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Sidelines
Kalani Simpson
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Don't like criticism? Don't boo
OK. Here it is. You know what? Just don't boo.
Yeah?
Not that hard.
And it just looks bad. It's ugly. And Hawaii, thanks to a string of football incidents (from 15-yard penalties to full-on riots), has not had a great reputation for sportsmanship lately. So people are all too willing to skip steps and make snap judgments and eliminate the benefit of the doubt when it comes to UH and stuff like this.
So booing is probably not going to come across well, especially while an opposing player is down.
That said, the more hindsight we have the clearer it is that Saturday's incident was overblown. It's a shame that it was one of the storylines that came out of UH's landmark win over then-No. 4 Michigan State (but then, see above).
Most people had no idea that a Spartan player was seriously injured, probably couldn't even see him when he was surrounded by a huddle, almost under the MSU bench. No one who could have seen him, muscles seizing up, covered by ice, would have booed.
What most people saw was a) a long delay of the game, and b) Tom Izzo getting animated.
And Izzo went a little nuts, throwing out accusations. Playing the "Don't make this the story, but I just made it the story" card.
Can't blame him. His guy was injured, he heard booing and some guy said something to him that made him "the maddest I've ever been as a basketball coach."
Who knows what happened. Izzo mentioned it and then said he wasn't going to mention it.
You could say much of it was a misunderstanding. But booing never looks good. There's one sure way to avoid situations like this.
Because UH can't afford any more black eyes.
And this is just one more reason for people nationally to believe anything they hear.
» OK, Kansas would have to be 1, Saturday's Hawaii win 1A.
Kansas was the championship game of the 1997 Rainbow Classic. There was buildup there. UH had beaten Indiana. Kansas had had a chance to warm up.
This last one was a classic Trap Game, all the way. First game. Maui looming.
It was legit, though. No. 300 for Riley Wallace was one for the ages.
» One more reason why Bob Nash should get the gig when Wallace retires after next season: Nash had Michigan State scouted so perfectly the 'Bows had the Spartans' offense down cold.
"We pretty much knew what they were going to do on every play," Matt Lojeski said.
Doubly impressive, one of the MSU beat writers said, because, "They have a playbook this thick." And he
held his fingers the way you do when you say "this thick."
» Thursday night, the Rainbow Wahine going out for a fifth game against New Mexico State, all the momentum was going the other way. There was a very, very, very real chance Hawaii was going to lose. So much for all the streaks. It was a perilous moment, to say the least.
And true freshman Jamie Houston goes out for the fifth game smiling.
That's a good sign, for years to come.
» Also: Tara Hittle is back. Just in time.
» All the ESPN talk that Pat Hill could get a BCS job, or even an NFL position, just shows the things that can come out of your mouth when you have minutes to fill. I like Hill, and he's having a great year. And he's had a really good run in nine years on the job. But he's right where he should be at Fresno State.
This season he finally beats Boise and he's off to the NFL?
Besides, Hill probably wouldn't want to leave even if he did have those kinds of options. Is there another Division I program in the country where the head coach could have a mustache like that? Seriously.
Wyoming, maybe. But that's at best a lateral move.
» Speaking of Boise State's Dan Hawkins, he breaks his toe kicking a chair in the locker room? The real Gandhi would have been appalled.
Actually the best thing he probably did in Boise State's furious second half on the way to a 70-35 win over Idaho on Saturday was pulling his quarterback. Jared Zabransky was an incredible talent last year, but hasn't been himself all season.
Yes, it seems even Gandhi would have gone to the backup by now.
» This week: Utah State at New Mexico State. Unfortunately, I'm not talking basketball.
UH fans have to be rooting for New Mexico State. You wouldn't wish 0-12 on anybody.
» Thank goodness the Badgers are bringing some fans.