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COLLEGE FOOTBALL Kauha'aha'a meant to be with Beavers Comment By Kevin Hampton Corvallis Gazette-Times MailTribune.com By Kevin Hampton Corvallis Gazette-Times Posted Sep. 1, 2015 at 6:05 PM Updated Sep 1, 2015 at 6:06 PM By Kevin Hampton Corvallis Gazette-Times Posted Sep. 1, 2015 at 6:05 PM Updated Sep 1, 2015 at 6:06 PM » Social News CORVALLIS — Kyle Peko was at Cerritos College in Norwalk, California, when he noticed Chad Kauha'aha'a looking around campus. Peko called over to Kauha'aha'a, who was coaching at Utah at the time. "He pulled up and I was like, 'what's up, coach?' And I was like, 'you need anything?' and he said, 'yeah, where's the coaches office?' " Peko said. "I pointed him in the direction and later on in the day he came up and talked to me and he was like, 'hey, actually, the funny thing is I'm here to recruit you.' 'It's meant to be.’” Peko wound up committing to Oregon State, but battled academic eligibility issues. Kauha'aha'a went on to Wisconsin after two seasons with the Utes. A few years later and their paths crossed again, this time at OSU. "As soon as he got over here and got the job over here, he said, 'what did I tell you? It was meant to be,' " Peko said. Kauha'aha'a stuck with Gary Andersen when he left Wisconsin to coach the Beavers. Kau'aha'a said the assistants were in limbo for a little, but there was no question in his mind that he was headed to Corvallis when Andersen offered him the defensive line coach position. "Was it hard? Absolutely it was hard," Kauha'aha'a said. "I built a relationship with a bunch of players and coaches at the University of Wisconsin. But in this business you've got to go where the job is and I feel blessed to be a part of coach Andersen's staff here at Oregon State." Peko said Kauha'aha'a brings a lot of energy to the job and pushes the defensive linemen to get better. "That's his style, is intense, intense, intense. Get after it," Peko said. "Always win, no matter what the drill is. If it's a walk-through or going full-speed, we're buttin' heads. He brings a lot of intensity to the defense. The goal, Kauha'aha'a said, is to get the most out of his players and developing tough, smart defensive linemen in the process. That takes an aggressive approach, but one that has enough touch to allow the players to understand the scheme. "How to line up, where to go. I'm a real stickler on that," Kauha'aha'a said. "A lot of times you say just let the kids play and things will happen, but in our defense you can't let that happen. So my whole deal is having tough, smart guys up front." Learning a three-down alignment can be a complicated process because there's several responsibilities for the linemen. There's more mental work involved, so the players need to be sharp. "This defense, there's nothing simple about it," Kauha'aha'a said. "You've got to be able to think and play fast at the same time." The Beavers have their share of experienced players, which helps in the transition. "It's good to have these veteran guys," Kauha'aha'a said. "Obviously, they're learning something new. But with their maturity football-wise, they pick things up much quicker, at least schematically. Technically, it took all the way through fall camp to get the technique right that we want to teach here." By Kevin Hampton Corvallis Gazette-Times MailTribune.com By Kevin Hampton Corvallis Gazette-Times Posted Sep. 1, 2015 at 6:05 PM Updated Sep 1, 2015 at 6:06 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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