The Warriors hit the home stretch with their final three games at Aloha Stadium beginning with today’s meeting against Fresno State. Not much is on the line except pride in this meeting between two-victory rivals. But this should be a chance to see OC Don Bailey’s unleashed offense. Perhaps there will be another shot for Keelan Ewaliko, who aligned as the wildcat in a play that was aborted because of a procedural penalty. Or maybe an expanded role for defensive […]

If quarterback Ikaika Woolsey could figure out the time-continuum formula, his advice to his 18-year-old-self would be: “Continue to work hard. Everything doesn’t come easy.” Woolsey is set to make his second start in a row and third of the season. He is poised, relatively healthy, and no longer hindered by youthful emotion. “I used to lose my head a little bit,” Woolsey said. “That was me being young and dumb. Obviously, I’ve learned from my mistakes. You have to […]

One of the concerns this season is the difficulty in simulating “game speed” in practices. But in practices this week, the second-string units have replaced the scouts in replicating an upcoming opponents’ schemes. There also are more matchups between the first-team offense and No. 1 defense. The reasoning is the so-called “good against good” sessions will provide quicker looks in practices. Faster is better, the theory goes. The tweaks to practices might be helpful to a team that is trying […]

One of the changes the past week is the elimination of the “pit,” the side area where injured players pulled weighted sleds, twisted heavy ropes, and sledge-hammered large tires, among other disciplines, during practices. The intent was to keep injured players active and to make the pit work grueling enough to motivate players to rehab quicker. But interim head coach Chris Naeole indicated that with three weeks remaining in the regular season, the goal is to “get guys healthy.” He […]

In the athletic complex’s auditorium, slotback Dylan Collie was summoned to the front of the room. Collie, who dropped three passes in a 41-21 loss to UNLV, was unsure of what to expect next. Interim head coach Chris Naeole, sitting in the third row, rifled a football toward Collie. Collie caught the ball. Then Naeole asked the other players and coaches: “Do you trust Dylan to catch the ball?” There was a resounding yell of “Yes!” “To hear that response, […]

It was once noted that every church choir has a great singer, but that doesn’t make that person an American Idol. There are a lot of bright-minded coaches in the football profession. But to paraphrase a former coach: The thing he missed when he became a head coach was coaching. While the wish list of candidates for the UH vacancy is long and respected — although it is heavily tilted to offensive coaches, perhaps a reflection on the play-calling? — […]

One consolation for the Warriors is they won’t have to play another road game this season. The Warriors went zip for six, even though the UNLV game did have a large Hawaii turnout. The Warriors have won only one road game in four years. Perhaps the Warriors should table any discussions on playing in Australia next year. Sure, that would be technically a neutral site — and it might boost recruiting in that country. But it probably would be more […]

It’s Vegas. It’s game day. Life is good. Hawaii has a rally downtown. UNLV has homecoming festivities. And both teams are just looking for a way to make memories. Updates, as always, can be found here: Tsai’s tweets