Sold Out

The Oregon State game is a sell out!

"I'd anticipated that everyone who was at last week's game (against Purdue) would be back, and that was a loud crowd," UH coach June Jones said.


It is the first sellout since UH’s season opener against USC last season.


“We are thrilled that the seniors and the other members of our talented football team will play in front of a capacity crowd this Saturday,” UH athletic director Herman Frazier said. “It will be an incredible night for the student-athletes, the fans, and the entire state of Hawaii. The atmosphere will be electric and a national television audience will get to see what a special situation we have here in Hawai‘i.”

It's also a GREEN OUT.

The UH football team's "Senior Night" game against Oregon State on Saturday at 7:05 p.m. has been designated a "Green Out" and all fans are encouraged to wear green shirts in support of the Warriors and their talented senior class.

Don't forget!

Mark Niesse of the AP previews the game.

Brennan said he's more interested in defeating Oregon State than getting his name in the record books because he wants to show that the Warriors aren't just another flashy pass-happy team.

"Critics are just waiting for us to do something so they can take us off our pedestal," Brennan said. "It's a big statement game for us."

The Beavers, who beat in-state rival Oregon 30-28 last week, will be familiar with the Warriors' style with the help of offensive line coach Mike Cavanaugh, who defected from Hawai'i after the 2004 season.

"He knows what we do better than anybody else out there," said center Samson Satele, who played under Cavanaugh's leadership. "He can bring whatever. We just gotta bring our game."

Coach June Jones rejected the idea that Cavanaugh's experience in Hawai'i will give him an advantage.

"It's not an issue. He never knew one pass route, he never knew one thing we were doing," Jones said.

Coach Jones with the dismissal!

Ka Leo O Hawaii's Keane Santos profiles Colt Brennan, and recounts a great moment in the Purdue game.

And then it happened; the moment Brennan showed something he hasn’t ever shown before. What Brennan did at that moment was small, yet incredible.

If you were watching the K5 telecast at home, you missed it. However, fans at the stadium who saw it won’t forget.

Whoever was controlling the Jumbotron camera decided to focus on Brennan, not uncommon after a Warrior touchdown. Brennan gazed up and saw himself on the 19-by-26-foot screen.

In that moment, his competitive side took over and he went wild.

He started yelling, pounding his chest, pumping his helmet, jumping up and down and lifting his arms toward the crowd, doing anything he could to keep the fans fired up.

He was making a statement: the Warriors did not come this far to earn national acclaim and lose it in one night.

After that, I knew, the fans knew, Hawai‘i knew: Purdue didn’t stand a chance.

Man, what a game that was, and what a game this one's gonna be.

And finally, Ka Leo's Rebecca Gallegos has a game preview, and also has some great quotes from a couple of outgoing seniors, Leonard Peters and Reagan Mauia.

“It feels like just yesterday I was a freshman listening to all the [older] guys saying, ‘Take it for what it’s worth, because it’s going to come around fast,’” Peters recalled. “The days are counting down. I’m not going to remember a lot of games, but I’ll definitely remember all the friendships I made here.”

The Warriors had four goals in mind when they started the 2006 season. Their only barrier en route to reaching all four is a win over OSU. UH unites as a team week in and week out, and nothing will change their philosophy this weekend. Hawai‘i is looking for success and recognition, knowing that they have a duty to each other as teammates.

“It’s going to be really emotional for a lot of us,” Mauia said of the seniors. “We’ve been playing this game for a really long time, and some of us will go on and some of us won’t. We’re all going to take different walks in life, and just finishing up here together is really special. We’ve fought through hardships and injuries, and we’re more of a family now than ever before.”

I'm really gonna miss watching them play. Time flies so fast! But the season ain't over yet. And I feel this game will be a big one for Leonard and Reagan.

GO WARRIORS!!!!

Action

Stephen Tsai writes more about future Warrior Leon "Action" Jackson.

Jeremy Crabtree, the national recruiting editor for Rivals.com, said Jackson received a 4-star rating, which is awarded to players who "have All-America and pro potential."

"He was in a rare category," Crabtree said. "Hawai'i is getting a heck of a player."

At Pasco, Jackson also was used as a defensive back. Recruiting expert Tom Lemmings rated Jackson as the nation's No. 2 safety prospect in 2005.

Jackson, who is 6 feet 2 and 210 pounds, can run 40 yards in 4.35 seconds.

"He's not a small running back," Crabtree said. "He's a legit 6-2. He does have some muscles and build to him. He can catch the ball. He'll be a complete back for Hawai'i."

Jackson is projected to compete at running back for UH.

With all the running backs UH will have next year, Jackson, David Farmer, Jazen Anderson, Khevin Peoples, Jason Laumoli, Kealoha Pilares, etc. it might give June Jones some opportunities to come up with some new formations and plays. Like he isn't constantly doing that anyways. Not sure if the Big-Boned Wishbone would be on the table with Nasti and The Juggernaut leaving, but maybe a 4-wide set that brings back the Paul Johnson triple option! Or a wishbone with Tyler Graunke as one of the backs, so you can have a double reverse flea flicker back to Graunke, who bombs it to Jason Rivers in the endzone for a touchdown!!!! Okay, I'm talking out of my arse now, but it's fun sometimes.

Further down the article, Tsai writes that safety Josh Berry has left the team for personal reasons. Good luck to him. And there's also a mini-profile on Blaze Soares.

"We consider him to be a starter in those packages," defensive coordinator Jerry Glanville said.

Soares attended Hawai'i Pacific University last year to earn enough credits to gain admittance to UH. He was an inside linebacker before suffering a pulled hamstring early in the season. After returning, he was moved to outside linebacker.

"I guess Glanville wants me on the outside because of my speed," said Soares, who can run 40 yards in 4.5 seconds.

In last week's 42-35 victory over Purdue, Soares made a crucial sack in the fourth quarter.

"Blaze can run," Glanville said. "He runs very fast, and he loves to hit. If you don't like Blaze, you don't like football. He's the Blaze."

Blaze Soares has such a cool name. I'm glad he's taken care of his academics. He's gonna be a good one for years to come!

In his profile of Leon Jackson, Dave Reardon has a Nate Ilaoa injury update.

Coach June Jones said Ilaoa, who has missed this week's practices with a bruised heel, will play Saturday, when No. 24 Hawaii (10-2) hosts Oregon State (8-4) and tries to win its 10th game in a row.

"He felt 100 percent better today and he said he'll be ready for Saturday," Jones said of Ilaoa, who leads the Warriors with 845 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns.

Excellent news! Reardon also gets reaction from Colt Brennan on being named one of five finalists for the Walter Camp Player of the Year award.

"This is another great honor," said Brennan, who is also among three finalists for the Davey O'Brien quarterback award. "I really appreciate the fact that I got recognized. It's great for the team and for me to get our names out there and receive the notoriety. As an offense, any individual recognition is a reflection of the success of the entire offense."

I'm getting confused by all these awards. Not that I'm complaining!

And I had a longer post with a bunch of other stuff, but every time I visited a certain page, it kept crashing my browser! And that was after writing a bunch of crap, so I'll just publish now before I go crazy. GO WARRIORS!!!

Leon Jackson Commits

Stephen Tsai writes that Leon Jackson, a former high school All-America running back, has committed to UH.

Asked by The Advertiser if he is a Warrior, Jackson yelled: "Yes, I am!"

Jackson, who is 6 feet 2 and 210 pounds, played for Nebraska as a freshman in 2005. He can run 40 yards in 4.35 seconds.

Saying he was seeking a "change of scenery," Jackson left the Cornhuskers. He is attending a junior college in Washington.

He will enroll at UH in August, and will be immediately eligible to play in 2007. He will have three seasons of eligibility.

Jackson said he chose UH because of the Warriors' wide-open offense.

"They spread it out, and I like that," Jackson said.

Awesome news.

ASU, OSU, Purdue, MSU

Steven Bohner of The Web Devil, an online version of an ASU campus paper, has an article about ASU playing in the Hawaii Bowl.

In its three-year existence, the Hawaii Bowl has been relatively high scoring with an average of 90.5 total points on the board per game.

This year's version promises to be no different, as No. 24 Hawaii (10-2, 7-1) brings the nation's top offense to the table.

Hawaii junior quarterback Colt Brennan leads college football's highest-scoring offense (48.6 points per game) with the league's best passer rating (186.68) and most passing yards (4589).

Brennan has also thrown for 51 touchdowns this season.

"I've seen them play a few times," Miller said. "They're gonna throw the ball a lot and they have a good quarterback, so I think its gonna be pretty high scoring. [It's our] third bowl game in a row; hopefully we'll make it three wins in a row."

After starting 1-2 this year with losses to Alabama and Boise State, Hawaii has won its last nine games, though the streak has come against Purdue, Eastern Illinois and a plethora of unranked WAC opponents.

Slight dig at Hawaii, but I find it hilarious that Purdue is lumped in with Eastern Illinois. Leroy Bridges of The Exponent, a Purdue campus paper, would probably sort of agree with that statement, as he puts down his own team in order to put down Hawaii's celebration of it's victory over Purdue.

Hawaii's fans and its football team think Purdue (8-5, 5-3 Big Ten) won the Big Ten this season. Sure, the Boilers finished tied in fourth place, but they are a middle of the road Big Ten team. Following Saturday's game the Warriors drenched coach June Jones with a bucket of water.

Now, come on. Those celebrations are typically reserved for conference championships or national titles, not non-conference wins at home.

Now, come on. It was a great come-from-behind win for UH, and June Jones tied Dick Tomey's school mark for career wins. Cannot celebrate? Anyway, on to Oregon State. Jim Beseda of The Oregonian has a good preview of Saturday's game.

Sabby Piscitelli, the Beavers' senior strong safety and co-captain, said the game in many respects revolves around pride, especially for the 11 players on Oregon State's roster from Hawaii.

"A couple of the Hawaii players have said to me, 'I don't want to go home if we don't win this game,' " Piscitelli said. "It's a business trip. We've got to go there and take care of business."

The Warriors (10-2, 7-3 Western Athletic Conference) have won nine consecutive games behind coach June Jones' run-and-shoot offense, averaging 48.6 points and 553.8 yards per game.

"It's probably one of the most efficient offenses I've seen," Piscitelli said. "They are just so technically sound. They don't do anything out of the ordinary, but everybody on the field knows exactly what they're doing . . . and they execute to a 'T.' "

Warriors quarterback Colt Brennan has completed 336 of 467 passes for 4,589 yards and 51 touchdowns -- three shy of tying the NCAA Division I record set by Houston's David Klingler in 1990.

"I'm happy that we get to pass rush the whole game," OSU defensive tackle Ben Siegert said. "If they're going to throw 90 percent of the game, maybe we can get some stats, you know."

You hear that, Samson?

Kiyomi Ueda of Ka Leo O Hawaii writes a profile of senior offensive lineman Dane Uperesa. You heard what that guy said, Dane?

Chadd Cripe of the Idaho Statesman writes that WAC coaches are gonna have a hard time deciding between Ian Johnson and Colt Brennan in voting for the WAC Offensive Player of the Year.

"I don't know if they've ever had Co-Offensive Players of the Year, but good luck trying to choose between those two guys because they're both justfantastic," Louisiana Tech coach Jack Bicknell said. "I'm giving 'em a tie if I can."

Coaches will vote on the All-WAC teams, Offensive Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Freshman of the Year and Coach of the Year this weekend.

Winners will be announced Monday.

...

Most coaches didn't want to give a preference this week, but those who did favored Brennan.

"What Colt has done goes back in the history of college football," San Jose State coach Dick Tomey said. "Plus, what he's added to their offense is a toughness and an accuracy and an ability to run the ball that they haven't hadbefore."

Both players have generated Heisman buzz.

Johnson is fifth in the Heisman rankings at CBSSportsLine.com and 11th at ESPN.com. Brennan is second at CBS and fourth at ESPN.

Whoever wins is very deserving. Ian Johnson, coming back from that collapsed lung and having a big game against Nevada was huge. But you cannot deny Colt's awesome season!

And finally, it's good to hear that Young Cody, aka Jack Rolovich is doing well at Montana State.

On Saturday afternoon, the Bobcats take on top-ranked Appalachian State in a quarterfinal game of the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (formerly called I-AA). While a victory would be noteworthy in a memorable campaign for MSU fans, in the mind of Rolovich it's already been a season to savor.

"It's just really rewarding for me," said Rolovich, who transferred to Montana State last spring from Hawaii. "To make a big change like I did — it was probably the biggest decision I've ever made in my life — and it's really rewarding to see how far I've come."

Rolovich passed for 272 yards and two scores last week in MSU's 31-13 victory over Furman, the Bobcats' first playoff triumph in 22 years. He will probably need to produce similar numbers Saturday in Boone, N.C., if the 18th-ranked Cats are to advance.

The Haka

Stephen Tsai writes that the UH players will stop doing their current version of the haka because:

Athletic department officials acknowledged that a UH professor voiced concerns that the Warriors might be violating a copyright by performing the haka.

Te Rauparaha, chief of the Ngati-Toa tribe, was credited with inventing the version of the haka in 1820 that is now used by the All Blacks, New Zealand's national rugby team.

The All Blacks received permission from Ngati-Toa to perform the haka before matches.

But in the end, this may all be for the better because:

For the bowl game, the Warriors will perform a haka "specifically made for us," Esera said.

As with the current haka, Esera said, "we can't do it ourselves. We'll go to someone with knowledge. We know people."

An original Hawaii Warriors haka should be pretty cool! And then they can copyright it and it'll end up in videogames and it'll be awesome. Come on Leonard Peters, you should incorporate a fire knife performance for your going away game. Think about it!

Further down the article, Stephen Tsai reports that Nate Ilaoa's heel injury is still bothering him.

Running back Nate Ilaoa did not practice yesterday because of a contusion in his left heel.

Because of Ilaoa's absence, UH head coach June Jones said, "he's doubtful (to play Saturday) in my mind. Hopefully, he'll be able to play."

But Ilaoa, who received several hours of treatment yesterday, said he will be ready.

"I'm going to play," Ilaoa said. "It's Senior Night. What are you talking about?"

We need Fasti Nasti. I have no doubt he'll play. But maybe we'll see more of The Juggernaut aka "Reagan Mauia" who is also a senior, and that would be awesome too.

Dave Reardon writes that the Hawaii-grown players on the Oregon State team are excited to be coming home, even if most of the fans won't be cheering for them.

Then he'll return to Aloha Stadium on Saturday, and (Tavita) Thompson knows he and his teammates -- especially the ones from Hawaii -- will be the focus of some negative attention.

"It's going to be weird," he said. "My first time in that stadium with a booing crowd."

Thompson is the cousin of former UH running back Afatia Thompson, and Afalava's uncle, Kesi, was a Hawaii defensive tackle.

Both players said their relatives didn't try to influence them to become Warriors. In fact, Kesi Afalava tried to get Al to go to BYU.

"I based my final decision on conference-wise, coaching-wise. It felt like family here," Afalava said. "And the Pac-10 conference is one of the toughest in the nation."

Afalava said he knows most of Aloha Stadium will be against him Saturday. But he estimates close to a thousand of the expected sellout crowd of 50,000 will be rooting for him and his teammates.

"Family, friends, Oregon State fans," Afalava said. "And a lot of Kahuku fans. I call them my family, too."

Dave also notes that there will be a Hawaii Warriors feature on ESPN's College Gameday.

UH players and coaches are being interviewed this week for Saturday morning's ESPN's College Gameday program.

"I think a pretty significant feature is in the works," said Neil Everett, ESPN SportsCenter anchor, who is the former KGMB sports director. "I lent them some Hawaiian music (by former UH player Henry Kapono Kaaihue) to use with the piece."

Thanks once again to Neil Everett!

Ferd Lewis marvels that Oregon State head coach Mike Riley is excited to play Hawaii.

I mean, not so much as a lament about humidity, the travel, the demands of a 13-game schedule, playing a week after beating the in-state rival or the athletic department's budget. No bones to pick with the athletic director about scheduling the game. No setting up excuses in case of a loss. Riley even owned up to approving the game when it was made and expressed an interest in extending the series beyond 2008.

"Fact of the matter is, right now I'm excited about it," Riley said of the opportunity to play a 13th game here. He said the opportunity to play the 24th-ranked Warriors was "invigorating" for the Beavers after their Civil War triumph over Oregon.

And, get this, not a peep about Western Athletic Conference officials, who will work the game. Unlike half the Big Ten, OSU didn't jump up and down and demand their own officials. Of course, he's seen Pac-10 officials on a regular basis.

"I've said before that I think the reasons we wanted to play this game are still good reasons and we are looking forward to playing a very good football team," Riley said, positive to the end.

What a refreshing breath of fresh air. But of course OSU recruits in Hawaii a lot. And there may even be more games set up between OSU and UH in the future.

Dave Reardon writes a profile of Hawaii Bowl opponent Arizona State and fired head coach Dirk Koetter.

"I know Coach Dirk Koetter will have his team ready to play and they will be exciting to watch," UH athletic director Herman Frazier said. "I personally spoke to Dirk today and he told me he was looking forward to bringing his team to Honolulu."

Ferd Lewis also writes about ASU.

"We are extremely excited to accept this invitation to participate in the 2006 Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl," said Lisa Love, ASU's vice president for university athletics. "Our (players) have played their hearts out all year and this is a great reward for their season of hard work."

Should be a great game.

Mousefather

Kerry Eggers of the Portland Tribune has a nice profile of Warriors assistant coach Mouse Davis, the godfather of the run-and-shoot.

“June is doing a really good job with this group,” Davis says. “We rip people. It was like when we were at Portland State ripping people. We’re moving up and down the field. My punter (Kurt Milne) hasn’t punted in two games. I told him, ‘How in the hell are you going to earn your letter?’ ”

With their no-tight end, double slotback system, the Warriors lead the nation in passing offense (434.8 yards per game), total offense (553.8 yards) and scoring offense (48.6 points). They have scored 40 points or more in nine of their last 10 games and have totaled 583 points, breaking the school record of 502 set in 2002.

Mouse also more nice things to say about June and the offense.

“I’d say my impact is, oh, probably about a half of 1 percent,” he says, cackling. “I tell the people, the reason our offense goes is Colt, but our offensive MVP is June. He does a hell of a job with these kids. Me? I just take any spot no one else on the staff wants. I might not do anything on any given day (at practice).”

Davis is taking this coaching thing year by year. But what else is he going to do? He’s only 74.

“You can only play so much golf,” he says. “Maybe if I were to get the right deal, I might continue coaching. I’d like to be a little more in the action part of it. I don’t feel much different than I did when I was 35. I don’t want to turn into an old man, even though I am an old man.

“If I didn’t have fun, I’d say, ‘Adios, amigo.’ But this is fun. And it’s more fun watching people say, ‘What the hell are they doing with that offense?’ (Idaho coach) Dennis Erickson came over after our game and said, ‘If I knew what the hell you were doing, I’d run it myself.’ ”

This Warriors coaching staff is unbelievable. Can't take it for granted!

And I guess it's official:

Arizona State this afternoon accepted a bid to play the University of Hawai'i in the Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl on Christmas Eve at Aloha Stadium.

ASU athletic director Lisa Love received the offer from Jim Donovan, the game's executive director.

The Hawai'i Bowl made the offer after the Emerald Bowl, which had the fifth pick of Pac-10 teams, filled its slot with UCLA.

"Two and a half weeks ago we weren't sure we would even get (a Pac-10 representative) based upon the way they kept beating each other in conference, so we're very happy we have a Pac-10 team," Donovan said. "We met our goal of bringing a Pac-10 team to the bowl."

The Warriors are 10-2. ASU is 7-5.

The Star-Bulletin has more from Jim "Beuwmm!" Donovan:

“We are excited to have a team from a BSC conference in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl,” executive director Jim Donovan said. “Arizona State had a winning record and a nice win over a hot Arizona Wildcat team to wrap-up their regular season. I think it will be a great match up with the Warriors playing a talented Sun Devil team from the Pac-10 conference.”

Those punks at the Emerald Bowl wielded their power and deprived us of UCLA. But like I mentioned before, look on the bright side. At least UH will play a team with a winning record. Thanks to Charles for the heads up.

Looking to this week's game, C0hiba points out in the comments that Sports Illustrated's Stewart Mandel does not rank Hawaii in his "Power Rankings." Instead he ranks Oregon State at #24. Here's what he has to say about that:

I'm either going to look like a genius or an idiot for replacing Hawaii with Oregon State a week before the two play each other. The Beavers proved their worth by beating USC and winning six of their last seven; the Warriors needed a dramatic rally to beat a mediocre Purdue team at home.

I choose "idiot". Thanks for the tip C0hiba!

Glendalyn Junio of Ka Leo O Hawaii recaps the Purdue game. The article ends with this great quote by senior Leonard Peters.

"For some reason, we didn’t feel like [Purdue] had any respect for us this week; they talked about not coming down because they weren’t making any money and that it was too far. But you know, our closest [road] game is like five hours away and we don’t complain. It’s just what we have to do because we live on an island ... A lot of their players and coaches were taunting us before the game. So we took it upon ourselves and we came in to tell everybody ‘Let’s do it.’ In the first quarter, we shut them up, and it shows how much heart our team has to fight through adversity – you know, being down for the first time at home, to fight through it. It’s a feeling we’re not used to and our guys battled through it.”

I'm gonna miss him! Hopefully we get to see him play on Sundays.

And finally, thanks once again to Stephen Tsai, Princess Leila and the rest of the Advertiser crew for putting on another great live chat on The Warrior Beat, this time with Adam Leonard. Lot of good questions and a lot of great answers by "The Manimal". Glad he'll be here for another couple years.

Big Boned Wishbone

Stephen Tsai has June Jones' reaction to being named a finalist for Coach of the Year.

"Oh," Jones said when told of the nomination. "Awards come from winning. We won a lot of games, so we're getting a lot of recognition."

Gotta love him.

In the same article, Tsai writes that Nate Ilaoa suffered a heel injury in the Purdue game, but should be good to go against the Beavers.

Yesterday, Ilaoa wore a medical boot on his left foot. He was limping.

He was diagnosed with a "heel contusion," and was placed on the "no practice" list.

But Ilaoa dismissed it as a "bruised heel," and said it would not prevent him from playing.

"It's nothing bad," Ilaoa said. "I should be good by Saturday."

Against Purdue, Ilaoa rushed 12 times for a career-high 159 yards and two touchdowns. He caught seven passes for 52 yards.

Glad to hear it's not too serious. I hope he has an amazing game on national TV!

In his weekly press conference, which you can view here, courtesy of the Advertiser, June Jones' addressed Joe Tiller's comments leading up to the game.

Jones said he wouldn't have made the comments Tiller made last week.

"I didn't think it helped his team try to win," Jones said.

He added: "I was more resentful (of the criticism) because it went national, and it downplays the state and Hawai'i more than the program. It's a lot of negative stuff that happens a lot in the newspaper that doesn't have to happen. This time, I don't blame (reporters) for writing it. It was said, and it really was a bad deal for Hawai'i, not just the school. It made it seem like we were cheaters."

Pac-10 officials were used for the game.

As for Smith, Jones said, "what I said about John L. on ESPN radio, I felt all along. He's a crybaby, and we beat him, just like we beat Purdue."

And if you want to hear what June Jones said on ESPN, here's a video, courtesy of YouTube and UHGPY72.



Dave Reardon writes that June Jones is confident about playing anybody in Aloha Stadium.

"I feel like right now, you bring anybody in here, no matter who it is, we're gonna have a chance to outscore 'em," Jones said. "Our defense is playing well enough. There's some areas we obviously have to get better in, both offensively and defensively. But we can compete with anybody at home."

Hawaii (10-2) leads the nation in scoring, total offense and passing offense. UH quarterbacks coach Dan Morrison -- not known for hyperbole -- said the Warriors offense "might be the best ever in college football."

Most of UH's offensive fireworks have been against Western Athletic Conference teams with poor defenses. But the Warriors piled up a season-high 653 yards and pulled out a 42-35 win in the fourth quarter against Purdue (8-5) of the Big Ten on Saturday. Jones said Boilermakers coach Joe Tiller -- whose team played against Notre Dame's Brady Quinn -- told him UH quarterback Colt Brennan is the best quarterback he's seen.

Well crap, let's nail down some teams for next year before they get too scared and back out! You know, like how the wusses at Michigan State are doing!

June also talks about how he'll deal with having five coaches for Oregon State who either coached or played for UH.

"I know that they'll have all the information they need to beat us," Jones said. "We're going to have to change some things. We're going to have to do some things differently. Which we will do, which we've had to do before, with coaches leaving and different things."

So watch out for the wishbone! Wouldn't it be nuts to have Nasti Nate, The Juggernaut and Jason Laumoli run it? Would have to call it the Big Boned Wishbone!

Ferd Lewis recounts some of the biggest wins in the June Jones era. Here's #2 on the list:

2. UH 72, BRIGHAM YOUNG 45, 2001

As sports writer Bill Kwon preaches, "any victory over BYU is a big win."

Well, this one was bigger than most. For not only did it put an exclamation point on a 9-3 season, the triumph before a sellout crowd and national cable audience ended the then-ninth-ranked Cougars' unbeaten (12-0) season and dashed any claims to a Bowl Championship Series berth.

Unfortunately, even the victory, stunning for its lopsidedness, couldn't get the Warriors into a bowl. There was no Hawai'i Bowl at the time and everybody else passed on the Warriors.

What a game that was!

Ferd Lewis writes that the Emerald Bowl might snatch a 6-6 UCLA team away from the Hawaii Bowl instead of taking a 7-5 Arizona State.

But Jim Muldoon, associate Pac-10 commissioner, said the conference asked the NCAA to clarify the policy and was told since the Hawai'i Bowl would have to take ASU if the Emerald Bowl passed on the Sun Devils, then the policy would still be met.

"We have to wait until the (Emerald Bowl) makes its pick," said Jim Donovan, executive director of the Hawai'i Bowl. "That's the way it was explained to us after the NCAA ruled."

Emerald Bowl spokesman Doug Kelly said the game hasn't decided whom it would take in the event USC wins and brings about a five-way tie of teams with 4-5 conference records. He said UCLA and Arizona State remain under consideration and a decision might not be made until after the USC-UCLA game.

But according to The Long Beach Press-Telegram, the bowl spokesman may say one thing, but the bowl director already has his heart set.

The San Francisco-based bowl is preparing to pit UCLA and Florida State in the Dec. 27 matchup at AT&T Park. The bowl s executive director, Gary Cavalli, said Monday the wheels are in motion to finalize the game.

I think it would be tremendous to have that type of matchup, Cavalli said. You have two of the best brands in college football. You have (Florida State coach) Bobby Bowden, who has the most wins in Division I, and UCLA with their following and the Los Angeles (television) market.

The matchup apparently has very little to do with the outcome of Saturday s contest between UCLA and USC. Although a win by the Bruins would leave them in fourth place in the Pacific-10 Conference, sources said the Las Vegas Bowl will take Oregon to face BYU, since UCLA played in Las Vegas in 2002 and 2004.

Oh well, I really want Hawaii to play UCLA, but if things play out the other way, at least Hawaii will play a team with a winning record.

Cliff Kirkpatrick of The Corvallis Gazette-Times has a preview of this Saturday's game.

“We are going to take our regular travel squad because it’s not a bowl game, so we can’t take everyone,” Riley said. “We’ll just play the game. We’ll play it to win.”

The game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN, which gives both programs extra cash and TV time.

While the team would be resting and healing for the bowl game without this contest, Riley and the players would rather be on the field anyway. It’s what they do.

There’s an added bonus for some. Five members of the travel squad are from Hawaii, and there are 11 Hawaiians on the roster. The other six are redshirting.

For those going on the road, this is the biggest game of the year.

“It’s huge,” said defensive end Naymon Frank, who is from Honolulu. “We get to see family and friends.

“And I grew up watching games in Aloha Stadium.”

The stadium should be rocking!

And finally, rounding out this extremely long post, Adam Leonard will be the guest live-chatter at Stephen Tsai's Warrior Beat blog at 10:30am HST today. Be there!

June Jones is Coach of the Year Finalist

June Jones has been named one of nine finalists for the 2006 Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award by The Football Writers Association of America. Here's the release:

DALLAS (FWAA) – The Football Writers Association of America has announced nine finalists for the 2006 Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award to be voted upon by the entire membership.

With the regular season heading into the final week, the FWAA, in conjunction with the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, has tabbed the following finalists: Houston's Art Briles, Michigan's Lloyd Carr, Wake Forest's Jim Grobe, Hawaii's June Jones, BYU's Bronco Mendenhall, Arkansas' Houston Nutt, Boise State's Chris Petersen Rutgers' Greg Schiano, and Oklahoma's Bob Stoops.

The finalists will be placed on a ballot which will be sent out to the entire FWAA membership. FWAA members will be asked to vote for their top three choices in the order they are deserving.

The FWAA coaching award is named after Robinson, a coaching legend at Grambling State University for 55 years. He has more Division I victories (408) than any other coach. The winner of the FWAA/Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award will be announced and honored at a reception on Jan. 5 in Glendale, Ariz., in conjunction with the BCS 1-2 game.

It is a particularly competitive year in the coaching profession. As a result, the FWAA All-America Committee, which selects the finalists, believed it was up to the membership to decide among an array of candidates.

Surprising years by Arkansas, Wake Forest, Michigan and Rutgers were reasons for the competitive balance.

Nutt's Razorbacks came out of nowhere after losing their opener badly to USC, won 10 straight games, and secured a place in the SEC title game opposite Florida. Wake Forest, under Grobe, likewise rather stunningly made the ACC title game with the first 10-win season in school history.

Rutgers may be the Cinderella story with Schiano, after taking East Coast football by storm and contending for the Big East title. Michigan, after a sub-par 2005 season, stormed back to win its first 11 games before falling to top-ranked Ohio State. The Wolverines have virtually secured a spot in a BCS bowl game.

Meanwhile, strong seasons by BYU, Houston and Hawaii all qualified those coaches as Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year candidates.

Boise State's Petersen has directed the Broncos to the only other unbeaten regular season in major college football besides Ohio State and a virtually assured spot in the BCS. Stoops' Sooners will be playing in the Big 12 title game against Nebraska after losing their starting quarterback and top running back.

Of the nine candidates, only Stoops is a previous winner. He won the Eddie in 2000, the same season his Sooners won the FWAA's Grantland Rice Trophy, symbolic of the national championship.

The Football Writers Association of America, a non-profit organization founded in 1941, consists of more than 900 men and women across North America who cover college football for a living. The membership includes journalists, broadcasters and publicists, as well as key executives in all the areas that involve the game. The FWAA works to govern areas that include game day operations, major awards, a national poll and its annual All-America team.

For more information on the Eddie Robinson Award, contact FWAA executive director Steve Richardson (972-713-6198 or tigerfwaa@aol.com).

Congratulations to Coach Jones and the Warriors football team!

Return of the Cav

Dave Reardon writes a great article about former UH and current Oregon State coach Mike Cavanaugh and his relationship with UH center Samson Satele.

Hawaii tri-captain and starting center Samson Satele took it hard when Cavanaugh left for Oregon State two years ago, and he hasn't completely forgiven him. He said at one level he understands why the hugely popular Cavanaugh left UH after six years in Hawaii. But he still feels abandoned by his former position coach and mentor.

"I thought he'd stay until (fellow current seniors) Dane (Uperesa) and Tala (Esera) and I left, so I was surprised," Satele said. "But I know he had to take care of his family."

Still, Satele said he plans to take out the loss of his "grandfather" on the Oregon State players.

"Their whole defense is gonna get it," said Satele, a day after UH added a season-high 653 yards to its nation's-best total offense in beating Purdue 42-35. "From the beginning of the season we've been looking toward Dec. 2. This is going to be, I think, the best game our offensive line will ever play. It's for revenge. Hopefully Cav will be wearing a helmet and shoulder pads too."

It's great motivation, and it might sound like hate, but Satele said it isn't quite that way. He said he still talks to Cavanaugh -- but on his own terms.

"Sometimes I talk to him, sometimes I don't answer. He'll call this week, but I probably won't answer," Satele said. "He watches our games and tells us what we did right and wrong, he still coaches us. We talk mostly about football."

That's the stuff great stories are made of. Can't wait to see the Warriors O-line go off!

Stephen Tsai talks to coach June Jones, who is full of praise for Colt Brennan. Jones and Brennan talk about how Colt adjusted to the Purdue defense.

Jones said Brennan's skill was evident in the way he adjusted to Purdue's defensive scheme. In the second half, the Boilermakers switched to a four-man front, with the defensive ends stepping into the passing lanes to the flats.

"They did a great job of getting their hands up and jumping," Brennan said. "We get the ball out very quick (to the flats), and they did a great job of trying to defend it."

After three passes were knocked down, Brennan adjusted by throwing wide of the defensive ends. On the winning screen pass to Ian Sample, Brennan said, "I had to double-clutch it because (defensive end Cliff Avril) had his hands up."

Brennan said the knockdowns had little to do with his motion, which sometimes appears to be side-armed. He said, in fact, he is throwing with a three-quarter motion favored by most quarterbacks.

"There would have been way more batted balls throughout the year if there were any issues with my throwing (motion)," Brennan said.

The article concludes with the players talking about getting national respect, which they deserve!

Ferd Lewis writes about the difference between Purdue and Oregon State in their willingness to play in Hawaii.

The 24th-ranked University of Hawai'i football team plays another non-conference game against a team from a Bowl Championship Series Conference this week, but unlike recent victim Purdue, chances are you will hear little of the bleating.

Yes, like Purdue, Oregon State is coming off an emotional win over the in-state rival. And, yes, what happens in Halawa will not change the postseason for the likely Sun Bowl-bound Beavers (8-4).

But unlike Purdue, these are eager Beavers, glad to be coming. They are visitors with a purpose. And, not just for a football game or the mounds of kimchee fried rice at Big City Diner that their offensive line coach, Mike Cavanaugh, a former UH assistant, has been telling people he's looking forward to.

Oregon State has been building quite a recruiting pipeline here and Saturday's game, the first of a home-and-home series with UH, affords the opportunity to do more work on it after signing six prospects in February. Yesterday signalled the shotgun start to the NCAA's football contact period, the point when coaches can begin going into homes. Bet that the Beavers won't be shy about knocking on doors.

Man, there are quite a few really bad jokes I could make, but I'll just be quiet about it. Haha! But I agree, that BCD kimchee fried rice is ono!

And finally, Dave Reardon has his Warrior Replay, which highlights five key plays from the game. Here's one of them:

4. Game winner

The Setup: Hawaii 35, Purdue 35; 1:34 remaining, fourth quarter, Hawaii ball, second and 6 at Purdue 23.

The Play: Brennan -- given time by a key block by right tackle Dane Uperesa -- double pumps and throws a screen pass to right wide receiver Ian Sample, who cuts left and follows a wall of blockers into the end zone. The wall includes the other wideout, Jason Rivers, who knocks defensive back David Pender off his feet to enable the score.

The Impact: Brennan's 51st touchdown pass of the season puts him within three of David Klingler's single-season record, but more importantly accounts for the final points in the most exciting finish of Hawaii's season.

Sample: "Colt threw me a good ball. I followed the linemen. They blocked so far out in front and to the right (that the left) was the best route."

What an exciting play that was. Can't wait for this Saturday's game.

GO WARRIORS!!!!

Rankings Update

Hawaii is:

• Ranked 23rd in the USA Today Coaches Poll


• Ranked 24th in the AP Poll.


• Ranked 23rd in the Harris Interactive Poll (PDF).


• Ranked 22nd in the CBS Sportsline Poll.

BCS Poll gets released later today.

UPDATE: Hawaii is ranked 25th in the BCS Poll. Oregon State is actually ranked 24th in the BCS because of the computers.

Stats After Week 13

From the NCAA and ESPN

Hawaii is:

• 1st in the nation in scoring offense with 48.58 points per game.
• 1st in the nation in passing offense with 434.8 yards per game.
• 1st in the nation in total offense with 553.75 yards per game.
• 1st in the nation in third down efficiency with a conversion percentage of 58.2%
• 1st in the nation in tackles for loss allowed with 3.00 allowed per game.
  
• 65th in the nation in scoring defense with 23.2 points allowed per game. UH is outscoring their opponents by an average of 25.38 points per game.
  
• 95th in the nation in total defense with 381.83 yards allowed per game.
• 111th in the nation in time of possession with 27:52 minutes per game.
  
• T-44th in the nation in turnover margin with + 0.25 per game.
• T-30th in the nation in interceptions with 14.
  

Colt Brennan is:

• 1st in the nation in passing efficiency with a rating of 186.7
• 1st in the nation in passing yards per game with 382.42 yards per game
• 1st in the nation in total offense with 410.8 yards per game.
• 1st in the nation in points responsible for with 28.33 points per game.
• 1st in the nation in touchdown passes with 51.
  

Nate Ilaoa is:

• T-7th in the nation in scoring with 9.27 points per game.
• 13th in the nation in all-purpose yards with 141.73 yards per game.

Davone Bess is:

• 8th in the nation in receptions with 6.75 per game.
• 13th in the nation in receiving yards with 86.58 per game.

Ross Dickerson is:

• 14th in the nation in kickoff returns with 26.59 yards per return.
• 55th in the nation in all-purpose yards with 106.50 yards per game.

Melila Purcell is:

• T-9th in the nation in forced fumbles with 0.33 per game, or 4 total.
• T-48th in the nation in tackles for loss with 1.13 per game, or 13.5 total.
• T-43rd in the nation in sacks with 0.63 per game, or 7.5 total.

NOTE: These aren't permalinks, so as the week changes, so will the stats.

Hawaii vs Purdue Newspaper Wrap-Ups

Stephen Tsai's wrap-up captures the celebratory mood.

In a finish that will eventually be retold as a sweet-dreams bedtime story, the 25th-ranked University of Hawai'i football team willed a 42-35 victory from Purdue last night at Aloha Stadium.

Before 44,298 — the largest home crowd since the 2005 season opener — the Warriors surged from an eight-point deficit with six minutes remaining to win their ninth in a row.

Even the Mayor was celebrating.

"What an absolutely fabulous victory," Mayor Mufi Hannemann gushed in the post-game celebration. "I'm so proud of them. They're Hawai'i's team. They're Polynesia's team."

The article closes with a great quote from coach Jeff Reinebold, as well as Hannemann again.

"I'm so proud of these kids," said defensive line coach Jeff Reinebold, who was raised in Indiana. Two of his children attend Purdue.

"People have no idea about the differences between that place and this place in terms of facilities, and money, and athletes, even," Reinebold added. "But they don't have what we have: as great a love for each other."

After the game, the Mayor agreed it was fortunate he wasn't running against Brennan.

"That's for sure," Hannemann said. "Or Nasti (Ilaoa) or anyone else on this team."

Dave Reardon's wrap-up has some quotes from Leonard Peters and June Jones regarding the big crowd last night.

"The crowd won it for us," safety Leonard Peters said, citing several situations where the Boilermakers weren't on the same page because of the noise.

"I'm sure the crowd got their money's worth," Jones said. "They were a huge difference in the game."

Kalani Takase and Ferd Lewis talk to Purdue QB Curtis Painter about the crowd.

"It was a loud crowd," said Purdue quarterback Curtis Painter. "I think it was a little louder than we expected. We came in and we were going on a snap count. We had to change that up, it was getting pretty loud and the line was having trouble hearing me on the snap count."

Davone Bess felt the crowd played a big factor.

"That 12th man, they play such a huge role in games like this. they're so loud, the environment is real hostile and I believe that had a lot to do with Purdue being shaken up," said Bess.

Painter said he didn't feel it was a factor in his turnovers. "Bad throws, bad reads," he said.

UH defensive linemen Ikaika Alama-Francis said otherwise.

"Without these fans, I don't think we could have pulled this off."

Takase and Lewis also write that the UH O-line did a great job in containing Purdue DE Anthony Spencer.

Purdue defensive end Anthony Spencer came into the game leading the country in tackles for losses with 26.5, including 10.5 sacks. Last night he got zero.

"They played a really good game," he said. "They had a good game plan coming in. They had little combination blocks, one-on-one blocks every once in a while, but they did a really good job."

...

"Well, he's a great player," offensive line coach Dennis McKnight said of Spencer.

Warriors' left tackle Tala Esera was matched up with Spencer most of the night.

Esera, who is 6-foot-4 and 308 pounds, echoed McKnight's thoughts.

"He was, by far, the toughest guy to block this year," he said. "He has an extremely good pass rush; he's really strong, he's a real good playmaker and I was trying my hardest to block him."

Tala probably upped his draft status a couple more notches!

Tom Kubat of BoilerStation.com talks to Spencer, who had more nice things to say about the Warriors.

"We played pretty well until the end of the game, when it mattered the most," Purdue defensive end Anthony Spencer said. "When the game was on the line we really didn't get the job done.

"They're a good offense. They have really good, aggressive wide receivers, they're quarterback is really good and their running back had a good game tonight. But we could have played better."

Other Purdue players weren't so willingly generous, but some were.

While some Boilermakers grudgingly gave the Warriors credit, linebacker Dan Bick said the Hawaii offense was as good as advertised.

"Yes it is," he said. "It's defendable but it's a good offense, very well run and coordinated. They run that shovel pass very well. They'd get us to drop into coverage and throw it to a big back who could take on a lot of tacklers. That hurt us tonight.

"The game was back and forth. We wanted this game. We fought hard but we didn't end up on top. Congratulations to them."

Kudos to Bick and Spencer.

Going back to Reardon's wrap-up, Colt Brennan, who broke a couple of school records last night, praised his teammates.

In the first quarter, Brennan broke the school records for single-season total offense and passing yards set by Tim Chang in 2002. But he was more interested in talking about how the team came back from adversity in the fourth quarter.

"Camaraderie, character," Brennan said. "And no negativity. Guys were stepping up to make plays and not worrying about the bad things. It shows what type of team we have."

Stacy Kaneshiro talks to Ryan Grice-Mullins and Nate Ilaoa about getting the win.

"This one showed our heart and the kind of ball we play on this island," Grice-Mullins said. "Last couple years, when we got down, it was over. It ain't like that this year. We know we're going to win. We deserve to win."

"You never want a game where you'll be tested, but it's good to know that you can look back on the film and that you can be in dog fights, fight through adversity," Ilaoa added. "Unfortunately, I'm the one fumbling, but we were able to step up as a unit."

Ferd Lewis has quotes from Leonard Peters and Davone Bess on pulling out a close one.

"You couldn't have it any better than this," said sixth-year senior defensive back Leonard Peters. "I mean, I'd rather have it this way, where we proved what we were all about than another blowout."

...

"This is a lot sweeter than just another blowout because it tests you," Bess said. "It tests your character, your maturity and your leadership. That's what this one did."

Leila Wai writes about Blaze Soares' pivotal sack to set up Gerard Lewis' pivotal interception.

But with the game tied at 35 and the Boilermakers driving down the field, linebacker Blaze Soares sacked Painter at the Purdue 27-yard line.

"I came off the end and Solomon (Elimimian) got the back to chase him, so it opened the window for me," said Soares, who recorded his second sack of the season. "It was all Solomon."

On the next play, Lewis picked off Painter's pass, giving Hawai'i's offense a chance to take the lead back, which it did on a Colt Brennan touchdown pass to Ian Sample.

"We needed a big play. We knew we needed a turnover to win the game," Lewis said. "I was back in coverage and he tried to throw it to another dude and I ran over there and picked the ball off."

Jason Kaneshiro writes about Ian Sample's game-winning touchdown catch.

"I owe it to the linemen and Colt, he saw the window, double-clutched it then threw it," Sample said. "The linemen blocked and Rivers had the best block of the year. For me it was, 'catch the ball, see the end zone and get to it.'

"It's designed to go up the middle, but the linemen were all just pushing (the Purdue defenders) so far to the right that I kept it going. It was a piece of cake after that."

It was just Sample's third catch of the game and he finished with 43 yards for the night. But with the game tied at 35 and the clock winding down, Hawaii head coach June Jones called for the screen --normally a staple of the UH attack -- and it popped open for the Warriors.

"We hadn't run it all game so it was a great play-call by Coach Jones," Brennan said. "A huge play-call.

Nick Abramo talks to Purdue coach Joe Tiller.

"We forced the ball early in the game and we forced it at the end and I thought that was the difference," Tiller said. "This team (Hawaii) isn't leading the nation in scoring by accident. The problem with playing a team that is so explosive is that you have to match them and sometimes you have to press and when you do that, invariably things go wrong.

...

"They have that type of offense where we're looking for guys to make the big plays. We would be stupid to think they're not going to throw the ball all the way up the field. After all, they run that run-and-shoot, something, something, something."

Huh?

The Star-Bulletin's Notebook has the story on how Dan Kelly's 52-yard field goal came to be.

Officials checked the video replay to see if a Brennan incomplete pass was a fumble instead, which gave June Jones time to change his mind after having sent out his punt team on fourth and 8 from the Purdue 35.

Instead, Jones called back the punt team, and Dan Kelly hit a field goal to make it 20-14 with 4:48 left in the third quarter.

"Coach (Jerry) Glanville kind of coerced Coach Jones to kick a field goal," Kelly said. "I looked at Coach Glanville, Glanville looked at me and I told him I could hit it. And he said, 'I know.'

"And then he went to Coach Jones and said 'kick a field goal.' "

The 52-yarder was Kelly's career high.

That was a great kick. Dan Kelly needed that kick. And UH needed this win. Bring on the Beavers!

GO WARRIORS!!!!

Hawaii Ranked 23rd

Hawaii has moved up two spots and is now ranked 23rd in the USA Today Coaches Poll! Congratulations to the Warriors!

UPDATE: Hawaii is ranked 24th in the AP Poll.

Hawaii vs Purdue Same Night Wrap-Ups

Here's the Advertiser's wrap-up.

Quarterback Colt Brennan completed a 21-yard touchdown pass to Ian Sample with 1:27 remaining to lead No. 25 Hawai'i to a 42-35 victory over Purdue Saturday night at Aloha Stadium.

Purdue's Curtis Painter was intercepted by UH's Adam Leonard at the PU 46 with 53 seconds remaining to preserve the victory.

Hawai'i, which has won nine in a row, is 10-2. Purdue is 8-5.

Brennan completed 33 of 48 passes for 434 yards and three touchdowns, bringing his season total to 51. Davone Bess had six catches for 117 yards. Nate Ilaoa rushed 12 times for 159 yards and two scores.

Here's the Star-Bulletin's wrap-up.

Here's a wrap-up from KITV.

Hawaii 42, Purdue 35

What a crazy crazy game! UH really needed a come-from-behind win like this. Those last two touchdowns were nuts! Wooooo hooooo!!!! Definitely the most exciting game of the year. I hope the Purdue coaches are gracious enough not to whine, but we'll see. I don't see what they can whine about anyway. In any case, hopefully this pushes UH further up the rankings, and I'm sure this experience will help them against the Beavers next week, and whoever they face in the Hawaii Bowl.

GO WARRIORS!!!!

UPDATE: Here are some unofficial stats.

Colt Brennan was 33 of 48 for 434 yards with 3 touchdowns and 1 interception. He also rushed 6 times for 59 yards.

Nate Ilaoa rushed 12 times for 159 yards with 2 touchdowns. He also caught 7 passes for 52 yards for a total of 211 all-purpose yards.

Davone Bess had 6 catches for 117 yards.

Jason Rivers had 6 catches for 103 yards.

Solomon Elimimian had 14 tackles.

LiveBlogging: Hawaii vs Purdue

All Times Game Clock!

Final Score: Hawaii 42, Purdue 35

1st Quarter:

15:00 - Game starts in a few minutes!

15:00 - UH will kick off.

15:00 - Dan Kelly kicks off into the back of the end zone where it is downed.

14:52 - On 1st down from the Purdue 20, Curtis Painter completes a pass to Selwyn Lyman to the 25.

13:58 - On 2nd down from the Purdue 25, hand off to Kory Sheets out to the 29. 3rd down.

13:22 - On 3rd and 1 from the 29, Sheets takes it for a really short gain, but enough for the first down.

12:55 - On 1st down from the Purdue 30, Sheets takes it to the 32 yard line for a short gain.

12:20 - On 2nd and 8, Painter throws to his tight end, but it's dropped. 3rd down!

12:13 - On 3rd and 8 from the Purdue 32, Painter throws to nobody over the middle. Gotta punt!

12:09 - Purdue punts and Davone Bess takes it at the 16 to the 28 yard line! Timeout!

12:00 - On 1st down from the Hawaii 28, Colt Brennan throws a short pass to Chad Mock, who dives to the 36. 2nd down.

11:04 - On 2nd down, shovel to Nate Ilaoa who takes it to the UH 44 for a first down!

10:40 - On 1st down from the UH 44, Colt Brennan hands off to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it to the 47 or 48 for a short gain.

10:00 - On 2nd down from the UH 47, Brennan hits Chad Mock on the right sideline for a first down!

9:50 - On 1st down from the Purdue 41, Brennan hands off to Ilaoa, who takes it to the Purdue 27 for another first down!

9:45 - On 1st down from the Purdue 27, Brennan scrambles and finds Ryan Grice-Mullins in the end zone for a TOUCHDOWN!!!!! But there's flag on Hawaii. CRAP.

9:39 - Play is coming back. Illegal man downfield.

9:33 - On 1st and 15 from the Purdue 32, Brennan shovels to Mauia, but it's dropped. 2nd down.

9:30 - On 2nd and 15 from the Purdue 32, Brennan hands off to Nate Ilaoa who takes it all the way to the 17 yard line for a FIRST DOWN!!!!

9:00 - On 1st down from the Purdue 16, Brennan overthrows Ian Sample, just barely. 2nd down.

8:55 - On 2nd down from the Purdue 16, Brennan hits Jason Rivers, who bowls over a couple of defenders to take it to the 4 yard line!

8:35 - On 1st down from the Purdue 4, hand off to Ilaoa, who TAKES IT IN FOR A TOUCHDOWN!!!!

8:24 - Briton Forester kicks the PAT and it's GOOD! Hawaii 7, Purdue 0

8:24 - Looks like Purdue is unprepared to handle Nasti Nate. Should be a big night for him!

8:20 - Dan Kelly kicks off and it's taken out past the 25. Nice tackle by Dan Kelly!

8:00 - On 1st down from the Purdue 28, Curtis Painter hands off to Kory Sheets, who takes it for about 7 yards.

7:20 - On 2nd down from the Purdue 34, Painter's pass is dropped! 3rd down!

7:10 - On 3rd down and 3 from the Purdue 34, Painter's pass is INCOMPLETE! Gotta punt!

7:02 - Purdue punts and Davone Bess takes it from the 15 to the 25! Timeout!

6:55 - On 1st down from the Hawaii 25, Colt Brennan hits Davone Bess on the left sideline at the UH 46 yard line for a quick first down!

6:30 - On 1st down from the UH 47, Brennan hits Jason Rivers who takes it to the 17 yard line for another first down!!!!

6:02 - On 1st down from the Purdue 17, short pass to Nate Ilaoa who takes it inside the 15 for a short gain.

5:20 - On 2nd down from the Purdue 13, Brennan hits Ryan Grice-Mullins, who is stopped immediately at the 10 yard line.

4:40 - On 3rd and 3 from the Purdue 10, Brennan shovels to Ilaoa, who is stopped immediately at the line of scrimmage. 4th down.

4:15 - Hawaii takes a time out.

4:12 - On 4th and 3, they're going for it! Colt Brennan's pass to Davone Bess is dropped. Turnover on downs. CRAP!

3:55 - On 1st down from the Purdue 10, Curtis Painter hands off to Sheets, who takes it to the 13. 2nd down.

3:18 - On 2nd and 7 from the Purdue 13, Painter hits Greg Orton out at the 22 for a first down.

2:50 - On 1st down from the Purdue 22, the play is whistled dead.

2:49 - False start on Purdue.

2:38 - On 1st down and 15 from the Purdue 17, the play is whistled dead again.

2:28 - Another false start on Purdue.

2:18 - On 1st down from the Purdue 13, really short gain by Sheets. 2nd down.

1:38 - On 2nd down from the Purdue 15, Purdue completes a pass out to the 19. 3rd down and about 12.

0:55 - On 3rd down from the Purdue 20, Painter completes a great pass over the middle to the 43 for a first down.

0:30 - On 1st down from the Purdue 42, Dorien Bryant takes a hand off into UH territory.

0:00 - End of 1st Quarter. Time out!


2nd Quarter:


15:00 - On 1st down from the UH 47, Curtis Painter throws long, but the pass is incomplete.

14:50 - On 2nd down from the UH 47, Painter hands off to Sheets, who takes it to the 30, but there's a flag....

14:48 - Holding on Purdue. Play comes back!

14:44 - On 2nd and 20, Dorien Bryant takes the short pass for a long gain for a first down.

14:33 - On 1st down from the UH 34, Painter completes a pass to Orton out to the UH 22.

14:25 - On 1st down from the UH 22, Painter completes a quick pass for about a 5 yard gain.

13:55 - On 2nd down from the UH 17, Painter is ALMOST intercepted by Leonard Peters! Doh! 3rd down!

13:46 - Hawaii takes a time out.

13:44 - On 3rd and 5 from the UH 17, Painter completes a quick pass over the middle to Bryant, who is tackled at the 4.

13:27 - Illegal substitution on Hawaii. Purdue will have it on the 2.

13:15 - On 1st and goal from the 2, Painter FUMBLES!!!!! And MYRON NEWBERRY RECOVERS!!!!!

12:50 - On 1st down from the UH 9 yard line, Colt Brennan hits Davone Bess over the middle who runs it all the way to the 42 YARD LINE!!!!!

12:10 - On 1st down from the Purdue 42, Brennan hits Ryan Grice-Mullins at the 30 yard line for another quick first down!

11:40 - On 1st down from the Purdue 30, Brennan to Mock on the left sideline to the 16 yard line for ANOTHER first down!

11:20 - On 1st down from the Purdue 16, Brennan hands off to Nate Ilaoa who takes it ALL THE WAY IN FOR A TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!

11:06 - Chad Mock is injured on the play. Looks like Nate landed on him. Looks like the wind was just knocked out of him. Thank goodness.

11:06 - Briton Forester's PAT is GOOD! Hawaii 14, Purdue 0

11:03 - Dan Kelly kicks off and it is downed in the end zone for a touchback.

10:56 - On 1st down from the Purdue 20, Curtis Painter completes a pass out to the 31 for a first down.

10:22 - On 1st down from the Purdue 31, Painter hands off to Sheets, who is stuffed for little or no gain.

9:42 - On 2nd and 9 form the Purdue 32, Sheets is dropped by Adam Leonard. But there's a personal foul on Hawaii. Automatic first down.

9:33 - On 1st down from the Purdue 48, Dorien Taylor takes it into UH territory.

8:55 - On 2nd down from the UH 45, short 1 yard gain to the UH 44. 3rd down.

8:43 - A Purdue player is down on the play. Time out.

8:40 - On 3rd down and 1 from the UH 44, Painter tries to sneak it. They're probably gonna have to measure. Nope, 4th down!

7:32 - Purdue punts into the end zone. Touchback.

7:15 - On 1st down from the UH 20, Colt Brennan passes incomplete. 2nd down.

7:03 - On 2nd down from the UH 20, Colt Brennan hits Ian Sample at the 31 yard line. 1st down!

6:53 - On 1st down from the UH 31, Brennan hands off to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it all the way to the Purdue 45 yard line!!! 1st down!

6:14 - On 1st down from the Purdue 45, Brennan gets sacked back at the 47 or 48. 2nd down.

5:30 - On 2nd down from the Purdue 48, Brennan hits Davone Bess, who takes it to the 38. 3rd down.

4:50 - On 3rd and 2 from the Purdue 37, Brennan's pass is batted down. 4th down.

4:35 - Kurt Milne punts and it is downed inside the 20.

4:20 - On 1st down from the Purdue 20, Painter completes a pass to Orton out to the 40.

4:10 - On 1st down from the Purdue 40, Painter's pass is broken up by Solomon Elimimian!

4:05 - On 2nd down from the Purdue 40, Painter's pass is broken up by Michael Malala! But there are flags.

4:01 - Holding on Purdue, interference on UH. Offsetting penalties.

3:58 - On 2nd down and 10 from the Purdue 40, the play is whistled dead.

3:58 - False start on Purdue.

3:56 - On 2nd and 15 from the Purdue 35, Painter completes a pass to the 41. 3rd down.

3:20 - On 3rd and 9 from the Purdue 41, Painter throws to nobody on the sideline! Gotta punt!

3:10 - Purdue punts, but there's a penalty flag on the play.

3:06 - Offsides on Hawaii.

3:06 - Penalty declined, so UH will have the ball on their own 6.

2:44 - On 1st down from the UH 6, Colt Brennan is nearly sacked, but he scrambles out to the 13 yard line.

2:00 - On 2nd and 4, Nate Ilaoa takes it for a really show gain out to the 14.

1:33 - On 3rd and 2 from the UH 15, Brennan hands off to Nate Ilaoa, who busts it out to the UH 31 for a first down!!!!

1:00 - On 1st down, Brennan to Ross Dickerson out to the UH 48 yard line for a quick first down!.

0:50 - On 1st down from the 48, Brennan scrambles to the 33 yard line for a 1st down!!!!

0:33 - On 1st down from the 33, Nate Ilaoa takes it to the 20 yard line for another first down!

0:15 - On 1st down from the Purdue 20, Brennan scrambles and runs out of bounds at the 6 for a first down!!!

0:06 - Purdue calls a time out.

0:06 - Dan Kelly's field goal attempt is GOOD! Hawaii 17, Purdue 0

0:00 - Dan Kelly kicks a squib, where it's downed at the 33. Time runs out. End of half.

HALFTIME - Here are some stats at the half:

Colt Brennan is 15 of 20 for 211 yards. He also has 4 rushes for 44 yards.

Nate Ilaoa has 9 rushes for 110 yards and 2 touchdowns!

Davone Bess has 3 receptions for 81 yards.

See you in about 15 minutes!


2nd Half:

3rd Quarter:

15:00 - Purdue kicks off and Malcolm Lane takes it out to the UH 31 yard line.

14:38 - On 1st down from the 31, Colt Brennan's pass is deflected and then taken in for a touchdown by a Purdue player, but it's ruled an incomplete pass.

14:24 - On 2nd and 10 from the UH 31, Brennan completes a pass to Jason Rivers out to the 38. 3rd down.

13:50 - On 3rd down from the UH 38, Brennan completes a quick pass to Chad Mock over the middle for a first down!

13:20 - On 1st down from the 50, Brennan dumps it to Nate Ilaoa, who fumbles! And it's recovered by Purdue. Dammit.

13:00 - On 1st down from the UH 49, Curtis Painter completes a pass to the UH 43.

12:24 - On 2nd down from the UH 42, Kory Sheets takes it just short of the UH 40. 3rd down.

11:44 - On 3rd and 1 from the UH 40, Painter completes a pass out to the 29 for a first down.

11:15 - On 1st down from the UH 29, Dorien Bryant takes it to the 24 for a 5 yard gain.

10:35 - On 2nd down and 5 from the UH 24, Painter overthrows his receiver. 3rd and 5.

10:28 - On 3rd and 5 from the UH 24, Painter completes a pass to Kory Sheets, who takes it to the UH 11 for a first down.

10:05 - On 1st down from the UH 11, Sheets takes it to the 10.

9:35 - On 2nd down from the UH 10, Painter throws a touchdown pass. He just lobbed it up there.

9:23 - PAT is good. Hawaii 17, Purdue 7

9:20 - Purdue kicks off and out of the end zone. Touchback.

9:05 - On 1st down from the UH 20, Colt Brennan is hit as he throws and the pass is nearly intercepted. 2nd down.

8:50 - On 2nd down from the UH 20, Brennan passes over the middle and it is intercepted! Sheesh.

8:35 - On 1st down from the UH 48, Purdue runs it out to the 40, and then there's a personal foul on Gerard Lewis.

8:30 - On 1st down from the UH 25, Curtis Painter swings it out to the running back, who passes it for a touchdown! Wow, Steelers gadget play on that one.

8:20 - PAT is good. Hawaii 17, Purdue 14

8:16 - Purdue kicks off and it is taken out by Ross Dickerson to the 21.

8:00 - On 1st down from the UH 21, Colt Brennan hits Nate Ilaoa on the screen, and he takes it out to the 35 yard line for a first down!

7:28 - On 1st down from the UH 34, Nate Ilaoa takes it to the 37 for a short gain.

6:50 - On 2nd down from the UH 37, Brennan shovels to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it to the Purdue 49 for a first down!!!

6:20 - On 1st down from the Purdue 49, Brennan hits Chad Mock on the left sideline who takes it for another first down!

5:55 - On 1st down from the Purdue 37, Reagan Mauia takes it to the 35 for a 2 yard gain.

5:15 - On 2nd down from the Purdue 35, Brennan throws too high. Incomplete. 3rd down.

5:00 - On 3rd down and 8 from the Purdue 35, Brennan is hit as he throws. 4th down.

4:54 - Kurt Milne is set to punt, but the play is being reviewed to see if it was an incomplete pass or a fumble.

4:54 - Dan Kelly's gonna try a 52 yard field goal!

4:48 - Dan Kelly HITS THE 52 YARD FIELD GOAL! Hawaii 20, Purdue 14

4:44 - Dan Kelly kicks off and it's taken out to the 14, where Guyton Galdeira makes the stop!

4:30 - On 1st down from the Purdue 14, Jason Taylor takes it out 25 for a quick first down.

4:00 - On 1st down from the Purdue 25, Taylor takes it to the 29. 2nd down.

3:22 - On 2nd and 5 from the Purdue 30, Painter's pass is bobbled and is incomplete! 3rd down.

3:12 - On 3rd and 5 from the Purdue 30, Painter completes a pass out to the 37 for a first down.

2:55 - On 1st down from the Purdue 37, Taylor takes it out the UH 49 for a first down.

2:45 - On 1st down from the UH 49, Painter throws incomplete.

2:30 - On 2nd down from the UH 49, Kory Sheets is stuffed at the line of scrimmage! 3rd down!

1:50 - On 3rd and 10 from the UH 49, Painter's pass is caught at the 39 for a first down.

1:41 - Actually, they had to measure for it. 1st down anyway.

1:30 - On 1st down from the UH 40, false start on Purdue.

1:15 - On 1st and 15 from the UH 44, Painter passes to Taylor out to the UH 37.

0:30 - On 2nd and 8 from the UH 37, Tyson Kafentzis trips up Curtis Painter, who stumbles out to the UH 35.

0:00 - End of 3rd Quarter. Time out.


4th Quarter:

15:00 - On 3rd and 6 from the UH 35, Curtis Painter completes a pass to the 27 for a first down.

14:50 - On 1st down from the UH 28, Painter throws a touchdown pass in the corner of the end zone. Nice catch.

14:49 - Purdue takes the lead with the PAT. Hawaii 20, Purdue 21

14:49 - Moment of truth time for the Warriors!

14:45 - Purdue kicks off and Ross Dickerson takes it on a bounce and is stopped immediately at the 10.

14:15 - On 1st down from the UH 12, Colt Brennan's out pass is deflected.

14:10 - On 2nd and 10 from the UH 12, Brennan is almost sacked, but shovels to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it out to the 24 for a first down!

13:50 - On 1st down from the UH 24, Brennan scrambles out to the 35. 1st down!

13:20 - On 1st down from the UH 35, Nate Ilaoa takes the hand off, who takes it all the way to the PURDUE 27 YARD LINE!!!!

12:40 - On 1st down from the Purdue 27, Brennan hits Ian Sample on the 18 yard line.

12:10 - On 2nd and 1 from the Purdue 18, Brennan hits Davone Bess, who takes it to the 14 for a first down!

11:38 - On 1st and 10 from the Purdue 14, Brennan hits Ross Dickerson WHO LEAPS INTO THE ENDZONE FOR A TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!

11:28 - Briton Forester's PAT is GOOD! Hawaii 27, Purdue 21

11:24 - Dan Kelly kicks off and it is caught out of bounds. Touchback.

11:14 - On 1st down from the Purdue 20, Curtis Painter hands off to Sheets, who takes it out to the 25.

10:38 - On 2nd and 5 from the 25, Painter to Bryant, who takes it to the line of scrimmage. 3rd down!

9:55 - On 3rd and 5 from the Purdue 25, Painter completes a pass to the 33 for a first down.

9:40 - On 1st down from the Purdue 33, hand off to Sheets, who takes it to the 39.

9:00 - On 2nd down from the Purdue 39, Painter completes a pass to the Purdue 49. 1st down.

8:30 - On 1st down from the Purdue 49, Painter completes a pass to Sheets, who takes it out to the UH 19.

8:15 - On 1st down from the UH 19, Sheets gets stopped at the line of scrimmage.

7:38 - On 2nd down from the UH 19, Painter throws a touchdown pass. Sheesh!

7:29 - PAT is good. Hawaii 27, Purdue 28

7:25 - Ross Dickerson takes the Purdue kick off out to the 24.

7:14 - On 1st down from the UH 24, Colt Brennan's pass to Jason Rivers is dropped.

7:02 - On 2nd down from the UH 24, Brennan hands off to Nate Ilaoa who takes it out to the 32, but it's a fumble and Purdue gets it back.

6:55 - Hawaii is challenging the ruling.

6:55 - Purdue retains possession after review.

6:50 - On 1st down from the UH 32, Curtis Painter completes a touchdown pass.

6:50 - PAT is good. Hawaii 27, Purdue 35

6:48 - Purdue kicks off out of the end zone. Touchback.

6:35 - On 1st down from the UH 20, Colt Brennan's pass is batted at the line of scrimmage.

6:20 - On 2nd and 10 from the UH 20, Brennan scrambles and completes a pass to Davone Bess to the 24. 3rd down.

6:10 - On 3rd and 6 from the UH 24, Brennan shovels to Reagan Mauia, who takes it to the 40 yard line for a first down!!!!

5:50 - On 1st down from the UH 40, Brennan passes high. 2nd down.

5:42 - On 2nd and 10 from the UH 40, Brennan over the middle to Davone Bess to the Purdue 33 yard line!!!

5:22 - On 1st down from the Purdue 32, Brennan hits Jason Rivers on the left sideline and he takes it all the way to the Purdue 10 yard line!!!!

5:08 - On 1st and goal from the 10. Penalty on Purdue. Illegal substitution. Ball will be on the 5.

4:55 - On 1st and goal from the 5, Brennan to Ryan Grice-Mullins for a TOUCHDOWN!!!!

4:48 - UH is going for 2.

4:48 - On the 2 point attempt, Brennan hits RGM again!!! Hawaii 35, Purdue 35

4:44 - Dan Kelly kicks off and it is downed in the end zone for a touchback.

4:30 - On 1st down from the Purdue 20, Painter completes a pass to the 30. 1st down.

4:12 - On 1st down from the Purdue 30, Painter pitches to Sheets, who takes it to the 33. 2nd down.

3:28 - On 2nd down from the Purdue 33, Painter is SACKED BY BLAZE SOARES!!!!

2:40 - On 3rd and 14 from the Purdue 27, Painter is INTERCEPTED BY GERARD LEWIS!!!!!!

2:23 - On 1st down from the UH 46, Brennan hits Jason Rivers, who takes it into Purdue territory for a first down!

2:05 - On 1st down from the Purdue 41, Brennan throws deep and just missed Jason Rivers in the end zone! Yikes.

2:00 - On 2nd down from the Purdue 41, Brennan hits Jason Rivers on the left sideline to the 27 for a first down!!!!

1:40 - On 1st down from the Purdue 27, Brennan has to scramble and takes it to the 23.

1:30 - On 2nd down from the Purdue 23, Brennan hits Ian Sample on the BUBBLE SCREEN AND HE TAKES IT IN FOR A TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!

1:27 - Briton Forester's PAT IS GOOD!!! Hawaii 42, Purdue 35

1:22 - Dan Kelly kicks off and it is downed in the end zone for a touchback.

1:18 - On 1st down from the Purdue 20, Curtis Painter completes a pass, and Brad Kalilimoku with the quick stop at the 21!!!

1:05 - Purdue takes a time out.

1:00 - On 2nd down from the 20, Painter completes a pass to the 33. 1st down.

0:55 - On 1st down from the Purdue 33, Painter throws an INTERCEPTION TO ADAM LEONARD!!!! GAME OVER!!!!!

0:39 - On 1st down from the Purdue 41, Colt Brennan takes a knee.

0:00 - Clock runs down! GAME OVER!!! FINAL SCORE - Hawaii 42, Purdue 35

Ways to Follow the Hawaii vs Purdue Game

In Hawaii:

GO TO ALOHA STADIUM!

Watch it on Oceanic PPV

Listen to it on 1420 AM


Outside Hawaii:

Watch it on ESPN Gameplan


Everywhere:

Streaming video from Hawaiian Tel Media

Streaming audio from Sports Radio 1420

Live stats via CSTV GameTracker

And I should be liveblogging it.

The game starts at 6:05pm Hawaiian, 8:05pm Pacific, 9:05pm Mountain, 10:05pm Central, 11:05pm Eastern, 5:05pm Samoan, 5:05AM Nov. 19th Central European (Denmark and Germany), 3:05pm Nov. 19th Eastern Summer (New South Wales, Australia).

GO WARRIORS!!!!

BTW, looks like Boise State just beat Nevada and is going to a BCS bowl. So no WAC co-championship for UH. Congratulations to Boise, and let's hope they represent the WAC well.

GameDay: Hawaii vs Purdue

Today's game should be a good one. I'm excited to see how this year's Warriors line up against a Big Ten team. I think UH needs to win by at least 28 points so there will be NO EXCUSES. I guess Hawaii will have to spot Joe Tiller 7 points for the distance, 7 points for the humidity, 7 points for the 13th game, 7 points for Waikiki. Do we need to spot him more? Anything less than a 28 point victory and almost guarans you're gonna hear the excuses. Nah, even if it's a 50 point victory, there's gonna be excuses. Well Joe Tiller, no matter how hard you try, you can't diminish a Warriors' victory!

Dave Reardon writes a great article about the importance of this game for the Warriors.

"That's what's been holding us back, people saying we're playing lesser opponents in the WAC," Brennan said. "Here comes two teams at the higher end of their conferences, the Big Ten and the Pac-10. So, for us to win these two games would make a huge statement. If we do it in the manner we've been lately, it makes a gigantic statement. There's a lot riding on these next two games for us."

Defensive line coach Jeff Reinebold said the players know the credibility they've built up in two months can vanish in 3 hours tonight.

"In our meeting room we talk about how this can all disappear in one bad outing. Everything you've built so far, the level of play, the ranking. They're all tenuous at best. You need to play well against elite level teams," Reinebold said. "The great thing about our schedule, the next three games, Purdue, Oregon State and hopefully UCLA or whoever the Pac-10 sends, is going to give these guys a chance to make a statement about who they are."

Dave Reardon's gameday preview highlights this key match-up:

UH left tackle Tala Esera vs. Purdue DE Anthony Spencer

Of all the tremendous numbers the Hawaii offense has put up this year, this might be the most impressive: 3.18 tackles-for-loss allowed per game, No. 1 in the nation.

In previous years, the UH attack was considered a high-risk, high-yield proposition. The risk was lessened this year, with the incredible level of protection the offensive line of Tala Esera, Hercules Satele, Samson Satele, John Estes and Dane Uperesa -- plus backs Nate Ilaoa and Reagan Mauia -- has provided. Colt Brennan's ability to smell out a potential sack and scramble for a gain helps, too.

But Purdue defensive end Anthony Spencer is a serious threat to that sense of security.

The probable All-American leads the nation with 26.5 tackles-for-loss, and he averages a little less than a sack a game.

"He looks like a very good player," Esera said.

"He's a speed rusher."

Indiana slowed him down last week with a tackle-guard double team. The Warriors will probably use a combination of Esera and Ilaoa or Mauia to slow Spencer. Because Ilaoa is such a force as a playmaker, it will be Spencer and Esera, mano a mano, on at least some downs.

"He's got really good feet. He's aggressive and strong. A well-rounded player," Spencer said of Esera.

Though as Reardon wrote earlier, Spencer could also line up on Dane Uperesa's side, so that should be something to watch out for.

Stephen Tsai's gameday preview also discusses the match-up between the Warrios' O-line vs the Purdue D-line.

The Boilermakers have the sort of scheme — an athletic four-man front — that has given the Warriors fits in the past (see Alabama, 2002). "They're the best one-on-one rushers we've seen," UH offensive line coach Dennis McKnight said. "They've got good depth. They play seven guys who are better than anybody we've faced this year. It's going to be a great challenge."

...

After dismissing the defense, the Warriors spent an extra hour of yesterday's practice working on running routes and blocking defensive stunts and loops. The Warriors are concerned about the Boilermakers' athletic pass rush, which will require three offensive linemen to solo block. Purdue's defensive push might be disruptive to the Warriors' most effective pass play, the shovel. Brennan and Ilaoa are a combined 28 of 28 on shovel passes this season; on shovels, Ilaoa's yards-after-catch average is 19.18.

Stacy Clardie of the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette has a hint of what else the Boilermakers might do on defense.

Hawaii has had success running a run-and-shoot offense, a style that makes it difficult to pressure Brennan because he typically takes a three-step drop and releases the ball in a hurry.

Purdue defensive coordinator Brock Spack will have a challenge trying to slow Brennan.

Bick wouldn’t divulge just what Spack’s plan may be.

“If Coach Spack and Coach (Mark) Hagen feel there’s a spot on their offense we can attack with the blitz, we’re going to do it,” Bick said.

“I like to blitz. It’s a lot of fun. But it all depends on what happens in the game. If they have trouble handling pressure, we’ll keep doing it. If they’re protecting well and taking advantage of the secondary, we’ll drop another back in coverage.”

Stephen Tsai has a great quote from Colt Brennan praising his teammates.

"If anything, our offensive line needs to be praised," Brennan said. "I can't believe people can recognize me and not recognize the guys around me in the same way. Our o-line is the best in the nation. If you look at how many times we pass and how few sacks we've given up, and then you look at how our running backs are averaging 8 yards per carry, I don't understand how (center) Samson (Satele) and these guys are not getting national notoriety. It's kind of ridiculous, really. This will be a great test for our o-line. This will be a great way for them to get that notoriety."

And just a reminder, if you haven't already, you must read Stephen Tsai's in-depth profile of Colt Brennan.

GO WARRIORS!!!!

UPDATE: Here's another article from a Purdue site, this one from BoilerStation.com.

There's only one word to describe the numbers being put up by the Hawaii offense.

Obscene.

OK, maybe there are others.

Purdue defensive coordinator Brock Spack seems to prefer the word ridiculous.

"They're ridiculous. This is a well-oiled machine. They're really good. They're scary good, as a passing team," Spack said. "Notre Dame, all around, is excellent with Brady Quinn at quarterback. But this crew here, it's ridiculous."

Great article with a lot of interviews with Purdue coaches and players.

Colt Brennan

Stephen Tsai writes the best profile of Colt Brennan I've ever read. I don't have an excerpt because it is an absolute must-read. So many national profiles of Colt Brennan gloss over or only briefly mentions his arrest in Colorado, discussing what he was accused of with what he was actually convicted of, and intentionally or not, muddling the two together, leaving the reader unclear as to what actually happened. This article does not shy away from the incident and really goes in-depth in getting to the truth. The article also discusses how June Jones vetted Brennan before inviting him to UH, how Brennan was the quiet new kid when he first arrived, and what Brennan has become to his teammates and Hawaii -- a really great guy, active in the community, and one of the leaders of this Warrior football team, even as he deflects the praise to his teammates. Excellent article.

What the Blogs are Saying

Found a few blogs previewing the Hawaii-Purdue game. Here's an entry from Sportable.com:

Purdue +18 over Hawaii: I’m sick and tired of hearing Purdue coach Joe Tiller bitch about this game. But I also think the Boilermakers will have some pride and actually try. They’re already locked into the Champs Sports Bowl and Hawaii has already confirmed their intention to play in the Hawaii Bowl. This is a nice opportunity for Purdue, despite what Joe Tiller may complain about. Hawaii is a ranked team so a road win for the Boilermakers would be a nice end to the regular season. I don’t see why Purdue wouldn’t be motivated here. They’ve won three in a row and are looking to go 9-4. They might lose but it should be close.

Rockin' the Comet talks about Joe Tiller's comments and offers up a prediction.

It's funny Joe Tiller has publicly stated numerous times now he has never wanted to play this game. He said he wanted this game cancelled, and talked about how we lose money playing this game. He went on to say other big ten coaches who have played there warned him about bad officiating, and how the big ten should stop going over there. Will that happen who knows. I only hope this negative attitude doesn't rub off on the Boilers. I don't see us winning this game for many reasons, however we do play better away from Ross Ade. This is just a chance to get to 9 wins, and beat a team who has yet to play anyone, no offense gary and cheryl. Alright onto the prediction.

...

Purdue vs Hawaii- This is not a fun game, and could get ugly either way. They are a high octane offense, but don't seem to have much defense. If our offense which has played better away from Ross Ade can click we have a shot. We have way too many hurdles to overcome in this one, a long flight, tons of distractions, already have the bowl bid. That being said somehow, someway Tiller fires them up enough to get victory #9.

PURDUE 63 hawaii 62

The Warriors defense has been on a roll recently, so I don't think we'll give up that many points. That would be a crazy game though!

The writer of the Boilermaker Football Blog is in Hawaii for the game and it sounds like he's having a good time. Here's an excerpt from his latest entry:

I must say that I am highly disappointed with the amount of whining coming from Coach Tiller. He knew this game was coming for years, and it didn't get rescheduled as he asked. We get it that he doesn't want to be over here. It's time to be quiet and prepare to play. Let's get the team down to business and get a win since that is what we came over here to do. This is an excellent opportunity for us to have a dry run at bowl preparation with all the extracurriculars that come with it. Since our last few bowl trips have yielded slow starts maybe it is a good thing to have another game between the end of the season and the bowl game. Now we only get about five weeks off instead of the usual six, and that can only help when getting ready for the Champs Bowl.

I'd be disappointed too if I paid to fly all the way to Hawaii to support the team only to hear your coach pretty much saying the game is meaningless and offering up all kinds of excuses. But the blogger has a great attitude about it and offers some keys to the game along with a prediction.

As for the game itself, offense is going to be the key. It is time to use our running game at least as much as we did against Illinois, if not more so. Hawaii's weakness is against the run and we need to have a big day from our backs. We need to have a big day from Painter with his legs. Painter needs to keep them guessing with option runs and keep the ball moving on the ground. They are a good team, but it is still a WAC defense we are moving the ball against. This is not Wisconsin, or Penn State, or even Indiana in terms of overall depth and talent. Hawaii gets to keep a lot of good in state talent at home, but it is still a small pool from which to draw recruits. The Warriors' defensive weakness is against the run, and we need to exploit it so we can set up our passing game. Of course, I recognize that this is what every football team wants to do in any game.

...

PREDICTION: Hawaii 45, Purdue 35 – We'll score with them early and hang around for awhile, but there is simply too much firepower there for us to overcome. We need the offense of the Indiana State game and the defense of the Northwestern game in order to have even a chance.

There's a lot more to read, so go check it out. The Warriors defense has definitely done a great job in recent weeks, so I hope UH can continue to be aggressive and stuff the run and pressure the quarterback. Anyway, since I'm taking predictions from other blogs, I might as well offer my own prediction, for real this time.

Tombo's Prediction: Hawaii 56, Purdue 23

As much as I'd like UH to drop 80 points on Joe Tiller, I don't think it'll happen. But who knows, if the UH players and coaches are as pissed about Tiller's comments as some of the UH fans are, then records may be broken! Game is tomorrow!

GO WARRIORS!!!!