On his first day as the new No. 3 quarterback on the Hawai'i football depth chart, Jake Santos kept it simple but left no doubt about his progress this spring training season.

Dropping back, his hands wrapped firmly around a ball swollen by the morning showers, Santos spied sophomore wide receiver Greg Salas on a clean release, looked off to check the safety, then delivered a perfect spiral to Salas' waiting hands for an open-field finish.

The play wasn't exactly awe inspiring. The dozen or so soggy fans scattered along the hillside didn't rush the field. This was, as a certain Denver point guard might note, practice after all. But quarterback coach Nick Rolovich recognized its significance.

A week earlier, the quarterback corps struggled with the read, prompting Rolovich to break down the play using a video example of freshman Bryce Kalauokaaea.

"(Santos) has made good improvement from what he was when I got here," Rolovich said. "There were some things he didn't get, some of the first things you should probably know, but he was able to learn them. The thing about him is he listens and he processes. You never have to tell him anything twice."

After spending last year on the scout team, mastering other teams' offenses but not UH's own, Santos is clearly enjoying the increased reps that comes with his elevation on the depth chart.

"It was the first day that the defense was coming hard at us, but I think I did all right," Santos said. "It's going to take time, but I'm just going to listen to Coach Rolo and keep trying to get better."

And if Santos knows anything, it's patience.

The fifth-year senior spent two years at San Diego Mesa, then transferred to Missouri Southern, where he suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament. He sat out last year, his first as a Warrior, in accordance with NCAA transfer rules but was allowed to practice.

Santos applied for a sixth year of eligibility but was denied, meaning his first year of UH eligibility will also be his last.

"When I came here with Coach (June) Jones and Coach (Dan) Morrison, we all assumed I'd be here for three years and play two. They didn't have to take me, but they did. I went from junior college straight to a Sugar Bowl team. It was a huge leap, and every time I look at my ring, I thank God about it.

"Like everybody else, I have to do everything in my power to get back there," he said.

Yet while Santos is encouraged that the work he has put in to learning the offense and making the most of his reps have so far paid dividends, he's also aware of the numbers game that finds him at a perceived disadvantage.

Santos is behind Inoke Funaki and Tyler Graunke in the depth chart. Also competing for reps are Kalauokaaea, Shane Austin and Kiran Kepo'o. Junior college transfers Greg Alexander and Brent Rausch arrive in the fall.

"I know it's not the most attractive thing when you haven't played in two years, haven't taken a snap in a game situation in two years, and have only one year left," he said. "You don't know if you're even going to actually be here in the fall. We have two more people coming in and you don't know if we're all going to be here. The attractive thing is the younger guys because they have more time.

"I just have to come in and play hard," he said. "When you only have one year left, you have to put it out there every day."

Rolovich said that had Santos been granted a sixth year of eligibility, it might have affected the staff's recruiting decision. However, he said the competition for playing time is wide open by necessity.

"We've got to win now," he said. "We can't be concerned with stockpiling players for the future. This is a crazy business and we've got to play the best guy now. If it's Jake Santos, it's Jake Santos."

Rolovich said he was pleased with Santos' poise and, in particular, his attitude coming into spring practice.

"He didn't get a lot of reps at the beginning, but he took it the way you'd want a kid to take it," he said. "He didn't hold grudges and he understood the possibilities of his role. He's playing better because of that."

Funaki, the designated No. 1 quarterback this spring, said he came to appreciate Santos' contributions when Santos was still on the scout team last year.

"He's very humble, very willing to learn," Funaki said. "A lot of times, you get discouraged when you're on the scout team, but he was always willing to work and give it his best, and that helps the team to grow. He's always pushing us to learn, and that's something I've learned from him — how to be a better student of the game."

However the quarterback situation turns out, Santos said he intends to be there when the Warriors face Florida in the season opener.

"I'm going to battle as if I want the starting job," he said. "If you don't compete like that, you're never going to get anywhere. Whatever happens, I want to go to Florida. I want to be able to say that I was there."