SB FILE / NOV. 2002 Hawaii's Leonard Peters is a team captain this season.

UH’s Peters says Warriors
aren’t looking to pick fights

Last week's news that a proposed ban of alcohol at Aloha Stadium during Hawaii football games will not go into effect this year doesn't affect Leonard Peters for obvious reasons. Peters is in the game, the Warriors' starting free safety. And he doesn't drink, anyway.

But as a recently elected team captain, Peters had some comments on the issue. He was asked to respond to former UH baseball player Dirk Soma's assertion that the attitude of the football team causes rowdy behavior in the stadium more than alcohol abuse does.

Peters, a fifth-year senior, was a team member when the Warriors were involved in postgame fights with Cincinnati in 2002 and Houston in 2003.

Peters said the UH players were defending themselves.

"We don't try to promote violence. But there's a point where you have to protect yourself if a punch is thrown at you. We don't try to fight people," Peters said after Saturday's practice, one week before the Warriors host two-time defending national champion USC to open the season.

Lt. Gov. Duke Aiona and UH interim president David McClain proposed a ban on alcohol sales in the stadium, and Aiona wants to ban tailgating. Both cite violence in the stands as one of the reasons to cut out the drinking. The earliest a ban can go into effect is next season because of legal issues.

"I try to concentrate on the game rather than the people in the crowd," Peters said. "I don't know about anyone else, but as for me, I never drank or smoked before. For me, though, sometimes it shows the wrong image for kids to see drunk people and sometimes they get out of hand. Some people can drink and not get out of hand. It's just a couple people ruining it for them."

Hawaii coach June Jones said he had no comment in response to Soma's speech, which was made at the Stadium Authority's meeting on Thursday. Soma was also critical of unofficial mascot Vili "The Warrior" Fehoko for inciting opposing fans.

Fehoko appears at UH games as an entertainer on renewable one-year contracts, and UH specifies what Fehoko is allowed and not allowed to do while entertaining at UH games, athletic director Herman Frazier said. His contract has been renewed for this year and he will perform at Saturday's game, associate athletic director John McNamara said.

Most of the players from the 2002 UH football team and more than half of those from the 2003 squad are gone, their eligibility expended. Only nine starters from last year's 8-5 team are back this season as the Warriors try to go for a fifth winning season in a row with a revamped lineup.

Peters said the team's collective personality is different now.

"Yeah, I think it is. We really have to play like a team this year, like Boise State and those other good teams," he said. "We have to play like a team rather than having a couple stars on offense and defense. Now everyone has to play a big role."

Jones said it's too early to determine what the team's chemistry will be like with so many new players.

"Every team has it's own identity. As you get into games the personality develops," he said. "As you get into competition, certain players step up. Guys like (graduated slotbacks) Chad (Owens), Gerald (Welch). They did their jobs and did them well for a long time and people respected that."

UH is a more than 30-point underdog going into Saturday's game. Peters said the Warriors won't let that bother them, and they plan to respect the Trojans without being in awe of them, like any other opponent.

"There's a difference between being confident and being cocky. I think our team is good at being confident about what we can do, as a team," he said.

The Warriors were set to go into their game-week routine, with practice every morning this week from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. at the UH grass practice field. Their Friday workout is closed to the public.

USC at Hawaii

What: College football

Where: Aloha Stadium

When: Saturday, Sept. 3

Time: 1:05 p.m.

TV: Live, ESPN2

Radio: KKEA-1420

Internet: sportsradio1420.com

Parking: Lot gates open at 9:30 a.m. Parking is $5. Alternate parking at Ford Island ($5 including shuttle), Leeward Community College (free, $2 shuttle), Kam Drive-In ($5, fee shuttle). Shuttles are from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and approximately one hour after game ends. Parking also at Radford High School ($4, no shuttle). No tailgating at alternate parking sites.

Stadium gates: Open at 10 a.m.

Stadium security: No weapons, backpacks, handbags, coolers, umbrellas, megaphones or purses allowed in the stadium.

Tickets: A sellout is expected, but a few tickets remain and more will probably be available after Wednesday, when leftover student tickets are made available. Prices range from $3 for students to $35 for sideline. Available online at hawaiiathletics.com, by phone at 944-2697 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., or at the Stan Sheriff Center, Aloha Stadium, UH Campus Center, RainbowTique at Ward Center and Windward Community College's OCET office.