IN baseball, it's called overmanaging. Quarterback
switch scripted
Rainbows’ fateSo I guess in football, you could call it overcoaching.
Pull a pitcher who's throwing a shutout? I don't think so.
Yet in some respects, that's what Hawaii coach Fred vonAppen did in Saturday's embarrassing 45-17 loss to San Jose State, which sent the Rainbows to their 15th consecutive loss -- the longest in NCAA Division I.
Quarterback Dan Robinson was pitching a shutout, guiding the 'Bows to a startling 14-0 lead in the first quarter. The first touchdown came on a 10-play, 80-yard drive after the opening kickoff.
The 'Bows were clicking, ripping through the Spartans' porous run defense. Two TDs in three possessions -- not bad for a team that had scored only one first-quarter touchdown in the first eight games.
Here we go, Rainbows. No need to sweat about an 0-12 season, right? Wrong.
After the Spartans go three and out, redshirt freshman walk-on Bronson Liana takes over for Robinson at quarterback late in the first quarter.
False start.
Fifteen yards for an illegal block.
NEXT thing you know the 'Bows are first-and-29 with a quarterback who can't pass.
Two running plays.
A burned timeout.
Another running play.
Punt.
Two San Jose State possessions later, it's 14-14 and the momentum shifts to the other side.
VonAppen didn't know what the fuss was all about.
As far as he was concerned, the quarterback switcheroo had nothing to do with the 'Bows getting their heads handed to them in the second half -- especially in the third quarter, when the Spartans exploded for 28 points.
Well maybe. San Jose State can score and it did.
But there was utter disbelief and groans from the press box and in the stands when the change was made.
"If it ain't broke, don't fix it" was the outcry.
Well, the Rainbow offense that had been clicking on all cylinders got tinkered with and broke down.
Apparently, the coaching staff planned on bringing Liana in no matter what Robinson did. It was scripted, much like Bill Walsh used to do for the first 10-12 plays when he was with the San Francisco 49ers.
All of Walsh's scripting, though, was done with a pretty good quarterback doing the executing.
OK, Robinson is no Joe Montana. But Liana is no Robinson.
That's what made the QB change so puzzling. It wouldn't have been so bad if they were comparable in talent.
NEVER mind the nuances such as cadence, voice inflection and timing that can disrupt an offense whenever a different quarterback enters the game.
But there's such a drop-off in talent between Robinson and Liana that to even think about rotating them, and still having any success, is wishful thinking.
It was an idea that went awry, reflecting a season that has gone awry for the Rainbows. And it didn't help that they played perhaps the most dreadful third quarter in school history.
Two shanked punts, yet another personal-foul penalty by the kickoff team and a fumble by Robinson that the Spartans returned 61 yards for a touchdown, followed immediately by a Liana interception thrown directly to a defender for another quickie score all contributed to 15 minutes of shame for the Rainbows.
No wonder they're 0-9 this season with no victory in sight. Nobody can win playing football that badly.
But it sure would have been interesting to know what might have been if Robinson hadn't been yanked at that point of the game.
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