Nevada Preview

Tomorrow is Halloween so will it be Trick or Treat for the Warriors? Many in Hawaii feel the season is over so the answer will have to be Trick. The Warriors need to win 5 out of their 6 remaining games and a road victory at Reno is the first step to qualifying for the Hawaii Bowl. In 2005, the Warriors faced a similar situation needing to win the final 3 games of the season. It was an impressive feat considering the last 2 games were against Northwestern and Michigan State.

Unfortunately, the 2009 Warriors do not have Timmy Chang or Chad Owens and the list of injuries continue to grow. This week starting corner back Jeremy Bryant reinjured his left bicep meaning that redshirt freshman Kawika Ornellas will make his first start. Nevada is loaded on offense led by QB Colin Kapernick and HB Vai Taua. Last week the Wolfpack hung 70 points on Idaho and are coming off a 4 game winning streak. Look for tomorrow to be an offensive shoot out as the shallow Warrior Defense will not be able to stop the Nevada Scoring Machine.

The Hawaii offense should be firing on all cylinders this week. Hawaii QB Bryant Moniz is cleared to play after sustaining a concussion from a Boise cheap shot. Backing him up will be Brent Rausch who is making his return after injuring his pinky a day prior to the WASU game. At the start of the season Rausch was listed as number 2 on the dept chart followed by Moniz. The offense will be fine and should be able to score against Nevada.

If the Warriors have any chance of winning they will need to out score the Wolfpack and force turnovers. Coach McMackin had the Warriors practice strip drills all this week and hopefully it will pay off tomorrow. Win or lose it will be an exciting game and don’t worry about the weather as the temperature will be a comfortable 67 degrees.

UH needs a Perfect Storm for Boise State

The 6th rank Boise State Broncos are a football machine and the injury plagued Warriors will need a “Perfect Storm” to pull off a win tonight. This evening’s forecast is for heavy thunder showers but even that may not be enough.

Hawaii’s linebackers are slow and poor tacklers. Look for Boise State to exploit them often with slots receivers, tight ends, and running backs catching balls out of the back field. Too focused on stopping the run, the Warrior defense will be vulnerable to the short passing game and play action pass.

If the Warriors cannot at least slow down the Boise ground game, there is no question that it will be a long night. Unlike LaTech, Boise State is multi-dimensional meaning they can also air it out and points will come either by ground or air. If the Warriors have any hopes of an upset they will need to outscore the Bronco offensive machine. That seems doubtful as opposing offenses have made it to the Bronco “Redzone” a meager 8 times all season.

Without Rodney Bradley, the Warriors have no deep threat. The Bronco Defense will tee off on the slow possession receivers Hawaii still have healthy. Sophomore QB, Moniz had a very good game last week against Idaho, but the Boise defense is several notches above. They are faster, stronger and deeper than Idaho. Tonight is a true test for the red shirt sophomore as Boise will throw multiple blitz packages and zones coverages to try and confuse him.

The game may be a forgone conclusion but Boise State will still need to show up and beat the Warriors on their home turf. The last two times Boise State played here: December 2007 for the WAC Title and Dec 25 against ECU in the Hawaii Bowl, they lost. Hopefully this trend can continue with a win for Hawaii.

Idaho Game Recap

The Warriors lose 35-24 to a descent Idaho team they probably should have beaten. In the second half there is no excuse for Idaho to convert several 3rd and very longs over and over and over. When a team lets this happen to them repeatedly they will lose and that is what happened to the Warriors tonight. Hawaii did what it needed to get Idaho into 3rd and long passing situations. It is surprising that the Hawaii defense, which defends the pass everyday during practice, was unable to stop a run first team in obvious passing situations.

I am no football expert, but after the second time, someone with any sense would have found a way to cover the tight end and slot on the seam, post and deep in route and get some pressure on Enderle. Hawaii being unable to stop a 3rd and short is something we as Hawaii fans can accept. NFL prospect Woolridge was a 240lb bowling ball and the huge Idaho line pushed around the young and injury plague Hawaii D-line all day. Those 4 or 5, 3rd and long conversions by the Vandals were painful to watch and totally unacceptable.

In all of those 3rd and “eternities”, Idaho was not going to run. Doesn’t the defense have a nickel or dime package for those sorts of situations? Couldn’t someone on the defense get to Enderle in time before those deep routes had time to develop? The Idaho passing game is far from BYU or the Texas Tech Run and Shoot. The Hawaii defense is not supposed let Nathan Enderle and his average crew of receivers and tight ends exploit them as they did tonight. Was it a case of the players not executing or the coaching staff making the wrong call?

Next Saturday no doubt gets tougher for the struggling Warriors. Deep threat Ronnie Bradley is gone for the season with a broken leg meaning that the Boise State defense will sit on the short routes and tee off on the Warrior’s possession receivers. Nevertheless, the Warriors are fighters and anything can happen if they continue to fight and believe. Nothing would be better than a 2-4 Hawaii team killing Boise’s BCS chances on October 24th.





Because I do not have permission from the NCAA, I found this video on youtube that comes pretty close to what happened to the Warriors over and over and over.

Idaho Vandals

Idaho Vandals head coach Robb Akey’s believes in “climbing that ladder”. This upward focus and new attitude in Moscow has led to a quick start for the Vandals. They have rocketed to a 5-1 start with their only loss to Washington on the road. The recent addition of translucent panels to the east and west walls has added much needed light to the once drab Kibbie Dome and may signify a bright future for the program.

What does this mean for Warriors? Idaho is looking to “sack” the Warriors and become bowl eligible for the first time since 1998. Chris Tormey, the Idaho Head Coach at the time is currently coaching special teams and safeties for the Warriors. This game however will not come down to special teams. Idaho will try to run the ball down Hawaii’s throat and it is unlikely that the shallow Warrior front seven will be able to stop the trio of Demaundray Woolridge, Deonte Jackson and Princeton McCarthy. Run blitzing MacMackin will find it difficult to commit safeties for run support as Idaho’s passing attack is ranked 22nd in the nation led by junior QB Nathan Ederle. Saturday does not bode well for the Warriors.

The Warriors will need to have a much better game from walk-on QB Bryant Moniz and the receivers. The addition of sure tackling Richard Torres at Free Safety will give Mac some peace of mind. This is a “do or die” game for the Warriors. They need to play with desperation because a loss here would dash any chances for a Hawaii Bowl appearance on Christmas Day.

Mouse Davis

Though actually invented by Glenn “Tiger” Ellison, the modern Run & Shoot Offense we now know today had its beginnings with Mouse Davis during Portland State’s fabulous run in late 1970s and early 1980s. Mouse’s star pupil June Jones took the offense a step further bringing the offense to the NFL and later to the University of Hawaii. From 1999-2007, UH fans had the pleasure of seeing this unique offense run to perfection. Sadly with June now gone to SMU, the Hawaii Run & Shoot is now but a ghost of its former self.

This is not a condemnation of Ron Lee or Nick Rolovich because they are good “position” coaches. They are just not experienced enough to run a successful offense in the WAC and it is showing with each passing game. Losing games is bad for any coach but for inexperienced coaches without name recognition and NFL experience, the problem is exacerbated. Recruiting is hurt by losing and without a “June Jones” type many on the outside who associate Hawaii with the Run & Shoot will see the program based on Ron Lee and Rolovich’s resumes alone. Ron Lee’s resume reads successful high school assistant coach with a few years at Oregon Tech of the NAIA. Rolovich is a one year Division 1 starter with a couple of years coaching on the JUCO level. Not impressive at all for any prospect with NFL aspirations.

MacMackin took a calculated risk by not bringing in a solid offensive coordinator upon taking the Head Coaching Position at UH. June never made that mistake. He always went with someone whom he could trust on defense so that he could devote his time to the side of the ball he knew best, the offense. Mac was hoping that the momentum of the 12-0 season and June Jone’s legacy would carry over to recruiting and wins. He underestimated June’s ability to coach and run the offense. He thought that if he had good players, a Rolo and a Ron would be enough to do the job. Wrong!!!!!

UH desperately needs some senior leadership on the offensive side to reverse this negative downslide and bring vitality back to this once potent offense. Besides winning games, the new offensive coordinator must be able to consistently bring in solid BCS minus or Mid-Major plus athletes to play QB, WR, and O-line. Lastly, that person must keep an eye on the future and train a successor for his position, which June failed to do during his tenure at UH. If this is not done soon we are looking at the dark days of “Fred What Happened” coming back all over again.

Fresno State Game

42-17 is not as bad as it seems. Mac stuck to his guns leaving Bryant Moniz in when many would have pulled him. It was painful to see the offense struggle as they did but at least there were some positives towards the end. There can be no denying that the coaching staff is committed to the Run and Shoot. It sends a powerful message to the team and the fans that the Warriors are going to make the Run & Shoot work no matter what.

I am glad that this new UH staff has finally shown some decisiveness however what concerns me right now is that Bryant Moniz is not a Run and Shoot QB or the future of UH football. It seems that Mac is using Moniz as temp to fill in until Rausch can get healthy. I hope his strategy works because if Rausch cannot get back on the field there is no sense in playing Bryant Moniz, Shane Austin, or Inoke Funaki. Time should be invested in Freshman Cayman Shutter. Let him take his lumps and learn. If the Warriors are going to lose, let us at least use this year as an investment in his education with some valuable game time experience. June did this with true freshman Timmy Chang and last year at SMU with Bo Levi Mitchell, also a true freshman.

It is too much to hang a season’s hopes on an injury prone Brent Rausch. Even if he does get on the field for Boise State who can guarantee he will not get hurt again down the road. Cayman Shutter is the future play him now coach Mac!!!!