WARRIOR FOOTBALL
Warriors wary of I-AA Panthers
Hawaii knows all about the damage that a lower-division program can do to a season
As Hawaii prepares to play Eastern Illinois tonight, the Warriors have to remember they can't take a football team lightly just because it is in Division I-AA.
E. Illinois at UH
When: Today, 6:05 p.m.
TV: Oceanic PPV 255; Sunday rebroadcast, 10 a.m., KFVE (Ch. 5)
Radio: KKEA, 1420-AM
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The Warriors, even at 1-2, do look like the most talented squad coach June Jones has put on the field since he took over the program in 1999. Despite sloppiness with turnovers and penalties, UH stayed within a score of Alabama and Boise State on the road, and pounded UNLV at home.
Conference championship dreams probably died on the blue turf last week, but a 10-win season is still a reasonable and attainable goal.
The Warriors say they aren't thinking down the road to WAC adventures against Nevada next week and at Fresno State the week after. They know they have to take care of business against Eastern Illinois tonight, that they have to respect a team from the Ohio Valley Conference as much as they would one from the Ohio State University.
The Warriors started slowly in both road losses, but they pounced on the Rebels and dominated in a 42-13 blowout.
"If we come enthusiastically and do what we can do it can be another big day for us," said Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan, who passed for five touchdowns in the loss at Boise last week. "But we've got to be prepared for whatever Eastern Illinois brings to the table."
Mere mention of Portland State or Florida Atlantic makes Warrior fans cringe. Those I-AA teams -- supposedly a level lower -- beat UH, both in Hawaii season openers.
The Panthers (2-2) have been here twice for early-season games. In 1999 they ended Hawaii's 19-game losing streak, as UH won 31-27. In 2002, the Warriors had more bullets in a 61-36 shootout.
"Going back to watching the game in 2002, the score wasn't indicative," Jones said. "With 2 minutes to go in the first half they had 18 first downs to our nine or 10, and we had to score to go ahead. That kind of said it right there. They can play."
Or, Tony Romo could play.
The EIU quarterback, now with the Dallas Cowboys, passed for 319 yards and four touchdowns.
"Tony Romo. They don't have one of those this year, but he's (starting quarterback Mike Donato) not terrible and they have a 6-6 receiver and he makes some good throws to him," Jones said.
Micah Rucker is a serious deep threat, especially if the Warriors bunch up to the line too much to slow Vincent Webb, a durable and productive running back who has two 1,000-yard seasons and two 200-yard games -- one of them last week -- to his credit.
"He's a handful," UH defensive coordinator Jerry Glanville said.
The 2002 game was also notable in that the Warriors lost defensive tackle Lui Fuga to a broken ankle caused by what UH coaches claimed to be a chop block. Fuga was granted an additional season by the NCAA because of the injury.
When this game was booked last February, Jones said the 2002 block was "probably an isolated incident."
Mark Hutson is acting head coach for EIU's Bob Spoo, who is out for health reasons in his 20th season with the Panthers but is expected to return some time this fall.
"I wasn't part of the Eastern Illinois program then," said Hutson, who was a Tulsa assistant in 2002. "As far as chop blocks go, there are NCAA rules against that and we operate by those rules."
Hutson also said things have settled into a routine, and the players have gotten used to not having Spoo around.
But Jones, who nearly died in a car accident before the 2001 season, said he expects the Panthers to be fired up.
"They're going to have a lot of emotion," he said. "The coach has been there for a long time. It's hard to deal with in some ways, but the players usually play with a lot of emotion in a situation with adversity like that."
Jones expects the Panthers to play to their strength offensively: Webb carrying the ball behind an experienced offensive line.
"They're going to try to run the ball because that's what they do," he said. "They're going to try to get that guy as many yards as they can."
When asked about the Panthers' defense, senior receiver Ross Dickerson said what a smart veteran player says regardless who the opponent is.
"Eastern Illinois is athletic. Real athletic," Dickerson said. "They look good on film. It's going to be a challenge, but we're looking forward to it."
Dickerson and the other upperclassmen might even truly believe it. They were around for that 35-28 loss to Florida Atlantic in 2004.