HONOLULU — At Nevada last week, Hawaii’s short-yardage quarterback, Dalen Morris, broke the plane of the end zone and threw a salute.

In that moment, he made good on the specialist role that coach Timmy Chang envisioned when he took a chance on Morris following a January tryout. Morris, a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., and four-year player under then-coach Ken Niumataloto, had been stationed on Oahu and sought to play one final season of college football.

The Navy Lieutenant Junior Grade has carried it 10 times this season, with UH needing a yard or two to make a first down or touchdown. So far, he has two of the latter; he scored in the season opener at Vanderbilt.

“That was kind of the idea coming in,” Morris said this week. “Coach Timmy had the idea from the tryout. His mind started working immediately and brought that idea to me. He always preaches do your one-eleventh, so I’ve got to thrive in my role.”

This week, Morris’ job description expanded into triple-option scout quarterback for the Rainbow Warriors for their Mountain West matchup against Air Force on Veterans Day Weekend.

In the academy, it was an acquired taste. Morris said it took him four years to feel comfortable running it — and it’s been three full years since he was a part-time starter for the Midshipmen in his last year on the roster in 2020.

“It definitely feels like old times,” he said.

Despite logging its first road win of the Chang era at Nevada, UH (3-7, 1-4 MWC) is a 19.5-point underdog against AFA (8-1, 5-0), which was ranked until falling 23-3 to Army in Colorado Springs, Colo., last week. It’s Military Appreciation Day at the Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex and the Kuter Trophy between the teams is on the line for the 6 p.m. kickoff.

“That’s going to be special. For Air Force coming in, going to a service academy means a lot in itself,” Morris said. “Knowing what they’re going to do when they graduate. Being able to play on Veterans Day (Weekend), they’re definitely going to come in with a little extra motivation, so I’m definitely going to try to convey that to the boys and make sure … we’re able to execute from the jump.”

Troy Calhoun’s Falcons average 284 yards per game on the ground to 84 passing yards. They average 5.1 yards per rush.

“It’s going to be physical. Always,” Morris said of what he remembers about playing the Falcons. Navy was 2-2 against Air Force in the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy games between the academies while he was on the roster between 2017 and 2020.

Morris, a Huntsville, Ala., native who once took a recruiting visit to Alabama, was bereft of offers despite being a two-sport star at Madison County High, and he chose to enroll at the Naval Academy. He sat out his first year, saw spot duty in 2018 and 2019 and won the starting job heading into the COVID-abbreviated 2020 season, though his playing time was up and down. He appeared in nine of 10 games and was 33-for-65 for three touchdowns and two interceptions, plus 68 carries for two TDs in Niumatalolo’s triple-option offense.

At 6-1 and 206 pounds, he was one of Navy’s larger quarterbacks of the option era.

Things are a little different now. In addition to being a student-athlete studying for a master’s in public administration, he has full-time day-to-day duties with the Navy.

Morris chuckled about his time demands — ones that few others know. That’s because of his unusual opportunity to play beyond a five-year tenure at the Naval Academy due to the COVID bonus year accorded to those who played in 2020.

“It’s tough, it’s tough, but I definitely think going from the Naval Academy helped me with that,” he said. “Don’t sleep much. Sometimes you get some long nights doing homework or studying for qualifications.”

Chang said Morris has been a “fascinating” and “impressive” example to the younger Rainbow Warriors for his character and time-management abilities. He noted that Morris wants to be a lawyer.

“He has a lot of his plate and his responsibility is important,” the coach said. “It’s good for the other guys to see the kind of person he is and how he handles his business. He comes to practice every morning, gets prepared like everybody else, goes to school, but he also goes to work, every day.”

Morris thanked Chang and his Navy superiors for allowing his unusual crossover to be possible. On the field, he credited the offensive linemen for allowing him to do his part for the team. He singled out converted running back Solo Vaipulu for clearing out a Nevada safety for his TD last week.

Receiver Pofele Ashlock said the team gets hyped for Morris when he enters; they know his objective just a matter of feet away.

“We all want to see him go out there and put on his salute,” Ashlock said.

Brian McInnis covers the state's sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.