Thursday, October 8, 1998
Aztecs gearing up
for ‘other’ game
It's not the Braves-Padres,
By Paul Arnett
but tomorrow's football game
with UH is big for
San Diego State
Star-BulletinSAN DIEGO -- There isn't a lot of talk about tomorrow night's Western Athletic Conference game between Hawaii and San Diego State.
In this city on the other side of the Pacific Ocean, sports fans can't get enough of the San Diego Padres or of Ryan Leaf's fortunes as a rookie quarterback with the San Diego Chargers.
Yes, the Aztecs are fresh off a stunning victory over the high-powered Tulsa Hurricanes. And yes, they are undefeated in league play as they prepare for a Rainbow team they have owned this decade.
But Qualcomm Stadium won't be nearly as packed as it will be Saturday, when the Padres host the Braves. And even if the Aztecs manage to compete for the WAC Pacific Division title, there's no guarantee the home-town team would be invited to the Holiday Bowl because of the feud with the WAC and the breakaway eight.
Not that San Diego State head coach Ted Tollner is making any reservations just yet. He knows the Aztecs' first victory of the season is only a tentative step toward that goal. Step No. 2 comes tomorrow night with the Rainbows, giving the Aztecs a reason to show up and to try beat Hawaii for a ninth consecutive time.
"Last week's win was a big one for us,'' Tollner said of the 24-14 victory at Tulsa. The Hurricanes entered the game as the No. 1 offense in the league, averaging nearly 500 yards a game. ''We're anxious to play again now that we've won a game.
''We're looking forward to our second conference game with Hawaii. It looks like it's going to be a wide-open conference race and we have a chance to be in it thanks to our victory at Tulsa. That was a critical win for this program.''
In the past, San Diego State has had as much talent as anyone, but the mental phase of the game was missing. No matter what the Aztecs had on paper, they seemed to stumble when it counted the most. But Tollner is a firm believer that this team has the heart to overcome problems that invariably pop up during the season.
For example, the Aztecs dropped their first three games -- to nationally ranked opponents Wisconsin, Southern California and Arizona -- and lost starting quarterback Spencer Brinton and top running back Jonas Lewis to injuries. Both could play tomorrow night.
''We don't always do everything by the book, but we do something better than any team we've had so far here,'' Tollner said. ''These guys know how to fight when things go bad. They have some grit, or whatever it is inside them that they don't get discouraged.
''They just keep playing. You want to be in the (WAC) hunt. To win on the road against a team that has been playing good, that's the confidence and the morale thing you need. Beating Tulsa pointed us in the right direction.''
You won't get any argument from UH head coach Fred vonAppen. Last week at Tulsa, the Aztecs did something the Rainbows haven't done in 21 consecutive games -- win a WAC matchup on the road.
''It's very impressive,'' vonAppen said. ''We believe the Aztecs have a very good defense if they could hold Tulsa to only two touchdowns at home. And when you think about how woeful we've been on the road in recent years and how badly our offense has played in recent weeks, then you realize how difficult this task could be for us.''
VonAppen neglected to mention how badly Hawaii has played against San Diego State. The first time vonAppen faced the Aztecs, he lost, 56-8, at SDSU in 1996.
Since Hawaii last won at San Diego State in 1988, the Rainbows have lost four away games with the Aztecs by an average score of 48-24. It's not the kind of thing the UH coaching staff wants to hear.
''My main concern is us,'' UH offensive coordinator Don Lindsey said. ''We've got to find a way to get untracked offensively. And that's difficult to do against a good team on the road. And this is a better team than their (1-3) record reflects.''
Hawaii also enters the game banged up. The Rainbows' latest loss on offense is fullback Calvin Mims, who injured his knee in Saturday's 28-0 defeat to SMU. Freshman fullback Derek Zoller will start in his place.
The Rainbows also have to overcome another poor performance by the offensive line and the sporadic play of quarterback Dan Robinson. Throw in injuries plaguing the defense and Chad Shrout's struggles in the kicking game, and it's easy to see why vonAppen is concerned.
''Having to play the game Friday night doesn't give us a lot of time to prepare,'' vonAppen said. ''But it also keeps us from dwelling on another woeful performance last weekend.
''As coaches and players, we're doing everything we can to get this thing turned around. It's discouraging and frustrating to continue to struggle in every phase of the game as we're prone to do at times, but we have to fight through this and do everything we can to get our first win, not only for the season, but on the road as well.''
WAC football
Teams: Hawaii (0-4, 0-2 WAC) at San Diego State (1-3, 1-0 WAC)
http://uhathletics.hawaii.edu
