Senior Ka'ena Decambra Facing Former Team

It had begun to feel that, over the years, Hawaii football and Ka'ena Decambra were synonymous with one another.

It was the place that he started this whole football journey at, the place that he decided to go to college and for a little bit, the place that he would eventually either graduate, get drafted out of, or even both.

Now Decambra is donning the University of Arizona colors to finish his senior year. It is something completely new for the 6-foot-3, 308-pound Honolulu, HI product, but since stepping onto the campus and the football field, he has fit right in.

Decambra's reason for signing with Arizona was "The culture, the coaches and the players for sure," but what really was the deciding factor was " I felt that love, and it definitely felt like a place at home. So this is definitely where I want to be."

Decambra grew up in Honolulu and went to high school at the football powerhouse St. Louis. He played football from 2019-2021 and contributed to the state championship-winning squad his junior year in 2019.

He was also teammates with Arizona tackle and second-round Miami Dolphins draft pick Jonah Savaiinaea, who played for the Wildcats from 2022 to 2024 as an offensive tackle as a three-year starter and finished his final year with the highest pass blocking grade and second-highest overall blocking grade.

After high school, Decambra signed on to play for the Rainbow Warriors in 2021 under former Arizona State head coach Todd Graham for his first year, which he redshirted.

Decambra then played three seasons under current Hawaii head coach Timmy Chang and was a starter for the final two. He displayed his versatility on the offensive line by starting his first nine games as a guard and two at tackle in 2023. He played his final 12 games as an offensive tackle in 2024.

• "I played guard at Hawaii and tackle, so I believe that I can play on both sides of the line," Decambra said. I played right guard for a season and right tackle and then I played at left tackle. So I'm pretty versatile, and with diversity, the coaches can depend on me to play anywhere on the field."

In that final year with Hawaii, Decambra only allowed three sacks as a blindside tackle in 576 pass blocking plays.

It feels almost symbolic for Decambra to switch positions to center for his final year playing college football at Arizona. There was a learning curve to get through in spring practice, but all throughout fall training camp, he has embraced a leadership role on a line filled with veteran players.