Hawaii football coach June Jones said the Warriors had no choice but to not comply with a Western Athletic Conference rule prior to the Dec. 25 Hawaii Bowl. Jones says Warriors
UH has 8 in Hula Bowl
couldn’t meet new
WAC requirementFrom staff and wire reports
UH did not certify that each of its players passed six units of school work in the fall semester, which ended Dec. 20.
Hawaii's lack of compliance drew ire from Fresno State athletic director Scott Johnson. The Bulldogs did certify and played in the Silicon Valley Classic on Tuesday without seven players.
"We're going to be very concerned about that and ask for sanctions," Johnson said in yesterday's Fresno Bee. " ... We were under the impression everyone else was following it, too."
Jones said UH would have certified its players if it had been logistically possible.
"If we'd played the same day they did we would have certified the correct way," Jones said. "Ask them what we should do. I honestly don't know."
Hawaii athletic director Herman Frazier said on Monday he did not think the Warriors used any ineligible players, but he was not sure.
"We just went by what we were told to do, and that's the way we did it," Jones said.
WAC commissioner Karl Benson said UH's non-compliance will be reviewed, but there is no timetable.
"We can't predict when this will be resolved," Benson said. "There is no timeline."
Benson added that Boise State, which played in Tuesday's Humanitarian Bowl, was in full compliance with the certification rule.
Fresno State beat Georgia Tech 30-21 on Tuesday.
Instead of enjoying his first bowl victory, FSU coach Pat Hill opened his postgame news conference by protecting his program's image.
"The last eight days have been as hard an eight days as we've ever gone though as a football team, trying to live up to this WAC rule and get all of our players certified," Hill said.
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