Saturday's Hawaii-Washington State matchup was supposed to be the middle game of a three-game series.

Instead, the meeting at Qwest Field in Seattle will mark the end of the contracted arrangement between the schools.

UH athletic director Jim Donovan announced yesterday that the 2011 game between the Warriors and Cougars has been canceled. A release from UH stated that Donovan received a letter from Washington State last week notifying UH of its intent to cancel the game, citing uncertainty in Pac-10 scheduling for the 2011 season.

Washington State will have to pay $300,000 for canceling the game, which was scheduled for Nov. 26, 2011, at Aloha Stadium.

The cancellation leaves UH with two openings in its 2011 schedule.

“;Even though this wasn't a contract that was done during my tenure, Washington State has notified us they will comply with the buyout terms, so our job now is to find a replacement game,”; Donovan said in the release.

UH's other nonconference games that season are a home game against Colorado, followed by back-to-back road games at Washington and UNLV in September.

Satele steps up

Whether Liko Satele lives up to the analogy remains to be seen, but the sophomore defensive end certainly capitalized on his first Division I start.

“;One defensive end that really came out almost like Lou Gehrig did — we always say if you get your opportunity, make the most of it — was Liko Satele; he just played outstanding,”; UH head coach Greg McMackin said. “;He won a starting position on our defense with his play last weekend.

“;He's a real talent and he might not have had that opportunity if John (Fonoti) didn't get hurt. So we're really excited about him.”;

Satele moved into the first group when Fonoti was sidelined by injuries leading up to last Friday's game. Satele finished with four tackles, including three solo, in his UH debut.

McMackin said Fonoti (bruised knee) will travel with the team to Seattle tomorrow, but he's not sure the senior will be available for Saturday's game.

“;He'll work out and I know he'll be ready for the next game (at UNLV), but we're hoping that he's going to be ready for this game,”; McMackin said.

Elliott Purcell, the starter at left defensive end, sat out yesterday's practice with a bruised thigh. Backup Victor Clore is also nursing an injury, but McMackin expects both to be ready by kickoff.

Satele and redshirt freshman Paipai Falemalu were the starting defensive ends yesterday. McMackin said the coaches are also planning to take senior Bo Montgomery and junior transfer Mike Maracle to add depth to the defensive end rotations.

McMackin said linebacker Aaron Brown (hamstring) is also expected to be ready for the game.