Saturday, September 8, 2001
[ UH WARRIOR FOOTBALL ]
Falling into place IT'S almost a given that the Hawaii football team will score lots of points this season. Almost the entire starting offensive unit is back for more fun with the run-and-shoot.
The Warriors won't be making it
up as they go along this time, but
concerns remain with a shuffle
of personnel on defensePicking up the pieces
By Dave Reardon
dreardon@starbulletin.comHawaii was fourth in the nation in passing yardage last year. That's not bad for a group that included some guys who, according to coach June Jones, winged it at times.
"I think this is the first time since I got here (in 1999) that when I call a play everybody knows what to do," Jones said earlier this week.
But it won't matter how many times the Warriors score if they don't do a better job on defense than last season.
UH heads into tonight's opener against Division I-AA national runner-up Montana with eight defensive players who started at various times last year.
But when defensive coordinator Kevin Lempa's unit takes the War Memorial Stadium field, only end Laanui Correa and safety Nate Jackson will be in the same positions at which they started last season's final game against Nevada-Las Vegas.
Middle linebacker Chris Brown was an end. So was outside linebacker Joe Correia when he was healthy. The other outside linebacker, Pisa Tinoisamoa, played in the middle last year.
The game of musical positions doesn't end with the returning starters: Tackle Wayne Hunter used to be an end, cornerback Kelvin Millhouse was a receiver and safety Robert Grant, a running back until last spring, is a key backup.
Some changes are due to injuries. Most are because Hawaii gave up 405.2 yards a game in its 3-9 season of a year ago.
Lempa said the Warriors are capable of better, and that the shifting of personnel will help. He said the moves aren't borne of desperation, but of getting the right people into the right places."Although a lot of the guys are new at their positions, it helps that so many of them know the overall defense," he said. "Whoever we moved, now they have more knowledge of the overall defense. They've been in a game and they've played a lot. Because it's been at different positions some of them are a little nervous. But once the game starts they'll be all right."
UH was especially vulnerable against the run in 2000. With Correia, Brown and Tinoisamoa at linebacker, Lempa is confident the Warriors won't give up 2,529 rushing yards again, and Jackson and fellow safety Jacob Espiau won't have to lead the team in tackles as they did a year ago.
The Warriors get their first test against a strong runner tonight in the Grizzlies' Yohance Humphery. Humphery, Montana's leading all-time rusher, carried for 159 yards and a touchdown in Montana's 31-17 season-opening victory at Cal Poly last week.
While the linebackers are expected to be better, Lempa said they will need help from Hunter and his linemates.
"Wayne Hunter will be going up against their best offensive lineman, No. 73 (left guard Thatcher Szalay)," Lempa said.
Szalay is a 6-foot-5, 295-pound Division I-AA All-American. Hunter (6-6, 286) is a neophyte tackle, but he is also potentially Hawaii's best defensive player.
Lempa is also impressed with Montana wide receiver Etu Molden. He said the Warriors' young cornerbacks, sophomores Hyrum Peters and Kelvin Millhouse, will be challenged by Molden, who caught 56 passes in 11 games last year.
Lempa dismissed talk that Hawaii's run-and-shoot, which does not exactly eat the game clock, hurts his defense by keeping it on the field most of the game.
"Part of our job is to be aggressive and get them the ball in good field position," Lempa said.
Most of all, Hawaii knows it can't look past Montana because it is a Division I-AA team. UH opened with I-AA Portland State last season, and took a 45-20 pounding from a team that would later lose 33-21 to Montana.
"Their whole offense is as good as anyone in our league," Jones said of Montana. "Their scheme keeps them in games."
Only if it cuts down on turnovers and penalties can the same truly be said for Hawaii's attack.
While UH rolled up the yards in 2000, it was plagued by penalties and mistakes.
The Warriors were flagged a WAC-high 116 times for 830 yards. UH turned the ball over a league-high 33 times and led the conference in yielding 23 interceptions. The defense was only one away from the top of the WAC in gathering 26 turnovers, but the -7 margin was second-worst in the league.
Montana's defense was not spectacular last season, but it did hold three opponents to fewer than 10 points. Grizzlies coach Joe Glenn said it is the key for his team tonight.
"It's critical that we don't have a track meet and our defense holds," he said. "If offensively we protect the ball and score in the red zone, and we win the kicking game, I know they have a young kicker (freshman Justin Ayat), we have a chance."
Ayat has a strong leg, but his accuracy on mid-range kicks is yet to be determined. Mat McBriar, an Australian in only his second year of American football, punted for a 38.3-yard average for the Warriors last year, and improved over the summer. Clifton Herbert (punts) and Justin Colbert (kicks) are the return men.
UH quarterback Tim Chang, last year's WAC Freshman of the Year, enters tonight with a healthy respect for the Grizzlies' defense.
"They're disciplined. They're not going to bust too many coverages. They're going to be solid up front, you know, they're not going to make little mistakes that other teams might make," Chang said. "I've got to remain disciplined in reading the coverages. My job is just get it to the guys and let them run with it."
All the starting receivers, wideouts Ashley Lelie and Justin Colbert and slots Craig Stutzmann and Channon Harris, are back -- and better, Jones said.
So are four of the starting offensive linemen (including Lombardi and Outland candidate Vince Manuwai at right guard) who allowed only 10 sacks last year, when UH attempted 609 passes.
The only question is at running back, where Tui Ala is at the top of the depth chart but Jones hasn't ruled out starting junior Thero Mitchell or freshman Mike Bass.
Much of it comes back to Chang, though, he of the squeaky voice except when he is barking out signals. He established himself as a team leader as last season wore on.
"He has some of the innate qualities to be the guy," Jones said. "He's stronger, bigger and wiser this year."
The Warriors enter the season with potential starters defensive end Travis Laboy (hamstring) and defensive tackle Lui Fuga (shoulder) out. Defensive backs Peters, Espiau and Jackson all missed some of practice the past three weeks with nagging injuries, but are expected to play.
Jones, who had his team scrimmage only a few plays in camp, is just happy no one incurred a serious injury before tonight's game.
"We're as healthy as we can be. We'll have the guys line up and play," he said. "We've got to take care of the ball on offense and play better defense than we did last year. If we do that we'll have a chance at winning all our ballgames.
"We've been ready for 10 days or so. Everybody's anxious to play," Jones added.
UH Athletics
E-mail to Sports Editor
Text Site Directory:
[News] [Business] [Features] [Sports] [Editorial] [Do It Electric!]
[Classified Ads] [Search] [Subscribe] [Info] [Letter to Editor]
[Feedback]
© 2001 Honolulu Star-Bulletin
https://archives.starbulletin.com