Maybe it was during the trips to the Jim Thorpe Award dinners, where his players won the trophy emblematic of college football's top defensive back in consecutive years (2005 and '06).

Perhaps it was watching all those drafts, with 23 of his protegee going to the NFL.

But somewhere along the line Duane Akina, one-time quarterback and offensive coaching aspirant, made his peace and found a home coaching on the defensive side of the ball.

And a wondrous marriage it has been for the secondary and assistant head coach at the No. 1-ranked University of Texas, whose Longhorns are bidding for a second national championship in four years.

Saturday they play Texas Tech, the top passing offense in the country six of the past seven years, and Akina's unit will be on the spot yet again, a challenge he has come to relish. "I've grown to really enjoy this side of the ball," Akina said. "I like the emotional side of defense and all that comes with it; the chance to help a lot of kids and see them grow."

For 20 seasons of his 30-year coaching career Akina, 52, has overseen defensive backs, a path he hardly imagined in the days when he backed up Warren Moon at quarterback at the University of Washington in the late 1970s.

A two-sport star at Punahou School, he played basketball and football for the Huskies and contemplated a coaching career, most likely in basketball. But, "when I looked down the bench and saw three coaches in basketball and what seemed like 17 in football, I knew where the jobs were," Akina said.

At the University of Hawai'i, his first full-time coaching job thanks to Dick Tomey and Bob Wagner, the closest Akina would get to the offensive side of the passing game was lobbing balls at defenders during practice. "They needed someone to throw spirals, so I was ball drill man," Akina said.

But not for long. Paying his dues at UH, the Canadian Football League, Arizona and, now, Texas, Akina has tutored three Thorpe Award winners, five finalists and a pass defense that has ranked in the top 10 four times in the past seven seasons.

Now, at a reported $300,000 per year, plus bonuses, Akina is among the most well-paid defensive backs coaches in the country.

But the richness he has come to feel about the position has been driven home in other ways. Like when Chris McAlister gave him the NFL Draft day jersey. And when, at a Thorpe Award banquet, Michael Huff presented him with a specially commissioned Thorpe Award replica.

"Those," Akina said, "are gestures you cherish."

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.