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Thursday, September 28, 2000
Lempa: The expressions worn on the faces of the University of Hawaii coaching staff are extra long in worry.
Defensive players
‘can’t freelance’
UH defensive coordinator
QB secret until game time
wants players to work
within the frameworkBy Paul Arnett
Star-BulletinSix weeks ago, Warriors defensive coordinator Kevin Lempa knew who is starting 11 were, as well as the top five backups. But, oh, how times have changed.
Lempa exited practice yesterday wondering what charter bus had plowed through his team, leaving him a group of dazed and confused youngsters in need of assistance. Top defenders Dee Miller and Joe Correia are sidelined with injuries bad enough to keep them from practice and out of Saturday's Western Athletic Conference meeting with the University of Tulsa.
Safeties Nate Jackson and Tavis Campbell are back from injuries suffered in fall camp, but neither is at full speed. Defensive linemen Mike Iosua, Chris Brown and Lui Fuga are playing with a variety of aches and pains that will likely plague them the rest of the way.
Lempa feels their pain, but can offer little solace. It's up to him to hold things together well enough for his defense to stop the Golden Hurricane's ground assault and to be prepared for the aerial show that's sure to follow.
"One of our problems has been the guys are trying too hard to make the plays," Lempa said. "They forget about their responsibilities and vacate their gaps, and that's not how the defense is designed to work. You can't free-lance. You must play within the framework of the defense."
It's like this. You stay home and man the fort, first and foremost.
"If you see the play developing away from you, then you pursue to the football," Lempa said. "We just haven't been getting it done, especially against the run, and that has to change. Injuries have been a part of it, but that's no excuse."
It's too early to drag out too many statistics and start comparing the numbers. Two games does not a season make. But here are the cold, hard facts. Hawaii is yielding more than 40 points and 400 yards a game. The Warriors are No. 113 nationally in scoring defense, No. 97 in total defense and No. 102 in passing efficiency.
Lempa plans to start Pisa Tinoisamoa at middle linebacker in place of Rinda Brooks, who is ailing himself with a pair of bad knees. But UH's leading tackler will still play. The defensive front will have to adjust with Correia out. Brown, Laanui Correa and freshman Houston Ala will be in the mix.
What they are up against is a Tulsa offense that runs double tight end sets, much like Texas-El Paso did, but also employs the three- and four-wide formations on passing downs. Fullback Ken Bohanon leads the team in rushing with 247 yards on 59 carries. If you slow him, then quarterback Josh Blankenship looks deep to Donald Shoals.
Blankenship has thrown for 922 yards and four touchdowns in four games. Shoals has 23 receptions for 347 yards and Corey Brown has 20 catches for 245 yards and three scores. Tulsa can pass, but it likes to set it up through play-action.
"If they establish the running game, that opens up the pass even more," Lempa said. "I like the looks of their quarterback. He has a strong, accurate arm and a pair of talented receivers to throw to. We have to come out and play better."
The same can be said for the offense. No matter who quarterbacks, the Warriors need to produce more scoring. At this point, they are ranked last in the WAC, averaging 13.5 points a game. And one of those touchdowns was scored by the special teams.
Head coach June Jones and his offensive staff have studied films of Tulsa's defense, and they're familiar with what first-year head coach Keith Burns liked to do when he was the defensive coordinator at Arkansas. He uses a scheme that uses multiple fronts and coverages in the secondary.
"They like to zone blitz in the front seven and play zone in the secondary," Jones said. "They are a pretty well-disciplined, aggressive unit. Coach Burns' influence is on the defense. He brought with him his basic style."
The defensive leaders for Tulsa range from veteran inside linebacker Ashon Farley to true freshman cornerback C.J. Scott. Farley leads the team in tackles with 38, including one sack. Scott has forced two fumbles with his hard hits and recovered one. Against Rice's option, he managed a team-high 12 tackles to show his diversity.
"This is a good football team that will certainly test our guys," Jones said. "We need to worry more about ourselves and start executing our own game plan before we worry too much about what they're going to do.
"We're hoping all those dropped footballs will run their course. We don't want to dwell on too many of the bad things. We want to do those things well to help make our offense go. Right now, we've stopped ourselves more than anything else. For our offense to work, we have to execute at every position. So far, we haven't done that enough."
In an effort to keep the University of Tulsa guessing, Warriors head coach June Jones won't announce the starting quarterback until game time. UH FOOTBALL NOTEBOOK
QB to be named
at game timeJunior college transfer Nick Rolovich and freshman Timmy Chang are contending for a spot that hasn't produced the kind of numbers Jones needs to make this offense productive.
The proof is not only in the 0-2 start, but in the statistics as well. Hawaii produced 578 passing yards off of 104 attempts in the two losses to Portland State and UTEP for an average of 5.6 yards an attempt.
Those two teams passed a combined 58 times and managed 500 yards for an average of 8.6 yards an attempt. Part of the reason for this disparity is bad decisions by Rolovich and Chang. The other part is breakdowns among the receivers, who have dropped nearly 20 passes.
Jones is working on improving those numbers in practice, but doesn't want to give away his hand until Saturday.
"We just want to keep it under wraps to give Tulsa something else to think about," Jones said after yesterday morning's workout. "Both guys do things a little differently. We also want to see them in practice a couple of more days before making a determination."
Neither player is having a stellar season. UTEP quarterback Rocky Perez leads the WAC in quarterback efficiency with a rating of 145.4. Rolovich is last in the WAC among qualified quarterbacks with a rating of 87.3. Chang doesn't have enough attempts, but his rating is lower still at 72.36.
"We practiced the same way we did (Tuesday) with both quarterbacks taking reps," Jones said. "Both guys are doing a good job of throwing the ball. They're working hard like everyone else and getting better every week."
Injury update
Defensive end Joe Correia and strong safety Dee Miller did not practice today, giving credence to Jones' prediction that neither will play this weekend.Miller is bothered by a deep hamstring pull that could take several weeks to heal completely. Correia has a bruised foot. It's not as serious as some of the injuries he played through last year, but the pain is intense. He is still walking with a perceptible limp.
Middle linebacker Rinda Brooks practiced on two sore knees. He will likely be replaced by Pisa Tinoisamoa as the starter in this week's game, although defensive coordinator Kevin Lempa said yesterday that wasn't etched in stone.
To compensate for Miller's and Correia's injuries, Lempa shifted Jacob Espiau from free to strong safety where he will be more involved with defending the tight end and supporting the run.
Nate Jackson returns to his normal free safety spot after filling in at strong safety for Miller in the loss at UTEP. Jackson is quicker and better suited for pass defense.
UH also has rotated freshman defensive lineman Lance Samuseva into the mix. He has been bothered by a hamstring pull, but the former Farrington High player could see some playing time along with fellow freshman Houston Ala.
Rosehill loses petition
Senior defensive lineman Olen Rosehill got the news from the NCAA that his petition for another year has been turned down.Rosehill played only one down in 1999 and had hoped the NCAA would grant him another season.
"We got the news yesterday," Jones said. "They just turned him down.
By Paul Arnett, Star-Bulletin
2000 UH Football Special
