron, was a longtime assistant coach at the University of Hawai‘i, a tenure that included the program's lone run to the College World Series in 1980. Ron had badly wanted Rick to play for the Rainbow Warriors, but Rick ultimately followed his heart to Fayetteville.
"The rest is history," Rick Nomura said in a recent interview with Aloha State Daily.
During his recruiting visit, Nomura was shocked to meet another person of Japanese descent in Caroline DeBriyn, a Kaimukī native and wife of former Arkansas coach Norm DeBriyn. Nomura ended up becoming a hānai son to Caroline during his time in Arkansas.
"They bring me in, and this Japanese lady shows up," Nomura recalled. "Then they took me to like, the only Japanese restaurant in Arkansas. And I was like, these guys are trying so hard. It was really good, but I wanted to eat, like, brisket."
A two-year starter at Arkansas from 2015 to 2016, Nomura became the first player from the Islands to suit up for the Razorbacks. Nomura was intrigued by the fact that Van Horn had coached another O‘ahu native, Shane Komine, back when Van Horn was the head coach at Nebraska.
Nomura also says he appreciated the fact that Van Horn was a man of his word. Eager to stand out among the other elite talents a school like Arkansas brings in annually, Nomura asked Van Horn how he could earn playing time upon arriving to campus. Van Horn told Nomura that it took him 4.4 seconds to turn a double play, and that if he could get that number to under 4, then he would see the field.
Taking advantage of Arkansas' world-class facilities, Nomura began to grind in solitude. He was often dumping buckets of baseballs into a FungoMan machine that spits out ground balls without the need for anyone else to be there. Nomura estimated he was taking 500 ground balls a day in addition to weightlifting, band work and hitting to make sure that part of his game wasn't falling behind. He eventually was able to turn a double play in 3.8 seconds. On opening day, he looked at the lineup and saw himself hitting fifth while playing second base. Future MLB All-Star Andrew Benintendi was batting third.
"I'm willing to hurt my arm to get the reward to be the starting guy on day one. I just made sure I stretched a lot. Just tried to keep myself in the best shape I could," Nomura said. "And it paid off to see that my name on day one was at second base. But it was also a very awesome moment that a coach like that kept his word."
The memories for Nomura in his first year were countless: Fishing with his teammates, playing in front of thousands of fans each home game and playing at the College World Series in Omaha 35 years after his father coached in it. Nomura turned down a sizable signing bonus during the 2015 MLB Draft and returned to Arkansas for a his senior year, starting for another year and adding to his legacy. In total, he racked up 109 hits with a .285 batting average and eight home runs.
In the decade since, the Hogs have made serious inroads recruiting the state of Hawai‘i's best and currently have three players from the Islands in Baldwin alums Wehiwa and Kuhio Aloy, as well as former Punahou standout Nolan Souza. Another is on the way in ‘Iolani's Judah Ota, one of the state's top Class of 2026 prospects.
Nomura's legacy at the University of Arkansas continues to live on through the players from Hawai‘i he steers towards the program.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Nomura sent Van Horn a video of Souza taking batting practice at Mililani District Park, where balls were constantly being swatted into the trees. Souza and Ota were also star players for the Hawai‘i Tigers, a local baseball organization ran by Reid, Rick and Ron Nomura.
When Wehiwa Aloy entered the transfer portal after a superb freshman year at Sacramento State, Arkansas offered him. The Aloy family reached out to Nomura to pick his brain about his experience with the Hogs, and he only had positive things to say. On Wednesday, Wehiwa Aloy was named one of three finalists for the Golden Spikes Award, given to the top amateur baseball player in America. Meanwhile, Kuhio Aloy has emerged as one of the nation's breakout players, slugging 13 home runs while hitting .335. Before suffering a season-ending injury, Souza had started 28 games for the Hogs in 2025.
"You have all the facilities to get better, and now it's even better than what it was when I was there. The next part is the people at Arkansas are very similar to Hawai‘i people. That southern hospitality where they're very welcoming," Nomura said. "The campus was good. The nice part for my parents was to know that I was going to be OK academically. They have probably one of the best academic centers in the country right now."
Nomura, who is currently a finance insurance agent, wasn't able to make it back to Arkansas' Baum-Walker Stadium for a game until 2025. Despite his busy schedule, he told his family he had to carve out the time to see the three Hawai‘i boys on the team.
To his surprise, Nomura was immediately recognized by a fan at the airport and was stopped for a picture. Section 101 at Baum-Walker Stadium was previously known for paying tribute to Nomura and his Island roots, with inflatable palm trees being swung. Section 101 is now known as Nomura Island.
The first 1,000 fans at Arkansas' May 3 game against No. 1 Texas received a free aloha shirt, with Nomura serving as the model for the promotion. The Razorbacks went on to defeat the Longhorns 13-8 that day. Nomura says among the many chicken skin moments throughout the day was hearing local reggae being blasted on the Baum-Walker speakers. Dozens of fans walked up to Nomura and his family, thanking him for starting the wave of Hawai‘i talent.
This weekend, Nomura is traveling with the Hawai‘i Tigers for their annual three-week summer trip to Ohio, where they test themselves against some of the nation's top travel teams and players. He says he's considering a quick detour to Omaha if the Razorbacks make the College World Series.
As the highest-ranked team remaining in the NCAA baseball tournament, No. 3 Arkansas is hosting No. 14 Tennessee in a best-of-three Super Regional. The Volunteers are the defending national champions and are coached by none other than Vitello, the man who helped bring Nomura to Arkansas.
Arkansas has never won a national championship in baseball despite making 11 appearances in the College World Series. Buoyed by the Aloy brothers, 2025 could be the year for the Razorbacks.
Like a true ballplayer, Nomura is superstitious and declined to give a prediction for Super Regionals, acknowledging how intense the series will be for both teams. With former coaches on both teams, he says he won't reach out to either until the series is over. However, there's no question where his allegiances are.
"It was just a great experience for me," Nomura said of his time at Arkansas. "It ended up being the best decision of my life, besides marrying my wife."
Rick and Kyanna Nomura are expecting a baby girl and made the announcement with an Arkansas baby T-shirt.
"Can’t wait to meet our little Razorback, WOO PIG SOOIE!" Nomura said on his personal Instagram.
Christian Shimabuku can be reached at christian@alohastatedaily.com.
