As the Hawaii football team went through its initial paces of spring practice, two longtime friends and former rivals chatted at midfield in a meeting of UH coaches past and present.

Dick Tomey, just a few months into retirement, visited with current head coach Greg McMackin in the early portion of yesterday's workout on the grass practice field.

“;There's a lot of wonderful memories here,”; said Tomey, who coached at UH for 10 years and against the Warriors for the last five while at San Jose State. “;It's fun to be back. We're enjoying living here now and we're trying to get settled.”;

As Tomey relished a return to the campus where he helped build the program, McMackin led the current Warriors in setting the groundwork for the upcoming season.

“;This is the foundation,”; McMackin said. “;If things ever start going bad, you go back to your fundamentals, you go back to your base packages because you know it like the back of your hand.”;

A little less than four months since a season-ending loss to Wisconsin, the Warriors returned to the field with a 2-hour workout amid strong breezes and intermittent showers at the grass practice field.

In a back-to-basics session, the defense devoted a period to causing and recovering turnovers, while the offense honed those plays that form the base of the run-and-shoot system.

“;We're going over all the old plays, making sure everybody knows what they're doing, making sure everything's crisp,”; senior receiver Greg Salas said. “;As the week goes on we'll get into more technical plays, but right now we're practicing our bread and butter.”;

After completing the first of their 15 spring workouts, the Warriors have morning practices scheduled for tomorrow and Saturday to complete the first week. Tomorrow's practice will resemble yesterday's and they'll put the pads on for Saturday's practice.

While the UH coaches evaluate their personnel over the next month, the spring is also a chance for a new leadership structure to emerge as the incoming upperclassmen move to the forefront in place of the departed seniors.

“;I've been learning ever since guys like (former UH lineman) Mike Lafaele were here. They taught me how to be a good leader,”; said junior defensive tackle Vaughn Meatoga. “;So I have to step up, can't stand in the background any more.”;

Meatoga is among seven returning starters on defense, a stark contrast to last spring, when the Warriors had two starters back.

The experience allows the staff to accelerate the process a bit, with an eye on a season-opening stretch against USC, Army and Colorado.

“;We're working to next year already,”; said associate head coach Rich Miano, who has a secondary stocked with returnees. “;We're acting like this is an extension of summer camp. The seriousness, the approach, everything. There's nothing casual about this.”;

While the spring represents a fresh start for the 2010 Warriors, it also represents a chance to wash away the bitterness of a 2009 season that concluded with a lopsided loss to Wisconsin to leave them short of the postseason for the first time in four years.

“;It's never fun to lose, and to lose in that fashion is the worst,”; Salas said. “;We have a little chip on our shoulder. That's the first time since I've been here we didn't make a bowl game, so hopefully this year we can get things back to the way they should be.”;

While the Warriors toiled on the field, Tomey, whom McMackin referred to as an “;honorary Warrior,”; could take it in from a distance.

“;I love coaching; I coached for 48 years,”; said Tomey. “;But I'm enjoying doing what I'm doing right now.”;