Hilo High alum Kalen Davis-White knew his biggest dream was to play college football, but becoming one of the best defensive players in his school’s history was something he never imagined — especially during his early days as a freshman middle linebacker in 2020-2021 at Pacific Lutheran University.
“Getting cut-blocked for the first time by 23 and 24 year olds at 18 wasn’t very fun,” Davis-White recalled with a laugh. “But honestly, football is the same game wherever you play — it just depends on the speed of the game. But it took some adjusting, for sure.”
Davis-White adjusted, indeed. The 2020 Hilo graduate is on pace to become the second-leading all-time tackler in the Lutes’ history. Davis-White sits at 291 total tackles through 37 career games — currently tied with Rusty Ecklund (1987-90) in the No. 3 overall spot. He needs 334 career tackles to officially clinch No. 2 in the record books.
“I set a personal goal for myself to make the record book when I got here, and I’m glad that I was able to accomplish that,” Davis-White said. “But now, it’s all about moving my name up higher on the list.”
Davis-White’s mentality and work ethic have carried him through college, but everything stemmed from his upbringing on the Big Island. Lettering varsity all four years at Hilo, he began realizing his physical talents as early as his freshman season in 2016.
“The expectations for myself were high,” Davis-White admitted. “Not only from my coaches, but from my family and everyone else believing in me. Going to the next level was always the mission — the end goal of football for after high school.”
Davis-White’s services in the Vikings’ front seven helped Hilo clinch four BIIF championship titles and two HHSAA state titles in 2017 and 2019. From a personal accolades standpoint, Davis-White won two BIIF Defensive Player of the Year awards in his final two prep seasons.
Kea‘au head football coach David Murray, who was an assistant coach with Hilo from 2018-19, noticed Davis-White’s talent and potential almost immediately.
“When you look back at those state championships that he played in, he was in 10th, 11th grade playing exceptional in those big games,” he said, referencing the three straight state title games the Vikings played in from 2017-19. “He was a guy who always stepped up to the plate. He was a natural-born leader from the beginning.”
Davis-White’s decorated high school career caught the attention of schools from across the country, receiving offers from Missouri Southern State, Linfield, Pacific and PLU. But the summer Lutes’ camps that he attended in the summers of 2018 and 2019 swayed Davis-White’s sights to Puyallup, Wash.
“They took me under their wing and showed me all around campus; they just made me really comfortable,” Davis-White said. “And I already had a relationship with the coaches (from PLU’s summer camps).”
Once Davis-White inked his signature to his letter of intent to play for the Lutes, the rest was history. He appeared in four games as a freshman, recording 36 tackles and 2.5 sacks. He was named Northwest Conference Player of the Week for his performance against Whitworth in his last game played that season.
By Davis-White’s sophomore season, he was already one of PLU’s cornerstones on defense — appearing in all nine games, posting 65 tackles and two forced fumbles.
The following season in 2022, Davis-White led the Lutes in tackles with 71 tackles — earning his First Team All-Conference selection and Third-Team All-Region recognition. Last season, he reached a career-high 81 tackles and was named First Team All-Conference for the second time. Now as a fifth-year senior, Davis-White is destined to leave his mark in PLU history.
But like many other supporters of Davis-White, Murray is not surprised that he was able to reach these heights.
“His work ethic is through the roof,” he said. “I’m super stoked that he is able to write his name in the history books — that’s one of the biggest goals athletes have, no matter what level they’re on. Being able to have your name at the seat of the table of your school as an outstanding performer is a huge honor.”
Although Davis-White has been far from the Big Island over the last few years, he is still surrounded by his hometown’s connections. During his freshman season, he arrived in Washington state with Konawaena alumni Marc Basa and Jesse Canda — joining Waiakea graduate Cheyn Tam-Switzer, who was a sophomore at the time.
Over the last few seasons, even more Big Island athletes have joined Davis-White and company at PLU — such as Konawaena’s Layne DePeralta and Kamaehuokalani Makanui, Kealakehe’s Kekoa Meyers, Hawaii Prep’s Braeden Samura, KS-Hawai‘i’s Jadin Chaves and Cross Pola and Hilo’s Kayden Silva and Shauntae Taifmai.
This past Saturday against Pacific in Forest Grove, Ore., Davis-White and his teammates played against several other Big Island natives, such as Konawaena’s Torrance Satta-Ellis, Kohala’s Nalu Reynolds, Honoka‘a’s Uhane Mock-Chew and Keale Valenzuela-Conte, KS-Hawai‘i’s Tyce Kaden-Pacheco and Waiakea’s Noah Tyrin. The Lutes beat the Boxers 34-18.
“I’m proud of these guys who got to come out here and do the same thing I did,” Davis-White said of his fellow Big Island teammates and opponents. “It shows (Big Island keiki) that (playing college football) is an option and that it’s possible.”
Davis-White plans to stay in the mainland following graduation in December, but hopes to return to his hometown at some point in his life. Over the past summer, he interned at the Port of Tacoma with the Northwest Seaport Alliance. He recently applied for a position at the port — planning to continue his life in Washington.
While his historic college career is coming to a close next month, Davis-White hopes to leave his program better than he found it — while also leaving behind a legacy that other Big Island keiki can aspire to.
“It’s possible, and it’s all about how much you really want it,” he said as advice to the Big Island’s youth. “If you really want to go play at the next level, then you have to be willing to take that next step and get after it.”
Davis-White and the Lutes will next take the field at 10 a.m. this morning against Willamette at home.