Rainbows head coach Fred vonAppen threatened not to go on the trip over a $60 tab he owed the university. Traveling per diems to the assistants also were being withheld because of various debts.
"I told them they still owed me money from my moving expenses and to take it out of that," vonAppen said. "They told me they couldn't do that, so I told Hugh he could coach the team.
"We got it all straightened out, the per diems, too. You just hate to have to get down to these veiled threats, but it's not going to work out here if they don't change some things.
"It's not going to work no matter how good or bad the coaches are. I asked Hugh why he fired (former UH head coach) Bob (Wagner) because he did everything they asked him to.
"I don't think anybody else would take this job under these circumstances, so it's either get off their asses and start doing something because we've pleaded and pleaded."
Unsolved problems concerning full-time training tables, charter flights and buses at the airport reached a boiling point yesterday as vonAppen worked on the travel itinerary for Saturday's game in Laramie, Wyo.
Six months ago, vonAppen said he didn't want to be involved in that kind of thing, and that it should be handled by UH officials.
But upon learning the team, coaches and support group would have to leave San Francisco Airport and go to the hotel via minivans instead of two buses, vonAppen hit the roof.
"We've had no movement on about six major different issues that we've bitched about in the paper," vonAppen said. "Now we've reached a point where people don't care because now we're playing games.
"In theory, we're supposed to act in the best interest of the players. In our opinion, these players are being treated in a third-rate manner.
"They're flying like Estee Lauder representatives. It's discouraging. We certainly aired it out, but you know how strange the politics are around here.
"Who knows what's going on around here, but there's got to be a reason they hold the line so hard on flying commercial airlines."
Yoshida also fielded complaints from the assistants, who wanted to know what direction this program planned to take for the remainder of this century.
"I told them we had some long-range plans in place and that we were trying to address some of their other concerns," Yoshida said this morning. "But chartering a plane costs about $280,000 a trip and just isn't possible this year.
"I know there were some feelings festering down there. Part of it is the frustration of losing and part of it is this is Fred's first time to be head coach. But some of these things they're complaining about is the way it's always been done here.
"Coach Wagner didn't have a problem with minivans picking up the players at the airport and he never stressed the need of a year-round training table. I told the coaches we would address these things, and hopefully we can move on."
At this point, the coaches believe the facilities - Cooke Field and the administrative offices - are on a Division II level.
"And that's opinions of guys, who have been in the big time for a while," vonAppen said. "This isn't the big time. People may think it is, but these kids deserve a better fate.
"They're not that talented, but they have busted their asses for 14 weeks in the spring and for two more at Barbers Point. Then they're getting booed by 24,000 people leaving the stadium in only the second week.
"This is not just a monetary sum, it's a commitment to do some things in the best interest of our players. Things like charters, training tables and to examine what their grant check is because it isn't enough.
"Because we don't have a training table, they've got to choose between eating or living in an apartment. They eat cheaply and aren't getting the nutrition they need for the rigors of this sport."
VonAppen is reluctant to keep harping on the same probems, but just can't understand why things can't be done at an accelerated pace.
"It was an airing out, but I don't know where it takes us," vonAppen said. "We're at a point of real exasperation because we're going to be held accountable for recruiting, why we aren't getting locals and why we aren't winning.
"I hate to continue to get out the violin, but somebody has got to listen or they're not going to have football here anymore."