The Way I See It
EDDIE Klaneski was proudly wearing his Rainbows shirt Saturday as he entered Maybe fans won’t
desert RainbowsAloha Stadium. He was telling everybody how different things were going to be this season.
Klaneski, who used to be the emotional sparkplug of the Rainbows' football program, was just as shocked as everyone else at what transpired over the next three hours.
"I felt bad for them because I expected a lot more," said Klaneski, who recently helped the Hawaii Hammerheads win the Indoor Professional Football League championship. "I didn't feel very good walking out of there."
But Klaneski said he was surprised to find that the fans leaving the stadium weren't down on the coaches and players.
"We kind of noticed there wasn't a lot of bad-mouthing," he said. "They were saying, 'Maybe we're not that bad. Maybe USC is just a very good team.' "
If that's the mood, then maybe the honeymoon with the Hawaii coaching staff hasn't come to an abrupt end, and this weekend's gate won't be a disaster. Football fans in Hawaii have been living on hope for the past several years, so it wouldn't be surprising if they continued to cling to it for another weekend.
Especially since this weekend's opponent is a Division I-AA school.
Klaneski and another former Rainbow, Brendyn Agbayani, both pointed to timing as the main problem in Hawaii's poor run-and-shoot debut.
"I just think they need more reps," said Klaneski.
USC seems to have laid it on (62-7) against Hawaii for the polls. Is that what St. Louis is doing for Fox Sports poll maker Doug Huff and Dick Butkus Football Network poll maker Dave Smith?
I just don't see the necessity of 221 points in three games against inferior opponents. Neither preseason opponent (Chugiak of Alaska and West High of Utah) was nationally or regionally ranked. In fact West High wasn't even one of Utah's best teams.
I sympathize with local beating victims like Pac-Five and Damien (the Monarchs took it last year and will undoubtedly take it again this year).
Huff, who flew out here as the guest of St. Louis a few years ago, has the Crusaders ranked No. 3. The Butkus poll has St. Louis at No. 2.
Meanwhile, the USA Today rankings still have St. Louis at No. 18. Poll-maker Dave Krider isn't impressed by big margins in mighty mismatches.
Email me your thoughts at pbigold@starbulletin.com
It's about time somebody began this service.
Yahoo's search engine on the internet is providing Athlete Crime News at http://fullcoverage.yahoo.com/Full_Coverage/Sports/Athlete_Crime/
Current items about our overpaid heroes include Charlotte Hornets forward Derrick Coleman being charged with urinating in front of restaurant patrons in Detroit and Hall of Famer Jim Brown's wife testifying he threatened to snap her neck.
Time to rock the pedestals.
Former Kamehameha star Lily Kahumoku showed last night what can happen when Hawaii's best stay home to play.
So, how did Joe Igber (Iolani), Hawaii's all-time leading prep rusher, do in his debut for California during the Bears' 21-7 victory over Rutgers over the weekend?
The first time he was given the ball, he went 35 yards.
Pat Bigold has covered sports for daily newspapers
in Hawaii and Massachusetts since 1978.
