Matchup a must-win for
Warriors, Bulldogs
Hawaii and Fresno State have
bowl dreams that could hardly
stand another loss
Forget for a moment about the Red Mile, Fresno State's BCS bubble burst, secret practice locations, flying pylons, bottles and screwdrivers, Hawaii's injuries, Tim Chang's record, and Pat Hill's selective moratorium on interviews. Forget about all the Big Rivalry's sideshows.
UH at Fresno StateWhere: Bulldog Stadium, Fresno, Calif.When: Tomorrow, 5:30 p.m. Hawaii time TV: Live, ESPN2. Radio: Live, KKEA 1420-AM. Internet: KKEA1420AM.com
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It's time to get past the distractions and down to the basics of tomorrow's Hawaii at Fresno State encounter. Right? Let's take a shot at it.
Victory in this game -- which could mean bowl or no bowl for both schools -- comes down to two things:
1). Hawaii likes to pass, and won't -- or can't -- run. ... Check, the Warriors are second in the nation in passing, and 110th in rushing. Compared to its 324.5 passing yards per game, 94.6 on the ground is a minor nuisance.
2). Fresno State likes to run, and won't -- or can't -- pass. ... Whoa, this is where oversimplification can get you in trouble, especially if you are UH defensive coordinator George Lumpkin.
Yes, for the Warriors (4-4, 4-3 Western Athletic Conference) to extend their streak of victories over Fresno State (5-3, 2-3) to four -- and Vegas says UH is a 19-point underdog -- stopping the run might help. It is a must to at least slow it enough on third down, like last week in a victory against Louisiana Tech and star running back Ryan Moats.
But Hawaii cannot ignore the Fresno State passing game. Junior quarterback Paul Pinegar has emerged from a midseason slump, and the Bulldogs are again a legit threat to score via the airways. Pinegar passed for three first-half touchdowns as Fresno State defeated Rice 52-21 last week.
"Oh yeah, they are definitely more than one-dimensional," Lumpkin said yesterday, after the Warriors' last practice at UH this week. "They've been throwing the ball well and (Pinegar's) doing a nice job."
So Lumpkin's predicament is figuring out a way to take away the passing game without getting run over by Fresno State's strong offensive line and running backs Bryce Sumlin and Wendell Mathis.
"We have to get enough guys in the box to stop the run," Lumpkin said. "Those are two big-time backs. You might as well call them both starters, because they're equally powerful."
Moats wore down in the fourth quarter last week. That won't happen with FSU's two-headed monster.
Lumpkin shakes his head when you ask him who's playing. He truly didn't know yesterday if middle linebacker Ikaika Curnan and weakside linebacker Tanuvasa Moe would be ready to start. Even if they do, freshmen Brad Kalilimoku and C.J. Allen-Jones will likely see lots of time; in fact, Allen-Jones might start ahead of senior Chad Kapanui at strongside.
Cornerback Abraham Elimimian continues to play despite what seems like a new injury every week.
Hill, speaking at his news conference Monday, said he expects the Warriors to play above their youthful heads and broken bodies.
"Remember ... emotions play a big part in this game. This is a drawn-line-in-the-sand game for them, a must win for Hawaii," Hill said, recognizing that UH needs three wins in its last four games for a bowl bid. "We'll get a great shot out of them."
Defensive end Kila Kamakawiwo'ole gives Hawaii a boost, coming back early from an appendectomy.
"He's not as physical as Mel (Purcell, who dominates from the other end), but it's great to have him back," Lumpkin said. "He's so smart and athletic, tough. You always know he's going to be in the right place."
Fresno State's O-line features left tackle Logan Mankins, one of the best in the nation at his position.
"He's very strong. You cannot just be nice with him, you have to strike him first," Hawaii defensive tackle Lui Fuga said. "He'll take you down if you don't. When they run block, they have great legs. Fresno plays like Boise, very disciplined."
When Hawaii has the ball, Chang must be aware of Fresno State's posse of ball-hawking DBs. Hill has spent the past three years collecting every cornerback he could lay his hands on, and some of them are developing into very good players. He has built a defense equally equipped to stop the run and pass.
The 'Dogs have 13 interceptions, led by Richard Marshall and James Sanders with three apiece. Marshall's exploits include a 100-yard interception return against Rice last week.
Few teams have put much pressure on Chang this season, but Hawaii's offensive line is weakened with the loss of starting center Derek Fa'avi to a knee injury. Uriah Moenoa, coming off a hamstring ailment of his own, will likely start at center. Versatile Phil Kauffman could also see extensive action.
Kauffman said he isn't fooled by the Bulldogs' relative lack of size up front.
"They do a lot of stunting, pretty much every play they stunt, and they hit the gaps fast," he said. "They're quick, athletic. Their front four is all quick."
One of the biggest obstacles for Hawaii is its recent road history. UH is 0-3 away from Aloha Stadium this fall, with an eye-popping 161-52 point difference. And the losses have gotten worse with each road venture ... 41-29, 51-20, 69-3. If this were one of those IQ test questions, the next logical score would be 70-something to 0.
The frenzied Fresno faithful, however, will remember Hawaii's 31-21 win the last time UH was there two years ago. They'll do everything within their lung capacity to prevent a repeat.
"It's a tough place to go play," UH coach June Jones said. "They have great fans and a great college atmosphere."
Probable starters
Hawaii Offense X 84 Jason Rivers 6-1 189 So. H 2 Chad Owens 5-9 177 Sr. LT 70 Tala Esera 6-3 291 So. LG 64 Samson Satele 6-2 278 So. C 69 Uriah Moenoa 6-2 336 Sr. or 67 Phil Kauffman 6-1 286 Sr. RG 66 Brandon Eaton 6-2 291 Jr. RT 74 Jeremy Inferrera 6-2 284 So. Y 38 Gerald Welch 5-7 216 Sr. Z 9 Britton Komine 5-10 188 Sr. QB 14 Tim Chang 6-1 196 Sr. RB 6 Michael Brewster 5-5 185 Sr. Defense LE 98 Mel Purcell 6-4 266 Jr. LT 99 Lui Fuga 6-1 294 Sr. RT 91 Matt Faga 6-2 324 Sr. RE 90 Tony Akpan 6-6 274 Jr. or 30 Kila Kamakawiwo'ole 6-3 241 Jr. LB 5 Chad Kapanui 6-0 226 Sr. or 58 C.J. Allen-Jones 6-2 204 Fr. LB 51 Ikaika Curnan 5-10 221 Jr. or 55 Watson Ho'ohuli 5-11 222 Sr. LB 45 Tanuvasa Moe 5-11 210 Jr. or 43 Brad Kalilimoku 5-11 201 Fr. or 50 Lincoln Manutai 6-0 228 Sr. CB 37 Abraham Elimimian 5-10 185 Sr. S 42 Leonard Peters 6-1 184 Jr. S 22 Lamar Broadway 5-11 175 Jr. CB 24 Kenny Patton 6-0 187 Sr. Specialists P 25 Kurt Milne 6-0 196 So. K 47 Justin Ayat 6-0 201 Sr. Snap 61 Bryce Runge 5-11 236 Jr. PR 2 Chad Owens 5-9 177 Sr. KR 21 Jason Ferguson 5-5 157 Fr. Hold 25 Kurt Milne 6-0 196 So. FRESNO STATE Offense WR 84 Joe Fernandez 5-10 175 So. LT 74 Logan Mankins 6-4 320 Sr. LG 77 Ryan Wendell 6-2 260 Fr. C 59 Kyle Young 6-5 320 So. RG 50 Dartangon Shack 6-2 300 Jr. RT 79 Chris Denman 6-6 260 So. TE 49 Stephen Spach 6-4 250 Sr. FB 26 Roshon Vercher 5-11 245 So. WR 6 Jermaine Jamison 6-3 200 Jr. QB 13 Paul Pinegar 6-4 220 Jr. TB 34 Bryson Sumlin 5-10 200 Jr. Defense E 55 Brian Morris 6-2 250 Sr. T 71 Garrett McIntyre 6-3 250 Jr. NT 99 Donyell Booker 6-2 305 Sr. E 47 Claude Sanders 6-3 240 Sr. OLB 28 Manuel Sanchez 6-1 215 So. MLB 51 Dwayne Andrews 6-0 240 So. OLB 45 Todd Garcia 5-11 230 Sr. CB 24 Richard Marshall 5-11 170 So. SS 23 James Sanders 5-11 205 Jr. FS 36 Tyrone Culver 6-1 200 Jr. CB 17 Marcus McCauley 6-1 190 So. Specialists K 38 Brett Visintainer 6-0 185 Sr. P 37 Mike Lingua 6-0 190 So. LS 86 Duncan Reid 6-6 220 Sr. Hold 16 Jordan Christensen 6-3 185 So. KR 5 Adam Jennings 5-10 175 Jr. PR 5 Adam Jennings 5-10 175 Jr.
Schedules
Hawaii (4-4, 4-3 WAC) Sept. 4 Florida Atlantic L, 35-28 (OT) Sept. 18 at Rice L, 41-29 Oct. 2 Tulsa W, 44-16 Oct. 9 Nevada W, 48-26 Oct. 16 Texas-El Paso L, 51-20 Oct. 23 San Jose State W, 46-28 Oct. 29 at Boise State L, 69-3 Nov. 6 Louisiana Tech W, 34-23 Tomorrow at Fresno State Nov. 20 Idaho Nov. 27 Northwestern Dec. 4 Michigan State Fresno State (5-3, 2-3 WAC) Sept. 5 at Washington W, 35-16 Sept. 11 at Kansas State W, 45-21 Sept. 18 Portland State W, 27-17 Oct. 2 at Louisiana Tech L, 28-21 Oct. 9 Texas-El Paso L, 24-21 Oct. 23 at Boise State L, 33-16 Oct. 30 Southern Methodist W, 42-0 Nov. 6 at Rice W, 52-21 Tomorrow Hawaii Nov. 20 Nevada Nov. 27 at San Jose State
Statistical comparison
UH Category FSU 31.5 Scoring 32.4 94.6 Rushing 176.6 324.5 Passing 164.2 419.1 Total Offense 340.9 21.3 First Downs 17.6 5.2 FD Rushing 8.6 14.9 FD Passing 7.4 1.3 FD Penalty 1.6 36.1 Points Allowed 20.0 254.0 Rushing Allowed 156.5 196.6 Passing Allowed 179.1 450.6 Total Offense Allowed 335.6 (above stats are per-game averages) 11-50 Interceptions -- Yards 13-419 38.2 Punting 37.0 50-436 Penalties 66-594 14-5 Fumbles-lost 11-3 27:23 Ave. Time of Possession 29:18 45-108 Third Down Conversion 47-110 4-11 Fourth Down Conversion 4-5
Key players
Rushing A Yards Avg TD Michael Brewster, UH 70 448 6.4 5 West Keli'ikipi, UH 36 197 5.5 3 Bryson Sumlin, FSU 108 507 4.7 5 Wendell Mathis, FSU 66 455 6.9 5 Passing A C I Yards TD Tim Chang, UH 377 218 8 2,489 19 Kainoa Akina, UH 18 7 3 84 0 Paul Pinegar, FSU 208 119 12 1,289 12 Jordan Christensen, FSU 4 2 0 25 0 Receiving Rec Yards Avg TD Chad Owens, UH 63 645 10.2 7 Britton Komine, UH 35 556 15.9 3 Joe Fernandez, FSU 29 371 12.8 4 Jermaine Johnson, FSU 17 203 11.9 1 Tackles S A Tot FL/S Leonard Peters, UH 47 30 77 4.5/0 Mel Purcell, UH 30 15 45 13/5 Tanuvasa Moe, UH 23 21 44 5/2 Chad Kapanui, UH 19 21 40 3/1 Abe Elimimian, UH 30 10 40 .5/.5 Dwayne Andrews, FSU 25 21 46 1.5/0 Richard Marshall, FSU 35 9 44 2/0 James Sanders, FSU 21 21 42 5/1 Tyrone Culverz, FSU 24 16 40 2/1 Manuel Sanchez, FSU 23 13 36 6/0
WAC standings
Conference Overall W L Pct W L Pct Str Boise State 5 0 1.000 8 0 1.000 W19 UTEP 4 1 .800 6 2 .750 W5 Nevada 3 2 .600 5 4 .556 W3 Louisiana Tech 3 2 .600 4 5 .444 L2 Hawaii 4 3 .571 4 4 .500 W1 Fresno State 2 3 .400 5 3 .625 W2 Rice 2 4 .333 3 6 .333 L4 SMU 2 4 .333 2 7 .222 W1 San Jose State 1 4 .250 2 6 .250 L4 Tulsa 1 4 .200 2 7 .222 L1 Tomorrow
Hawaii at Fresno State
Saturday
Boise State at San Jose State
Nevada at Southern Methodist
Tulsa at Louisiana Tech
Rice at Texas-El Paso
