Vaai “Uso” Seumalo knows he is blazing a path few Molokai High School student-athletes have traveled.

Seumalo is a defensive tackle who finished his freshman season on the Garden City Community College football team in Kansas on Saturday.

Set to play in the fall for the Bronc­Busters and earn his associate degree in December, Seumalo is on the brink of becoming the first NCAA Division I player from the current Molokai High School football program that plays in the Maui Interscholastic League eight-player ranks.

“I was just, like, shocked, it’s a blessing though that I get to come out here and play,” Seumalo said Thursday when asked about his journey. “It was a big shock for me, especially with all this COVID stuff going on.”

He recognizes that he is a pioneer for his island.

“It means a lot, it’s a blessing and an honor, I get to come up here and continue my education in college,” Seumalo said. “Being from a small island like Molokai, not a lot of people get the opportunity to do that. So, that I have the chance, it’s just a blessing all in all.”

He arrived in Kansas in July 2020 and then saw the fall season delayed until spring.

“It was a crazy experience, especially when I first got out here,” Seumalo said. “Dealing with COVID and school, we had to go on quarantine I think a couple times. School is going good, I passed all my classes. It’s a little more difficult, but it is what it is.”

Kimo von Oelhoffen was a Molokai High School graduate who played one season at Moanalua High School before playing collegiately at Hawaii, Walla Walla (Wash.) Community College and Boise State before a 14-year career in the NFL ended in 2007.

“I’m not even going to lie, I don’t know a lot about him, but I know that he was there in the NFL and he made it from Molokai,” Seumalo said.

The Farmers revived their football program after a 60-year dormant period as part of the MIL eight-player ranks in 2012.

Seumalo totaled 28 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss and two sacks for the 7-1 BroncBusters, who entered their final game — a 52-40 win over Butler (Kan.) Community College — ranked No. 5 in the country.

He arrived in Garden City not knowing what an I formation was, nor what a gap referred to on defense.

“A lot, I’m learning so much that I didn’t know about,” Seumalo said. “Things that I didn’t know in football when you’re playing, I had no idea about until I got up here. … I didn’t even know the names of the positions.”

Before playing in all eight games for the BroncBusters this spring, Seumalo’s football career included six games as a senior at Molokai High School, four of them in the eight-player format.

“Honestly, yeah, I have surprised myself a lot,” Seumalo said. “I’m doing better than I expected, but I know I’ve got to get better for sure.”

GCCC head coach Tom Minnick says each day of practice is a chance to learn, opportunities that Seumalo is taking full advantage of.

“He’s been doing a great job for us,” Minnick said Thursday. “He’s a little raw, but he keeps getting better and better every day he’s out there. His time’s coming. He’s getting better and better, like I said, each and every practice we have and he’s going to be a force to be reckoned with next year and have a chance to get a Division I scholarship.”

Minnick marvels at Seumalo’s untapped potential.

“There is a ton,” Minnick said. “And that’s what you see in him, that he’s a hard worker, he listens, he goes to school, he does whatever you’re supposed to be doing. He’s just getting better each and every day.

“We’ve had kids like that, that have limited experience playing football. They get the experience here and then they move on afterwards — we’ve had a ton of those type kids.”

Seumalo played basketball and volleyball throughout high school, but had to convince his parents Vaai and Naomi to allow him to play football as a senior in 2019.

“They’re happy, they’re excited, they said they’re with me all the way, support me,” Seumalo said.

Seumalo’s parents are certainly glad they allowed their son to play football now — he stands 6-foot-4, is 320 pounds and has quickly grown into an NCAA Division I prospect with Kansas State being one of the first schools to show interest.

“That would mean the world to me if I could get there,” Seumalo said. “You have got to stay committed and if you want it, you just gotta go get it.”

When asked if he sees a D-I school in Seumalo’s future, Minnick didn’t hesitate.

“Yes, very much so. I mean, there’s been people asking about him already,” Minnick said.

Seumalo is keenly aware of the doors he hopes to open for those behind him.

“It’s an honor and I feel like it’s a lot,” he said. “It’s good though, if people can get exposure from where I’m from that would be amazing, get more kids out.”

Molokai coach Mike Kahale knows just how important the trail Seumalo is blazing is for his program. Kahale, a Molokai Intermediate School counselor, noticed the big kid in sixth grade and encouraged him to turn out for football every year until it finally happened in 2019.

“It’s huge for us,” Kahale said. “To think that he just played one year of high school football. … I knew he had some athleticism. I had encouraged him every year to come out, but it just didn’t work out. He came out his senior year, made an impact, was able to get a full-ride junior college scholarship.

“I think we kind of knew this: He was just one of those hidden gems, raw talent and with the right coaching staff and getting more reps and exposure that he would do great. And he’s proving that to be true.”

Kahale is proud to have Seumalo as an ambassador for his program.

“Absolutely, when you have a kid who is a great athlete, but he’s a high character kid,” Kahale said. “He’s a gentle giant, doesn’t say much, just goes out and works. When you get that kind of kid and they go to college and proves his worth there, any time they hear ‘Molokai High School’ they are going to reference him and say, ‘Hey, we better go check out if there’s another kid there at Molokai,’ right?

“I mean, he’s setting a great example for all the up and coming kids and setting a good name for our program.”

Now, even the NFL is on Seumalo’s mind.

“Yeah, definitely, that’s the main goal right there,” Seumalo said.

* Robert Collias is at rcollias@mauinews.com.