ASD icon blue inverse lighter

ASD Staff

Daily Smile

[{"type":"text","text":"When your jam comes on and everyone knows what's about to go down..."}]

Smile 26 6 25

<title>Daily Smile: Thursday, June 25, 2026</title>

When your jam comes on and everyone knows what's about to go down...

Daily Smile: Thursday, June 25, 2026

 When your jam comes on and everyone knows what&#039;s about to go down...

Christian Shimabuku Headshot

Christian Shimabuku

Sports

Over the summer, the NCAA announced another sweeping change in a decade full of them, introducing new aged-based eligibility rules for student-athletes. 

NCAA student-athletes now have a continuous five-year eligibility window that starts when one graduates high school or turns 19, whichever comes first. 

Under previous rules, student-athletes had four years to compete and could gain a fifth year by redshirting. Athletes could also get a sixth year via medical hardship waiver. When the NCAA granted student-athletes an extra year of eligibility during the COVID-19 pandemic, it created an influx of athletes that were able to reach Year 7 and beyond. 

The new five-year rule essentially eliminates redshirts and comes with just a few exceptions, including religious missions, military service and pregnancy. 

Because of age, not all student-athletes will automatically have five years at their disposal. But across the country, many student-athletes entering their fourth years ahead of the 2026-2027 thought they were seniors and thus would be done after the season. That is no longer the case. And in the age of NIL and the transfer portal, many will feel inclined to explore their options once their respective seasons are over. 

As coaches adapt to the five-year eligibility rule, it promises to create roster crunches for the time being. Aloha State Daily asked a handful of University of Hawai‘i head coaches how they plan to adjust to the new rule and the different aspects that come with it. 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Timmy Chang, football"}]

Back when Chang was a quarterback for Hawai‘i in the early 2000s, he played five years the old school way — his sophomore season in 2001 was limited to three games because of a wrist injury. Because he played less than a third of the season, he was granted a medical redshirt. The extra season, in part, allowed him to set the NCAA passing yardage record with 17,072, though he was eventually passed by Houston's Case Keenum, who received six years from 2006 to 2011 after a traditional redshirt and medical hardship.

Prior to the 2018 season, it was announced by the NCAA that football players could play in any four games and maintain a redshirt. Although it kept players engaged and provided breathing room to not burn a season by playing a handful of snaps, that rule has since gone out the window. With 105 roster spots and no transfer limits after the season, does Chang feel inclined to play less true freshmen? 

"I think the biggest thing, if you have value here in your freshman season, whether the value comes from offense, special teams, you might not be a starter week one, but things happen. You ready? You get your opportunity," Chang said. "You get put in there. That's what we look for. Hopefully, the guys continue to develop, they grow, they understand the sense of urgency that happens and they're ready to perform."

56-21 win at Northern Illinois on Oct. 24

, true freshman cornerback Kydel Stone snagged his first career interception while true freshman running back TJ Fo'ilefutu ran for his first touchdown. 

Fifth-year senior receiver Pofele Ashlock has not played in 2026 due to a knee injury. Under the old rules, he would have been granted a sixth year in 2027 in all likelihood. Though UH has petitioned for it, they have yet to receive an answer from the NCAA. 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Michele Nagamine, soccer"}]

Roster logjams across all sports are expected in the wake of the new rule. For Nagamine, that means some tough conversations with high school recruits. 

"It's something that everybody's just trying to figure out, but it's a matter of are we going to recruit players for [the high school class of] 2028 when we could possibly have a [traditional four-year] senior returning? Obviously, if we could get a senior to return that has been impactful on the field and a good member of the team, then we would we would gladly take that over [the high school recruit]. So, we've had some conversations," she said early on in the 2026 season. 

The Rainbow Wahine honored nine seniors following a 

. Standout goalkeeper Kennedy Justin was one of them, though she has already announced she will play collegiate soccer in 2027. 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Joshua Walker, women's volleyball"}]

Upon getting offered and accepting the UH women's volleyball gig in June, Walker hit the ground running in the recruiting trail. Prep Dig currently ranks Hawai‘i's 2027 recruiting class as the 

. All 15 players on the current roster would be eligible to return in 2027, though outside hitter Tali Hakas recently announced the 2026 indoor season will be her last, and that she'll move on from college after playing the 2027 spring beach season with the Rainbow Wahine. 

"I don't have to make any decisions just yet," Walker said back in August. "For us, it's just getting established with this team and see how things are going to go. But as we hit towards the back end of the year, those questions kind of come up. We'll address those then."

Though women's basketball teams are permitted to have up to 15 players on the roster, Mitchell has deliberately kept 12 in her debut season. The foundation of her roster consists of star junior center Ritorya Tamilo and sophomore guard Bailey Flavell. When she brings in new players, particularly high school recruits, will they operate under the thinking that they have five years? 

"I haven't adjusted in the way of telling them, 'Hey, you get five years here.' I think because of this era, I think you take it a year at a time, and you see what works best for not just the player, but for us as well," Mitchell said. "I hope every player wants to stay here. That would be the real win of the entire season, is we identify our standard, and every single player on this roster wants to return because we've increased and tried to make sure that they had a really good playing experience.

"That's been the key to success here: consistency and retention, and that's still my number one priority. How do I recruit them every day, right? I want them to know how invested I am in them and in their professional aspirations. ... I want what they want. If I've done my job and I made them the best player they can be, and I can no longer offer them something, then absolutely, I'm their number one fan. But if they want to stay here and do this together with us, I want that as well."

 graduated high school in 2019, then went on a two-year church mission. His NCAA clock began in 2021. After suffering an ACL injury prior to the 2025-2026 season, he was granted a sixth year via medical hardship redshirt. For the first time in his life, he's teammates with his little brother, UH freshman guard Tiger Cuff. Under the new rules, that wouldn't have been permitted. 

Though redshirts are out of the picture, Ganot says he and his staff will continue to be flexible towards new rule changes. In the 2026-2027 season, his roster of 15 consists of 13 newcomers. 

"We haven't burned any redshirt years since we've been here. Now it's out of the equation, so it's kind of all hands on deck," Ganot said. "Certainly when you have injuries, I think in terms of the landscape of college athletics, and even with the five-for-five, you've seen what we've done. We're like chameleons. You've seen the new world. I feel like we can still bring in some young prospects that we can develop. We've done a really good job with even looking outside the box with two Division II players that we feel are really good [in 

 and Isaiah Kerr]. Obviously over the years we've brought in some junior college guys. We bring in the global component, and we incorporate the transfers. So, I feel like working to continue to do that in this new world, even as you bring in the five in five, we will be flexible in terms of balance of our roster of where we're bringing them from."

Wade says he knew the five-year rule was on the horizon, and it's informed the way he's managed his roster in recent years. His son, Kainoa, could have redshirted as a true freshman in 2025, but Charlie Wade saw no point in that.

"I've known it's coming for years," he said. "I was one of the few people that was saying it's coming, and so redshirt's not really been a thing, right? Kainoa came in [as a spring semester enrollee] and we played him. Even last year with [middle blocker] Roman [Payne] hurt, he redshirted only because of injury. Everybody knew that the five-for-five was going to come in, and you're not going to get a sixth. So, redshirt really hasn't been a thing for a few years. Just get guys out there, start playing them, start to develop them even more."

 have some tantalizing options as it pertains to players getting an additional year. Kainoa Wade is one of them. Setter Tread Rosenthal was just 17 when he enrolled at Hawai‘i in 2024, and the 2027 season would have been his senior year. The new rule allows him to come back in 2028. But would a player of his ilk stay another year in college instead of go pro? 

"Everybody's looking at it like, 'OK, we have a chance [to play an extra year].' I think most of the core guys are going to go pro, right? I know Kainoa is already talking about getting his masters, and Travell [Jordan] may stick around for year five, but a lot of the other guys, they've been turning down professional offers for quite some time," Wade said. "And then you have to you sync it up with graduation, also. A lot of them are graduating, and so coming back, you can't just come back and play a fifth year. You actually have to go to school, and you have to be in a grad program. So, it really will be more of a case-by-case thing. I'd like to have them all back, but yeah, what's it worth to the [athletics] department to pay those guys in rev share to come back for a whole other year?"

Charlie Wade 110626

<title>UH coaches dish on NCAA's new five-year eligibility rule</title>

With an extra year for some players to work with, recruiting strategy and roster construction has changed for every sport.

UH coaches dish on NCAA's new five-year eligibility rule

[{"type":"text","text":"Dogs know how to order their own pup-cups..."}]

Smile 26 11 6

<title>Daily Smile: Friday, Nov. 6, 2026</title>

Dogs know how to order their own pup-cups...

Daily Smile: Friday, Nov. 6, 2026

Four games. Two on the road and two and home. The 2-6 University of Hawai‘i football team will have to win every single one of them to keep its 2026 bowl hopes alive. 

Following their best showing of the year, a 

 on Oct. 24, the Rainbow Warriors were idle last weekend, their final bye week of the regular season. From here on out, the 'Bows are hoping to make the next month a November to remember, starting with Saturday at UTEP. The game will be nationally televised on FS1, and kickoff is set for 4:30 p.m. HST. 

"The intent's got to be there for us, and we want to play good for the last four games of the season," Hawai‘i head coach Timmy Chang said. "But for us, it's one day at a time, one play at a time, and it's going to be a good challenge because we have to go away and El Paso continues to get better. You just look at the team and they're playing solid defense."

, the Rainbow Warriors had the fortune of facing a winless Northern Illinois team, despite having to travel 

4,255 miles to get their first conference win of the year. 

In UTEP, the 'Bows will take on a Miners squad that is 1-7 overall and 0-4 in Mountain West play, its only victory on Sept. 12 over Texas Southern. But Hawai‘i still can't afford to take any team lightly, considering how its season would take a turn for the worse if it can't get past UTEP. 

"We have to be tough," Chang said. "There's teams that are playing really good football that we're going to have to face, and at this point in the season, it's really about your team and how they're mentally driven, how they they stay together, how they continue to fight, continue to get better, continue to want to execute, want to do it for the guy next to them, and so those are the things that are going to pop out when you see a team week in and week out, and we really want to be that team."

Though the Rainbow Warriors were given a respite from the Mountain West schedule last week, they didn't come out of it mentally refreshed, particularly members of the team's coaching staff, who are still grieving the loss of former head coach 

I think whether it's me or coach Chris [Brown] or leaders in the community that talk about coach, everyone just remembers him being a man that brought us together," Chang said. "There's a lot of alumni here over his tenure, guys that he just touched, and we're able now to reconnect with those guys and do something special. We had so much great times here as as players and we all thank him for bringing us here together."

Back when Chang was Hawai‘i's record-setting quarterback under Jones, the team would play UTEP each year as annual Western Athletic Conference foes. The two programs have not played a conference game since 2004, but the series will be revived on Saturday with the Miners joining the 

 as full-time members over the summer. Hawai‘i is 18-13 in all-time matchups against UTEP, but the Miners took the most recent matchup 51-20 in 2004, Chang's junior season. 

"There were a lot of big battles. We faced a lot of good teams from El Paso, and so just having them in the conference is something that I Iove, and it'd be a great challenge for us as we play out the series again and just have good competition with them," Chang said. "Whether it was here in Hawai‘i or there in El Paso, the one thing that you're going to remember — they were tough games, they were hard-hitting games, they were physical games, and we really battled it out to the end."

Tama Uiliata 102426

<title>Hawai‘i football heads to UTEP after bye</title>

The Rainbow Warriors will need another Mainland victory to keep their bowl hopes alive.

Hawai‘i football heads to UTEP after bye

De Soto 2025

DeSoto Brown

Hawai‘i History

Columnists

Today, a great many people throughout the world have come to understand what a tsunami is, and what a terrible danger one such event can be. But here in the Hawaiian Islands we’ve known this fact very well for hundreds of years. This is because, situated in the Pacific, we are regularly struck by tsunamis that have originated in practically every direction around us, since this entire ocean is surrounded by seismically-active zones. We even have undergone tsunamis generated right here in Hawai‘i.

This article is the first in a series that will show and describe some of the tsunamis of our past. To take the unending tsunami threat seriously, we all need to know what has happened before, and how we might be affected in the future.

First, what is a tsunami? It’s a series of waves — 

 just a single one — which is created by a massive displacement of ocean water. This can be due to a very large earthquake that moves sections of the ocean floor up or down very abruptly, or by a huge landslide that moves into the sea. The multiple waves that such a displacement creates can, and do, travel all the way across the entire Pacific Ocean where they can come ashore with no visible warning beforehand. That’s what makes them so deadly.

To start with, here’s the tsunami of Saturday, February 3, 1923. This was not a massive disaster, but it happened in a modern period of multiple newspapers being published in Hawai‘i that provide a variety of written accounts for us to read today, along with the widespread use of cameras whose photos have left a visual record of the event too.

Although it wasn’t clear at that time, this tsunami originated from an 8.4 earthquake on the Kamchatka Peninsula, which is part of Russia — and which has created other tsunamis as well, including one as recently as July 2025.

The effects in the Hawaiian Islands began shortly after noon in 1923. As is always true of every tsunami, the withdrawals and subsequent rises in the level of the sea varied a great deal from place to place. On Kaua‘i, very little happened. On the shore of Hanalei Bay the sea rose higher than 10 feet, but at the island’s main harbor at Nāwiliwili, only the “swishing of water” (as one newspaper stated) was seen, with no damage. 

O‘ahu as well saw little damage, although with a larger population there were more people to see what was going on. In Honolulu Harbor, once the water began moving at about 12:30 pm, people gathered to watch at the mouth of Nu‘uanu Stream as floating trash moved back and forth and the stream’s regular motion was disrupted to flow backwards briefly. At Waikīkī a diligent observer tracked 15 complete cycles of recessions followed by waves that took place from 12:50 to 4:03 pm. The second wave was the largest but it only reached the normal high tide level on the beach sand; the exposure of the ocean bottom was more noticeable as something that was normally never seen, and it extended out to the end of the pier in front of the Moana Hotel.

The North Shore of O‘ahu experienced more dramatic effects. The tracks of the O‘ahu Railway were variously claimed to have been “washed out” at Hale‘iwa and Mokulē‘ia, or merely to have been covered by sand. A listing of the various waves said the first was observed at about 12:02 pm with four subsequent rises occurring at varying intervals until “soon after” 1:10 pm; here the second was also the biggest.

On Maui there was actual destruction at Kahului, mostly at the harbor facilities but in the town as well. The old wharf was “wrecked” while the new one, then under construction by the Hawaiian Dredging Co., was inundated but undamaged. Cargo on the docks was washed around and bagged sugar in warehouses, awaiting shipment from where it had been processed by mills, was lost. Large scows bearing lumber were washed ashore; boulders and mud covered some Kahului streets. The largest wave was estimated at a height of 12 feet and it struck about 1 pm.

On the beach road between Kahului and Wailuku, Dr. Lester C. Smith’s car was badly damaged when it was washed over a sand dune, a fence and railroad tracks. The doctor himself was left with a broken leg. At least two other vehicles here were left partly submerged as well.

But Hilo, Hawai‘i would be the site of most destruction, as is usually the case with tsunamis here. The fleet of numerous fishing sampans, owned and crewed by Japanese, were docked at the mouth of the Wailoa River and further up along it, and they were very susceptible to damage by the turbulent water. There were said to have been seven waves from 12:30 to 2:15 pm, and just like elsewhere, the second was the largest.

Although there were initial reports of four or more fatalities in this area, in reality only Jotaro Hamasaki, age 38, was killed. He left a wife and an eight-year-old daughter. He was supposedly beheaded when the sampan he was on was forced under a bridge while the water level was very high — and later reports have repeated this story — but in fact he’d been on a small boat with two other men who were trying to tie up a larger boat after the first wave. The second wave upset this small vessel; the other two men swam to safety but Hamasaki was drowned. His body was found in debris underwater in the Wailoa River on February 7, several days after the disaster.

Buildings along the makai side of Kamehameha Avenue, Hilo’s main downtown road, were knocked around by the water in the area closest to Waiākea. Others, mostly retail stores, were flooded and lost merchandise. Because this neighborhood was well populated, the unexpected water invasion caused panic as people searched for family members or tried to save possessions.

Even Coconut Island, offshore in Hilo Bay, was badly affected. It was used as a park (as it still is today) and the recreational structures on it were wrecked, as was the water main running to it.

While the 1923 tsunami was not a major event in Hawai‘i, it does have an unexpected historic relevance — it could very likely be the first tsunami in history to be photographed while it was actually occurring. Photos of damage after tsunamis have happened are not rare, and in fact there’s at least one such picture from after the significant earthquake on Hawai‘i Island (and its subsequent tsunami) in 1868, which is very early. But since there was no tsunami warning system anywhere in the world until the late 1940s, before that time nobody was ever aware beforehand to be prepared to take photographs should a tsunami come ashore.

The 1923 event took place in the Hawaiian Islands in the middle of a sunny day, and after the first wave or two, people near the coastline were aware it was going on and could therefore be ready with a camera. The Honolulu Advertiser printed three pictures of Waikīkī with the ocean in recession and then with waves approaching the shore on February 5, 1923, and another of Hilo’s shoreline two days later on February 7th. This latter image is shown here with this article, along with two of Kahului, Maui. These images may not look dramatic or significant, but keep in mind how rare and historically valuable they are.

1 SP 121270 16x9

<title>The Unending Tsunami Threat, Part 1: 1923</title>

A century ago, the first photos of a tsunami as it happened were taken in Hawai‘i and printed in local newspapers. This 1923 tsunami hit Kahului, Maui and Hilo, Hawai‘i, hardest, though its effects were observed throughout the Islands.

The Unending Tsunami Threat, Part 1: 1923

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta Headshot

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta

Food & Dining

elevated dining concept called Girl Dinner

The restaurant is bringing back Girl Dinner for the holidays, and this 2.0 version is designed to share, according to chef Chris Murakami.

“It’s like a revamp of the original Girl Dinner; it’s reinvented, but still has the same things that everyone loves,” he says. “Instead of a marshmallow, we have a peppermint bark (for dessert).”

Girl Dinner is available from today until the end of January 2027. Diners can choose from the holiday classic ($190) or the holiday reserve ($290); both options are designed to share between two and four people, and they are served on a platter.

The holiday classic includes 2 ounces of ikura with crème fraiche, chives, cornichons and olives; Caesar salad; crispy chicken nuggets; Maui Onion chips; golden hash browns; and chocolate peppermint bark and signature lips lollipops for dessert. The spread also includes four martinis or one bottle of Champagne.

The holiday reserve includes all the same contents, but features 2 ounces of caviar instead of ikura.

Individuals could swap out the martini for a glass of wine instead, according to general manager Sarah Mendoza.

“It’s our take on ‘home for the holidays,’” she says. “We’re really bringing the ladies together to sip and gift exchange.”

The Dotted Line girl dinner 2 0 110226

<title>Girl Dinner returns to Honolulu for the holidays</title>

Earlier this year, The Dotted Line launched an elevated dining concept called Girl Dinner, in line with the social media trend. The downtown Honolulu restaurant brought back Girl Dinner 2.0 for the holidays; this version is designed to share among two to four people, and includes festive desserts like peppermint bark.

Girl Dinner returns to Honolulu for the holidays

Square Mike Brestovansky Headshot RGZ3736 Large

Michael Brestovansky

Government & Politics

If you have an idea about what to do with Hawai‘i's Green Fee tax revenues, the state would like to hear it.

The state’s Green Fee Advisory Council has opened an 

for members of the public to submit ideas and recommendations for projects that the new Green Fee could fund. Those ideas will be used to make recommendations to the state Legislature next year about how funds should be allocated.

 the Green Fee into law in 2025, with the tax first going into effect at the start of this year. The fee is an increase of the state’s transient accommodations tax rate, with the additional revenue to go toward environmental stewardship, climate resilience and sustainable tourism projects.

On Wednesday, Jeff Mikulina, chair of the Green Fee Advisory Council, said 

62 projects totaling about $93.6 million have been approved for funding release. 

But the council is asking the public to suggest some more over the next week.

“The goal is to create a constant conversation about our funding priorities and the community’s priorities,” said council member Carmela Resuma.

Through the online portal, anyone can submit an idea for a project within one of three categories (environmental stewardship, climate reliance and hazard mitigation and sustainable tourism), or upvote other submissions from other people.

Submissions can be as detailed or as broad as the submitter likes. On Wednesday afternoon, the most recent project proposal read in its entirety “Historic tour of Wahiawā Town,” while the one before that was a proposal for Hawai‘i Island cesspool conversion with a proposed budget and project timeline.

Mikulina said submitting a proposal is no guarantee that a project will receive funding. He said the council received hundreds of proposals from the public and state departments last year with a cumulative projected budget of over $2 billion, which the council had to whittle down to fit the actual Green Fee revenues, which are expected to be about $100 million.

However, the council is more likely to recommend “shovel-ready” projects that can be implemented quickly after the Legislature approves funding.

Residents with ideas should share them quickly, though: the deadline for public comments to be incorporated into the council’s 2027 recommendations is Nov. 1, although the portal will remain open for submissions after the deadline passes. Submissions received after the deadline may be considered for future funding cycles.

After Nov. 1, the council will evaluate all submissions and make a prioritized list of recommendations for the governor, who will transmit those recommendations to the Legislature.

Daily Smile: Thursday, June 25, 2026

ASD Staff

Reporter

More in Daily Smile

Daily Smile: Friday, Nov. 6, 2026

Daily Smile: Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026

Daily Smile: Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026

Daily Smile: Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026

Most read

Daily Smile: Thursday, June 25, 2026

Authors

ASD Staff

Reporter

More in Daily Smile

Daily Smile: Friday, Nov. 6, 2026

Daily Smile: Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026

Daily Smile: Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026

Daily Smile: Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026

Most read