From Louisiana to Vegas

Ferd Lewis has a great column on the toughness of Colt Brennan.

It is then we often see Brennan at his best. Not just threading throws and firing touchdown passes but in just getting up, dusting himself off and standing in against the rush all over again without losing an ounce of resolve or yielding a millimeter to intimidation. For all the yards he piled up and records Brennan compiled at Ruston, La., this is where we're seeing the real measure of the Warriors' leader.

Even his opponents, the ones bidding to knock his block off, will give him that. "I can tell you I love the guy for his competitiveness," Dooley said. "I always respect great competitors. We hit Colt as much as I think he's been hit and it didn't even faze him. That's what great competitors do. He would stay in there, take the hit and make the throws. And he did it the whole game.

Stephen Tsai writes that nothing will stop the Warriors from performing the haka, penalties or not.

Jones and WAC commissioner Karl Benson discussed the matter in a telephone conversation Monday.

"I told Karl we'll try to abide by the rule," Jones said. "But we're going to do it. ... We'll wait the proper amount of time. If a team is going to stay out there, we'll do what we have to do."

"The sad thing is, if the coaches are that scared and that intimidated, then turn around and don't watch," Brennan said. "You don't have to cry to the refs or cry to officials to try and penalize us for not doing anything wrong. ... We did it last year with no penalties. It's completely wrong for them to penalize us. But if they're gonna, they're gonna."

Right on. Tsai also writes about how some players were punished for being late to practice.

As punishment, each had to run eight gassers. One gasser is the equivalent of four 50-yard sprints.

"That's 1,600 yards," AhSoon said, noting that was in addition to running the mandatory three 70-yard sprints. "I'm never going to be late again."

As the road Warriors continue their 11-day journey, Jason Kaneshiro writes about the backups and scout team players who remain in Hawaii, training and cheering on their teammates.

"We were biting our fingernails, for sure," said freshman quarterback Shane Austin, who was among a bunch of players sweating out the final moments of Hawaii's overtime win at Louisiana Tech last Saturday at a packed Eastside Grill

"A lot of us that are left behind, we play an important role on the team just making the team better," said junior running back Camron Carmona, a transfer from Fullerton Community College. "If we're doing a good job we could actually earn a position and that's what some of us came here to do. It's a lot of guys who just want to work hard and not only want to make the team better, but themselves."

Dave Reardon profiles UH linebacker from Vegas, Joshua Rice.

He's hoping to get into the game at Sam Boyd Stadium, especially since "tons of high school friends" and family will be at the UH-UNLV contest.

"I pretty much know every special team, and I played kickoff and kickoff return in the first game. Hopefully I'll get into this one," he said.

Matt Maxson of The Rebel Yell has a UH-UNLV game preview.

“I don’t think you’re going to stop [Hawaii] or control them,” UNLV head coach Mike Sanford said Tuesday. “I think you’ve got to slow them down.”

Hawaii has averaged, so far this season, 54 points a game.

Mark Anderson of the Las Vegas Review-Journal writes that the pro scouts who will be on hand to see Colt may also be impressed by UNLV linebacker Beau Bell.

And the Las Vegas Sun has a rundown of the five things UNLV learned in their tough loss to Wisconsin, which they can use against their opponents. Here's #3:

3. Stingy defense

The Rebels' defense will face the ultimate test Saturday night when it faces Heisman Trophy contender Colt Brennan of Hawaii, but it more than held its own against the Badgers. Led by linebackers Beau Bell and Starr Fuimaono, UNLV held Wisconsin to 149 yards in the second half.

"I think our defense is playing with a purpose and playing with some confidence," Sanford said. "That's something we've got to keep building because ... this week, every play , you've got to have great concentration."

Gonna be a great game.