Sports Notebook
Star-Bulletin staff
|
WARRIOR FOOTBALL
Hawaii-Navy game in '09 moved to November
Hawaii will host Navy in football on Nov. 21, 2009 at Aloha Stadium instead of in the season-opening game on Sept. 5 of that year, UH athletic director
Jim Donovan said yesterday.
Navy booked Ohio State for Sept. 5, and Donovan agreed to change the appointment with the Midshipmen.
"We received a request from their athletic director and we made an accommodation for them," Donovan said. "It's in our best interest."
UH is working on one more game to fill the 2009 schedule. It will be booked for Sept. 5 or Dec. 5, Donovan said.
"We're in discussions about the open dates," he said. "The good thing is the first and last games of the season are the easiest to book. But we are getting to the 11th hour to fill the 2009 schedule."
Navy is coached by Ken Niumatalolo, a former Radford and UH quarterback.
Comfort zone
Tyler Graunke, the starting quarterback for the Green team in tomorrow's Warrior Bowl estimated himself at an "8 out of 10" in comfort when the Warriors take snaps from under center in the overhauled offensive system.
"I'm getting more comfortable every single day," Graunke said. "There's no cheap payoff for hard work.
"There were a lot of new guys to form chemistry with," he added, "but we bought into a new system and we're rolling with it."
The senior sounded excited about the live action of tomorrow's spring game.
"I'm getting ready for a game right now where we're gonna be throwing live bullets," Graunke said. "Florida's spring game was on ESPN. we're not at that level, but we're getting there."
Signature moves
Quarterbacks Graunke and
Inoke Funaki will be joined by the following players in an autograph and photo session from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at Aloha Stadium, prior to the 7 p.m. start of the Warrior Bowl:
John Estes,
Keith AhSoon,
Keoni Steinhoff,
Leon Wright-Jackson,
Adam Leonard,
Solomon Elimimian,
Keala Watson,
Fale Laeli,
Ryan Mouton,
Blaze Soares,
Keao Monteilh,
Josh Leonard,
David Veikune and
John Fonoti.
Training day
Senior defensive tackle
Keala Watson led ha'a and haka training for newcomers after practice Wednesday, and the Black and Green teams closed yesterday's mock game with a showdown of the Hawaiian version of the Maori war chant created by Watson and 2007 Warriors
Brad Kalilimoku and
Guyton Galdeira and the original, brought to the team by in-laws of former offensive lineman
Tala Esera from New Zealand.
Some newcomers are still working on the basics.
"Jake (Heun) said the only dance he knows is the river dance, but he's picking it up," Watson said.