Yesterday's practice was much crisper and more evenly matched as the offense made a big play here and there, while the defense did the same.
Unfortunately for the Rainbows, they don't get another day off until Sunday. In between now and then are two important practices, including a scrimmage tomorrow at 10 a.m. at Cooke Field.
"Every day is important, that's what we keep telling these guys," vonAppen said. "And today they came out and looked really good.
"I think having Wednesday off helped give them some time to get away from everything and come back fresh. We had good bounce and snap. In fact, it was one of our better practices.
"But it should be because we reached the halfway point today. By mid-practice we were halfway through. Our expectations continue to rise, and we hope the players' expectations rise proportionally."
The offense and defense had their moments. UH senior quarterback Glenn Freitas did a better job of throwing over the middle during different drills against the ever-changing defenses.
He did have one pass picked off and returned for a touchdown by linebacker Shawn Harris, but fellow quarterback Johnny Macon also had a couple of errant passes.
"It happened when they got a little flushed and tried to force it in there," UH offensive coordinator Guy Benjamin said.
"They've got to learn to be patient and let the offense develop for them. But overall, they're getting better."
VonAppen was pleased because there was a balance between the two. When one side dominates the other, a coach usually has something to worry about.
"I thought it was a more equitable exchange between the offense and the defense today," vonAppen said. "It was reasonably competitive in our nines-on-sevens and team play.
"That's good. We're the same team. We don't want one side to completely dominate the other. Coach (Don) Lindsey would like the defense to start slowly and end strong.
"Coach Benjamin wants the offense to start strong and finish strong, so not everybody is going to be happy. But it wasn't bad. That's the way we're supposed to practice. We've got to learn how to do that all the time."
"We're still discussing things among the coaches, but this is the way we want to set it up," vonAppen said. "It won't be any more important than the first one.
"Our depth chart is still not set, or at least not for publication. We'll see how things play out Saturday morning."
There were only about 10 wearing red rehabilitation jerseys and far fewer players on crutches than there were on Tuesday.
"We had a couple of guys play through some pain today," vonAppen said. "Brendyn Agbayani had a hip problem, but he came out and played in full pads.
"We also got back big (6-foot-5, 321 pounds) Andrew Phillips. He's an offensive lineman who has been sidelined the past few days, so it was good for our numbers."
Even place-kicker Carlton Oswalt has been slowed somewhat with a bad back, leaving special teams coach Doug Semones a little handicapped during his 15 minutes of drills each day.
"But we're getting there," Semones said. "We've worked hard on blocking and protecting field goals and PATs every day this spring. We've also worked on punt protection and coverage.
"We'll add the other phases to our special teams in the fall. So far, I feel like we've got a good plan in place with guys who like to get after you."