Chevan Cordeiro has a soft spot for all the little guys coming up through the ranks.
Make that most of the little guys. The Hawaii quarterback’s little brothers, Brayden and Nalu, receive footballs and tough love in equal parts from big brother during their weekend training sessions. They are ninth-and eighth-grade wide receivers at Saint Louis School, Cordeiro’s alma mater.
“I bullet the ball. I don’t really take (anything off ), ” Cordeiro said. “They gotta get better. If they can catch my ball, they can catch any ball.”
Cordeiro knows. For most of his football career, he’s been the little guy. Whether it was his slight stature coming up through Vinny Passas’ passing clinics or backup status to Tua Tagovailoa at Kalaepohaku or Cole McDonald in Manoa, Cordeiro’s seemingly always had to punch above his weight.
But when he gets a chance—like his senior year as a full-time Crusaders starter or in the four games in which he saw action at UH last season—special things can happen.
There were the late-game heroics in the 2017 Open Division state championship against Kahuku, capped with a 53-yard touchdown pass to now-UH teammate Jonah Panoke with 37 seconds left to pull out a 31-28 win and a 10-0 season.
As a Rainbow Warriors freshman, he authored two more comebacks at Aloha Stadium—Wyoming and UNLV—while maintaining his freshman status under a new NCAA rule. In his limited appearances he passed for 384 yards and six touchdowns against two interceptions on 61.2 % accuracy.
The Nov. 17 rally to beat UNLV 35-28 from down 15 points in the fourth quarter was especially magical, as he came on in relief of a struggling McDonald and threw three touchdowns among his four completed balls.
How does this keep happening ?
“I think it’s just, I have that dog in me, ” Cordeiro said. “Just wanting to be on the field and just being patient. Always ready and always paying attention, just in case my name is called.”
After a so-so spring in which McDonald re-asserted his grip on the starting job, Cordeiro enters this season in a familiar situation.
Watch. Study. Focus.
It’s what he’s always known, going back to when he played behind a much larger Aaron Renaud—a future baseball standout—on Saint Louis’ intermediate team. His parents, Leon and Kelly, prodded their soft-spoken son through his doubts that he could succeed at the most important position on the field.
He continues to prove them right. His confidence, if it ever wavered, was restored with a strong fall camp.
“Shoot, I just kept working and eh, for all the little kids, you know, some people are saying you can’t do it, just keep working, ” Cordeiro said. “That’s all I got to say.”
Until the next opportunity arrives.