[ WARRIOR FOOTBALL ]
GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
Hawaii's Ross Dickerson, who took a hit from Rice's Brandon Boyd in September, caught a TD pass in practice yesterday.
Elimimian finally
gets beat deep
It is not very often Abraham Elimimian gets beat deep. In fact, Hawaii's three-year starter at cornerback allowed the grand total of zero touchdown passes in games last season.
Yesterday, someone finally got behind him cradling a football. Elimimian, one of the most competitive Warriors, is not happy about it. But he's glad it was during spring practice, the work of teammates.
In team drills, freshman quarterback Jack Rolovich found sophomore wide receiver Ross Dickerson open on a post pattern for what would have been six points in a game, with Elimimian trailing.
"It's a little deceiving, it's not necessarily his fault because they were in zone," quarterbacks coach Dan Morrison said. "It was a nice play by Jack and Ross and good for their confidence."
Morrison added that the offense has added some new pass routes to its arsenal and caught the defense by surprise.
"It was a busted coverage by our secondary, but I'll take responsibility. It's spring practice, so I'm taking risks too, to see what I can do to try to make plays," Elimimian said. "But give credit to the offense. We can't worry too much about it. They are one of the best offenses in the nation."
Coach June Jones complimented Rolovich's progress, pointing out that the true freshman didn't get many repetitions last fall.
Rolovich is competing with Kainoa Akina, Jeff Rhode and Ryan Stickler for the No. 2 quarterback spot behind Tim Chang going into fall camp.
"(Dickerson's) had a nice spring, too. Hopefully he keeps it up," Jones said of the Saint Louis School grad who is moving from slot to wideout.
Rolovich echoed Morrison.
"The offense was clicking and the receivers were making the right reads," he said. "We worked on some new routes, a couple new deep routes and new concepts we've got to learn. It was something the defense hadn't seen, so it worked out for us."
Jones said he was impressed by several players on the defensive front.
"Matt Faga, Lui Fuga and Abu Ma'afala on the inside and Tony Akpan and Ikaika Alama-Francis at end all looked pretty good today," Jones said.
Film deal: A documentary profiling the paths to the NFL taken by former UH players Pisa Tinoisamoa and Isaac Sopoaga has been bought by ESPN, said the film's creator, Jeremy Spear.
The film, entitled "Splitting the Rock," is about the impact Samoan players have made on the game, and vice versa, in recent years.
It is similar in some ways to the basketball documentary "Hoop Dreams," Spear said.
"ESPN plans to show it in 2005, in conjunction with the Pro Bowl," Spear said.
Short yardage: Freshman defensive end Karl Noa has also caught Jones' eye this spring. Noa has added 21 pounds to his 6-foot-4 frame since last fall, and is up to 230 pounds. ... Coaches from the Kamehameha-Hawaii campus (where former UH coach Bob Wagner is athletic director) are visiting practice this week. ... UH assistant coaches Rich Miano and Mel deLaura are holding their Speed and Quickness Camps this weekend. Call 739-5444 for information, or see the Web site at www.hawaiispeedandquickness.com
