Saturday, July 31, 1999
It’s Hammer time
The Hawaii Hammerheads are
By Pat Bigold
'barely hanging on' but are one
win from hosting an IPFL
playoff game
Star-BulletinYou have to wonder how they've done it.
The Hawaii Hammerheads (9-5) go into tomorrow's opener of a two-game homestand against the Louisiana Bayou Beast (5-9) as the second best team in the Indoor Professional Football League.
If they win either tomorrow's 4 p.m. game or the regular-season finale on Wednesday night, they will clinch a home playoff berth against the third-place Mississippi Firedogs (8-7).
Mississippi defeated the host Rocky Mountain Thunder, 44-34, last night in Colorado to improve to 8-7 and clinch the third and last playoff spot.
The second-place team will host the third-place finisher in the first round for the right to meet the first-place Texas Terminators (11-3) in the IPFL championship game in Austin next month.
But getting to the playoffs has been painful for the Hawaii team. And it might get even worse.
The Hammerheads have played six of their last seven games on the road, lost key players to injuries and job commitments, stood up on plane rides over the Pacific because their large bodies couldn't tolerate the tight seating in coach class - and all for $200 a game.
"We're barely hanging on," said Hawaii head coach Guy Benjamin. "We barely have enough guys to finish practice. These guys have to work for a living. It's too much for them and the injuries, too, are taking a toll."
‘We barely have enough
guys to finish practice...
This has been a
long season.’Guy Benjamin
HAWAII HAMMERHDEADS COACHBut Benjamin was intensely absorbed in drawing up game plans yesterday at his home.
Even after he'd lost his originals in a computer crash, he tried to keep his cool.
"This has been a long season for these guys," he said. "We play so physical and (defensive coordinator Doug) Semones and I don't let up on them. And none of them have had to do this for 16 games over an 18-week period."
Even more startling, although it's born of the club's deep financial crisis, is that the Hammerheads team ownership would like the first playoff game to be played in Mississippi, whether or not Hawaii clinches second this week.
George Hetherington, co-chair of the 10-owner Hammerheads group, said that Mississippi drew 6,000 paying customers when Hawaii played there a few weeks ago.
By contrast, Hetherington said only about 1,400 of the 2,500 who saw the Hammerheads upset Texas on July 3 were paying customers. That was the largest paying audience of the year for Hawaii, which has averaged only about 800 paying customers all season.
"Hawaii would be a big draw in Biloxi because the series is tied at 1-1," Hetherington said.
The Hammerheads lost their last game, 35-20, to the Firedogs in Biloxi on July 17.
Hetherington said the fact that Biloxi is a casino town is another inducement.
"The casinos would give us a bunch of freebies (e.g., lodging and food)," he said.
He said Hawaii would suffer hosting an IPFL playoff. The $10,000 cost of renting the Blaisdell Arena would be deducted at the gate. He also said the visiting team is entitled to take all of its travel costs from the gate receipts.
"That will basically eat up anything we're likely to do in Honolulu," said Hetherington.
"Going to Mississippi is a no-brainer. But then going to Texas, where they average 1,500 to 2,000, we'd get only about $10,000 for travel, and it would cost us $40,000 out-of-pocket this time of year to go there."
The Hammerheads have won a league-best seven of their last nine games, primarily due to a league-leading turnover margin of plus-12.Hawaii has forced 35 turnovers and lost only 23.
The secondary duo of two-time junior college All-American Chris Paogofie and former All-WAC standout Eddie Klaneski have five player of the week awards between them.
Paogofie has forced two fumbles, recovered three, broken up nine passes, and intercepted five. His 92 tackles are third best in the league even though he has missed a few games.
Klaneski has broken up six passes, intercepted six (returning three for touchdowns), and made 58 tackles.
A dangerous kick returner, Klaneski has scored three times on returns.
Hawaii is third in overall offense and defense.Benjamin ticked off his litany of casualties last night:
"Paogofie has a stinger and we held him out of the game in Missiissippi, but he'll play this week. We didn't have Niko Vitale (third in the IPFL in scoring and fourth in rushing) for the Mississippi game due to a family reunion in Samoa.
"Calvin Mims is done. He couldn't recover from an ankle injury and they found out it's his Achilles. John Obey moved away and there we lose a guy who was up there near the top of the league in interceptions (five) playing cornerback.
"James Barrientos, who was probably our best defensive lineman - the best athlete on the team - quit about halfway through the season. And (lineman) Mika Liilii's knee has just never come around."
Asked what kind of shape his defensive coordinator, Semones, was in after running with the bulls in Pamplona, Spain, a few weeks ago, Benjamin laughed.
"He's alive, which is a big plus," said Benjamin. "Not only did he run it once. He ran it twice. But he said as long as you don't fall on the ground, you were OK."
