Saint Louis senior Chevan Cordeiro, fresh of winning a state championship for the Crusaders, sat down for this week’s prep feature you can read in Tuesday’s Honolulu Star-Advertiser.
Here is some more from Cordeiro on a variety of topics.
Chevan Cordeiro
Saint Louis football
Sr.
Q & A • Favorites
Athlete: Tom Brady and Russell Wilson.
> I like both because Tom Brady, after college, nobody wanted him. The Patriots picked him in the last rounds. Russell Wilson, because he’s short, he just works hard.
Team: Denver Broncos
> My dad likes the the Broncos, so ever since I was young, I’ve been cheering for them.
You ever regret cheering for them?
> No, that’s my team.
Do you have Bronco jerseys?
> I have a John Elway T-shirt.
Food at home: Korean chicken
> My grandma (Susan Chijimatsu) makes it. Every once in awhile, she’ll ask us and she makes our favorite food.
Food eating out: McRib from McDonald’s
> To be honest, I just like barbecue. That with the french fries, it’s so good.
Does it bother you that the McRib is around maybe once every three or four years?
> That kind of sucks, but when it comes out I buy it every day. I’ve got to get one.
Hobby outside of sports: Drawing
> I just draw whatever, like football players. I have fun drawing.
Movie: The Conjuring 2, The Purge, Election Day.
> The Conjuring 2 — I just watched it in the movie theater. I think it’s the best scary movie I’ve watched. I like the thrill, getting chicken skin.
> The Purge — They have 24 hours, the president made a day where you can kill each other and it’s not a crime. I think you should be at least 16 to watch this.
> Election Day — That’s the sequel to The Purge. I don’t think the first one was good, but the second one was good.
Was there a happy ending?
> I think there’s going to be a third one.
TV show: SportsCenter
Music artist: I don’t have a particular favorite. I listen to all types of music. Rap, Hawaiian. Country and R&B.
What’s your pre-game bus ride song?
> Here Comes the Boom. That’s my main one.
Teacher: Mrs. Nakamura was my fifth-grade teacher at Ma‘ema‘e Elementary. She helped me make sure all my assignments were turned in so I could participate in school activities.
GPA: 3.0.
Class: Leadership.
> We speak to the little kids on bullying, go around and speak to people.
What’s the solution to bullying?
> If you see someone getting bullied, tell the teacher. Try and stop it. Don’t just watch it.
Place to relax: My room.
> Just lying down on my bed, listening to music.
Motto: No matter how long it takes, when God works, it’s always worth the wait.
What mom (Kelly) says that you can’t forget: Why are you crying? Do you want me to give you a reason to cry?
> She said that to me and my brother when we were little kids playing Pop Warner. We’d get hit hard and cry on the sideline and she’d come to us and tell us that.
Are you bitter that she was tough on you?
> That’s why I’m who I am today.
What you dad (Leon) says that you can’t forget: If you’re not working hard when no one is watching, you’re only cheating yourself.
> Basically, every time I worked out, he’d tell me ahead of time.
What your coaches say that you can’t forget: Stop making excuses.
> This year, sometimes Coach Ron (Lee) would say that to me during practice. I’d say is he supposed to run a deeper route or more shallow and he’d say stop making excuses, just hit him.
What stands out about the 2017 season for you: What stands out most is winning the state championship and all the team gatherings we had the night before the game.
> We went to Magic Island and Waikiki, a team bonding. It was Noa Purcell’s mom and dad who held the thing. It was really fun. We really grew as a team.
How does football affect your life year-round? During football, I would never have time to do anything and during the offseason I’m training 24/7. My only free time is on the weekends.
> Football’s my key to college. It’s my life.
What middle and elementary schools did you attend: Ma‘ema‘e Elementary and Kawananakoa Middle. Saint Louis from sixth grade on.
What youth clubs and sports did you play?
> Manoa Paniolos
> Manoa Youth Baseball League
Do you miss those days?
> That’s when football and baseball weren’t too serious. and I had fun playing any position.
What do you like to to do that would surprise most people?
> I can dunk a basketball.
You’re 6 feet. You don’t play on the Saint Louis basketball team. Don’t play volleyball. How did this happen?
> I don’t know. I just kept trying during the offseason. I think the weight room helped. Power cleaning is the main one, and squats.
When ninth grade started, could you touch the rim?
> No, but I could grab the net.
So when did you finally dunk?
> I think the past offseason, before football. A couple of my teammates were there. It felt good. I was kind of shocked.
Ultimate bucket list
> My ultimate dream is to play in the NFL, and I would want to travel to Australia.
Why Australia?
> I’ve talked to people from Australia. I kind of like kangaroos. I kind of want to see a kangaroo.
What is the history and background of your name?
> There is no meaning or background to my name. It was suggested by a family member and my mom liked it.
Who was the family member?
> My auntie Karrie.
Do you like your name?
> Yeah I like it.
Cordeiro is a well-known name. Portuguese, but what does it mean in Portuguese?
> I don’t know. My dad is from here. My mom, too. They went to different high schools. Their friends knew each other, and they went out on a double date. The rest was history.
Any shout outs?
> I want to thank God. That’s it.
FOOTBALL
Tell me the truth: You make a decision, you run as fast as you can with your eyes still looking for a receiver, but you don’t really know if someone you can’t see is basically gonna snipe you. That’s a dangerous part of your job.
> I can’t completely block it out. I know I have to be safe and there’s people trying to nail you. I just do what I have to do to win.
The connection between you and your line, you and your receivers, it was on point. They always knew where the first-down marker was.
> We kind of work on it, third down know the distance. They knew they had to take their route to the first down.
Mitchell Quinn, so many huge plays. Jonah Panoke, a physical specimen with great hands. Who was the better route runner?
> Jonah’s the best route runner for our WRs, but Mitchell is just fast. He’s hella fast. He’s good at running routes, but him being fast makes his routes hard to stop. Jonah’s route running is the best. Our slots have good route running too.
What was it like during your sophomore year, playing with Tua?
> I was kind of focused on learning my stuff and being ready in case. Taking mental snaps. I learned a lot. Just the way he carried himself. He was a good leader on the field and off. He really worked hard.
You were somewhere around 150 pounds as a sophomore. You’re at 175 now.
> It was pretty hard. I had to work hard every day. Lift, eat right. Don’t eat candy. I kind of like chocolate. Hershey’s, chocolate covered macadamia nuts. My dad works out at Cross Fit, so he knows the things to do, so I basically listened to him. Drink (protein) shakes every day in the morning and at night. I never really checked on my weight. I kept on eating. I just ate regular food.
Do you wish you had one more year in high school?
> I already miss high school football.
Before the (championship) game, Marcus (Mariota) texted me. He said congratulations on the Cover 2 award. ‘Keep working and striving for the best. You’ll be amazed at how far you can go. Rooting for you bro.’
That’s amazing.
> That’s the thing about STL, we have a brotherhood. All the alumni, the QB alumni texted me before the game. Joel Lane. John Hao. Timmy Chang. Tua texted me too. ‘Good luck, bring it back. Go get it this weekend. keep the koa trophy home where it belongs.’
You easily would’ve been a standout QB at another school. There aren’t a lot of people who would’ve waited for two years to get a starting role.
> Going to Saint Louis made me the man I am today. You have to work hard at school and football, and you’ve got to train. The whole team is good and iron sharpens iron. Practicing with them every day got me better. You’ve just got to work hard.
What are you going to miss about your coaches
> They’re funny and they treat me like family. They really took care of me. They had my back throughout the season.
UH offered a scholarship to you last year while you were still a backup QB. You’re still committed to UH, and they mix their looks up with some pistol, some four-wide. If they don’t install the four-wide exclusively with a passer like you, maybe they will wait until they have more depth at offensive line. Injuries really hit them this year.
> I just let Coach Rolo do his thing. I believe in him. Whatever he does, I’ll just follow and do what he tells me to do.
Any other sports this year?
> No. Mitchell’s focusing on soccer.
You’ll be working on gaining weight then.
> I kind of want to be 185-190 by fall. I want to get faster too.
How far will Hawaii go? We see McKenzie Milton with a great run at UCF. They’re still undefeated.
> I think UH can do that in two years.
COMMENTS