We know Eddie Osei-Nketia as New Zealand's fastest man, but in Hawaii he’s adopting a new nickname.
"The coaches love to call me Touchdown Eddie," said the New Zealand 100-metre record holder.
It's fair to say the 22-year-old has settled into his new life at The University of Hawaii – some days he spends relaxing at the beach, others hanging out with friends but most importantly, he's also been getting up to speed with his new sport of college football.
"Yeah, can't complain, I'm living the dream," he said.
"I’m not going to lie it has been pretty tough, from getting hit every single time!"
Osei-Nketia has been in Hawaii for almost two months after his shock departure from the athletics track and while it was thought his rugby background would give him a head start in the sport, he’s now realising they are completely different.
"The way that you catch the American football is different compared to a rugby ball and I’m trying to get familiar holding that American football rather than a rugby ball," he explained.
"It will come with time!"
And time is exactly what his team, called the Rainbow Warriors, are giving their Kiwi project who say they genuinely see the potential in him.
"It's very foreign, you know, very foreign to him," said Keiki Misipeka, the former NFL scout who came across Osei-Nketia and lured him to the University of Hawaii.
"I spend extra time with him after practices [working] how to get into his stance, how to go through certain drills, his pad level, that sort of thing and at night after we are watching film and meetings he stays back, and I test him, just to help him to deep dive into understanding the game a little bit more."
Misipeka warned it could be over a year before all that work leads to an on-field debut though.
"This is not going to be a sprint like he used to, this is going to be a marathon," he said.
"But if everything falls into place, he's going to be a very, very scary athlete."
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