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Sacks were minor
setbacks in big victory

THE University of Hawaii offensive line hadn't yielded two sacks in one game since its loss to the University of Tulsa six weeks ago.

But before you call Warriors offensive line coach Mike Cavanaugh to ask him what went wrong in Hawaii's 37-17 victory, take a look at the first sack of quarterback Tim Chang.

The play called was a screen pass to James Fenderson in the flat. Not only did the Wolf Pack send everybody on the blitz, the defense also managed to have a guy on Fenderson.

Seeing Fenderson covered, Chang hesitated just long enough to be wrapped up by several Nevada defenders coming clean.

What Chang should have done was fire a pass to Hawaii head coach June Jones standing on the sidelines and come back for another play. But he didn't, and it resulted in the first of two sacks.

Still, the offensive front has given up only eight sacks in 452 pass plays, for an average of one every 56.5 attempts.

"They were bringing all kinds of pressure," Cavanaugh said. "We did a pretty good job of picking things up. They did a lot of different things they hadn't shown.

"They came right out in a 3-3 look and brought everybody. We saw it and picked it up. I thought the guys did a helluva job. We ran the ball super and that makes a big difference."

Forney down

Late in the fourth quarter, offensive tackle Kynan Forney went down with an ankle sprain. X-rays after the game proved negative. UH trainers said he should be back this weekend, but Forney said, "We'll see. Right now, it's very sore. Somebody just rolled up on it in the pile."

Senior running back Afatia Thompson didn't play because of a bad ankle. Neither did linebacker Lonnie Williams and down lineman Mike Iosua. Williams could be back this weekend, but Thompson remains doubtful.

As expected, offensive guard Vince Manuwai went the distance with a pulled hamstring. Linebacker Robert Kemfort played in the second half, sore ribs and all, and finished with one tackle.

Headset problems

Headset problems forced Nevada's coaches to stay on the sidelines throughout the second half. Wolf Pack main man Chris Tormey made mention of it, not because it cost Nevada the game, but because Hawaii didn't shelve its headsets as well.

Often, when one side goes down, a gentleman's agreement comes into play where the other side doesn't use its headsets, either. But Jones didn't go for that.

"Our headphones didn't work and I guess they (UH) didn't have to take theirs off," Tormey said. "But that's not the reason we lost."

Jones was unaware of any gentleman's agreement in the college game, and said so after Saturday's hard-fought victory.

"Ours were out the last two weeks," Jones said. "I don't know what the rule is. You bring your own."

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By Paul Arnett, Star-Bulletin