With a dramatic win over a ranked opponent, a total of five victories under its belt and in the middle of a four-game hot streak, the Hawaii football team's eyes now turn to a bowl bid as its goal for the remainder of the season, June Jones said yesterday. Hot Warriors close
to being bowl-eligibleStar-Bulletin staff
How many wins would it take?
"No idea, minimum seven, probably," Jones said. "And maybe then, not even that (would be enough). In years past, if we won seven, we would go. But without the Aloha Bowl and the Oahu Bowl, I don't know what it is going to take now."
Is that UH's only goal? "Yep," Jones said, later noting that he refuses to watch the scoreboard in the conference race, despite the newly wide-open WAC standings.
"You can't worry about how who's playing who and where," Jones said. "You just take care of your own deal and if you're there at the end, you're there at the end. You don't worry about anything else."
Jones said that Ashley Lelie's dramatic fourth-quarter touchdowns summed up the team's recent success.
"Everybody asks me the difference between last year and this year? We make those plays. Last year we didn't make 'em. We dropped 'em."
He throws with his right: A handful of Warriors sustained injuries in the win over Fresno State, with receiver Tafiti Uso likely out with a shoulder injury. The rest, with the exception of defensive back/special teams player Matt Manuma, who was injured at Tulsa, will probably play if needed.
"We finished the game without (cornerback) Abe (Elimimian), but hopefully he'll be able to play," Jones said. "Rolo (quarterback Nick Rolovich), I don't think is hurt. He'll be fine.
"The one I'm most concerned of is (defensive tackle) Mike Iosua. He's continually hurting his shoulder and it's frustrating for him. And I feel bad for him because of that because he's such a good player and such a big heart for everybody."
Come together: Jones continues to talk about the bonding that he and several team members have credited as part of the turnaround in Hawaii's season.
"I felt it in training camp. And in fact, I felt it when I came back from the wreck that we were kind of closer than we've ever been," Jones said.
"As a coach, I spend more time trying to develop (chemistry) than game plans to win games. Because that ultimately wins for you."
Short yardage: Lelie leads the WAC and is sixth in the nation in receiving yards per game (117.3) and is second in the WAC and third nationally with 7.86 catches per game. ... Roberts Hawaii School Bus will be running stadium shuttle service from the Hawaii Kai, Mililani and Kaneohe areas for the San Jose State game. Call 832-4886. ... Nate Jackson's "pain tolerance is higher than everybody else's," Jones said. ... Jones received congratulatory phone calls from Bill Walsh and Pat Bowlen, among others. ... Jones is aware that sophomore quarterback Tim Chang is eligible for a medical hardship, but, "if he can help us win a game, he'll play."