Associated Press
Hawaii running back Charles Tharp is dragged down
by two UNLV defenders Saturday night.
Rainbows crap out
Going Vegas looked like
By Paul Arnett
a sure thing until mistakes and injuries
piled up like chips
Star-BulletinLAS VEGAS -- Tim Carey was appropriately dressed in black as he prepared to board the Hawaiian Airlines jet for home. The senior quarterback for the University of Hawaii wouldn't have looked much worse for wear if it weren't for the fact his right arm was strapped tightly in a sling hidden beneath his oversized shirt.
The late fourth quarter play that began as a routine rollout to the right, proved to be anything but, thanks to a driving tackle on the sidelines by Nevada-Las Vegas linebacker Greg Gales.
"I've been sacked a few times (actually 20) this season, but they were mostly being dragged down," Carey said yesterday afternoon at McCarron Airport.
"But this was a hard tackle that kind of drove my right shoulder into the turf. And let me tell you, Sam Boyd Stadium is hard like concrete. At first, I thought the pain would just go away.
"It didn't. In fact it got a lot worse in a hurry. I knew something was seriously wrong when I got to the sidelines. I'm not sure how long it's going to take me to recover because I've never been hurt seriously before.
"I'm going to try to remain positive and maybe I can get back within three weeks or so. The doctors said it could take longer. We're going to do X-rays (today) to see exactly what's what."
Associated Press
Quarterback Tim Carey sprained his shoulder and
will be out of the lineup for at least three weeks.
Team physician Darryl Kan doesn't need an X-ray to know what's wrong. Carey suffered a shoulder sprain, meaning the ligaments were torn in the joint of his throwing arm. It's difficult to predict how long he will be sidelined, but six weeks is a definite possibility.That means Josh Skinner had better start warming up in the bullpen during the upcoming bye week and beyond in order to adequately prepare for a brutal road trip to Colorado State in 12 days.
Skinner is the Rainbows' only healthy quarterback. Backup Dan Robinson is still out with a pair of aching shinsplints.
Robinson made the trip to Las Vegas, but his chances of playing were closer to none than slim. He was still on crutches and probably will remain that way for another two weeks.
"His legs need rest, so that's what we're going to do for him," UH head coach Fred vonAppen said. "I don't want to speculate on what's going to happen until all the facts are in, but it would seem Josh is the only healthy quarterback we have."
Skinner greeted the news that he was the new No. 1 quarterback in town with apparent calm. The sophomore, who started the second game of his freshman season at Laramie, Wyo., last September, felt badly for his compatriots, but was prepared to carry on.
"First of all, nobody has told me anything," said the Colorado resident, who quit last December, only to return after spring drills. "If I did get to start in Fort Collins (Colo.), it would be awesome because so many of my family and friends would be there.
"It wouldn't be like it was last year at Wyoming. I'm much better prepared and comfortable with what I'm doing on the football field than I was a year ago. If I do get a chance to start, it will be exciting. It's a situation every football player wants to be in."
Skinner did a good job of leading the Rainbows 75 yards for a meaningless touchdown that closed out the scoring in Saturday's disappointing 25-15 loss to UNLV before a raucous Rebel crowd. It dropped Hawaii to 0-2 in the Western Athletic Conference, the fourth time in five seasons the Rainbows have lost their first two conference games.
"We had so many chances early in the game that we didn't capitalize on," vonAppen said. "Give UNLV credit. They took advantage of our mistakes to get the win. But we didn't play well. I don't know why."
Associated Press
Nevada-Las Vegas quarterback Jon Denton gets off
a pass against Hawaii during Saturday's win by the Rebels.
One reason was Quincy Jacobs' fumble on the 1-yard line that kept the Rainbows from a quick scoring strike they desperately needed. The other was a miscue by freshman Charles Tharp on a pass from Carey that was intercepted by Randy Black and returned 29 yards to the Hawaii 11-yard-line.The Rebels stopped one certain touchdown and quickly scored one of their own to take a 12-3 lead in the second quarter they wouldn't relinquish. Meanwhile, Sam Boyd Stadium claimed not only Carey's shoulder, but also the shoulders of top linebacker Doug Rosevold and senior cornerback Al Hunter.
Throw in the nagging ankle injury to center Shane Oliveira and anyone can see why the UH coaching staff wore a grim expression yesterday.
"We've also been without the services of projected starting inside linebacker Stephen Gonzales (shoulder), starting cornerback Robbie Robinson (ankle) and starting outside linebacker Rufus Ayeni (knee)," UH defensive coordinator Don Lindsey said.
"No college teams have that much depth, especially us. If we sustain any more serious injuries, I shudder to think what could happen. I was counting last night and we've had serious injuries to two linemen (Ben Bright and Tony Tuioti), our three linebackers and our two guys in the secondary. Not to mention what the offense is going through, so it's tough."
From that standpoint, the bye couldn't have come at a better time in terms of offering some healing power, but the bitter taste of defeat will linger.
"If we had made a couple of interceptions and the offense could have scored a couple of touchdown early, we probably would have won," All-WAC free safety Eddie Klaneski said.
"That's what makes it so hard. We should have won this game and we didn't. Now we get to come home and hopefully heal some. We're down, but we'll be OK. There's still a lot of football left to play."
Notebook
UH Rainbow Warrior
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