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Sidelines Kalani Simpson |
UH’s fun and games
end with ArmyYOU knew how this one was going to go right away. No, not as early as Timmy Chang throwing an interception on Hawaii's first possession of the night -- though the way this season has gone, it did make you wonder.
No, the big clue was what happened a few minutes later.
UH freshman Jason Rivers ran through a couple of woulda-coulda-shouldas, pulled away from a few future superior officers and the next thing you knew a potential 3-yard gain was a 59-yard highlight of a touchdown strike. 10-nothing. Boom.
Those are the kind of things that happen to you when you're 0-11.
On the very next play from scrimmage, Hawaii corner Kelvin Millhouse stepped in front of an errant pass and took it in for an easy score.
Those are the kind of things that make you 0-12.
And the next thing you knew, it was 59-28.
I'm not 100 percent sure, but I swear I heard Vili and his drum crew playing "Jingle Bells."
Yes, UH -- this Hawaii team -- is in a bowl game.
But more on that later this week. For now let's let these guys celebrate a return to Aloha Stadium glory, and concentrate on the night that was.
Army. Um, Army was determined. And when you reach for things to say about a team, when you get to "they never give up," that's usually a bad sign. UH had these guys in the physical ability department before they got off the bus, and then the Cadets made all the mistakes losing teams make. Missed tackles ("They made us miss," Army coach John Mumford would say). False start on fourth-and-a-foot. A bad interception, a goal-line fumble. Wasted third-and-shorts. (When will coaches learn to stop trying to get cute against Travis LaBoy? What was that trick play about? Doesn't anybody watch the film?)
Perfect timing.
Great scheduling.
Hawaii needed this seventh win, on a couple of levels.
So is the Hawaii offense back? Yes and no. It looked a lot better, it felt a lot better. All the numbers were there, a school record. Regardless of the level of competition, these guys did what they needed to do. Let's use the magic word. They executed.
Rivers may have become a man on this night. A tackle-breaking touchdown. A great long leaping grab. A crushing block. Whatever. He's not a freshman anymore, and that's big news.
And then of course there was Chad Owens lighting it up like a video game. Sweet electricity. But let's hope this brilliance doesn't result in bad habits. Running backward may not always work against the kind of athletes who are coming next week.
Which brings us to three interceptions (including one returned for a touchdown) against 0-11 Army. That's the single stat that doesn't look so hot with Alabama coming to town in desperate need of a win and Boise State playing like it is on some kind of mission.
"These next two home games against 'Bama and Boise are going to test out what our team is really made of," senior receiver Clifton Herbert said.
"Alabama," June Jones said, "is going to be tough."
That's the thing about playing Army. Hawaii should feel good about this win. But these next couple of opponents have more than determination, discipline and patriotism on their side.
See the Columnists section for some past articles.
Kalani Simpson can be reached at ksimpson@starbulletin.com
