From NoCo to LaTech

Orlando from UHWarriorFan.com has a bunch of great photos from the Northern Colorado game up on his 2007 Season photo gallery. Be there!

Kalani Simpson applauds the fans who applauded the Bears.

As the Northern Colorado Bears trudged to their locker room, beaten and bruised, the Hawaii fans in the end zone above their tunnel stood and saluted them. They stood and they clapped and they cheered. They did it for a long time, until all of the UNC players had come off the field. They thanked them for coming. They thanked them for playing this game.

It was classy. It was perfect.

The Star-Bulletin has some thoughts from June Jones about the game.

"I was really happy with how the offensive and defensive lines played," Jones said. "Very intense, and I thought they were the difference in the game."

He added he was impressed with the play of linebacker Brad Kalilimoku, who moved into a starting role in place of injured Blaze Soares, and collected nine tackles.

The Advertiser's Bruce Asato has video of yesterday's press conference with Coach.

Stephen Tsai has a lot of news, including word about Michael Lafaele, who's been playing with a broken bone in his hand.

Because of a small fracture in the metacarpal of his right hand, Lafaele wears a cast on the days he practices. The injury, located between the index finger and thumb, means he has to hold a pen with his middle and ring fingers.

For games, padding is placed on his hand, then wrapped with athletic tape.

"It's nothing serious," Lafaele said. "It doesn't hurt that bad. It's not a problem."

He's tough! Turtle tough! Also from the article:

• Injury updates on Timo Paepule, Fale Laeli and David Farmer. None appear to be major injuries.


• Paperwork update on Erik Robinson, who sat for the NoCo game and may sit for the road trip.


• Blaze Soares says he'll try to test his injured hamstring and shoulder in practice today.


• Daniel Lofton, a transfer receiver from California, talks about coming to UH.

The Star-Bulletin Notebook has some pretty funny quotes from Louisiana Tech coach Derek Dooley as he discusses playing the Warriors.

"They need to petition to the commissioner to see if we can play with 12, it might help us a little bit," Dooley joked on the Western Athletic Conference coaches' weekly teleconference.

"You gotta play real good in the red zone," Dooley said. "If you can try to keep 'em out of the end zone, and make 'em kick field goals, that will have a lot to do with slowing 'em down. Now ... how you do it, if you got any answers on that, let me know."

The article also has injury updates, and Inoke Funaki talks about learning to go through progressions which led to Saturday's touchdown pass.

"I was happy I made it all the way back (to Salas); normally I go, 'One, two ... uh-oh' and just kind of take off," Funaki said, grinning. "So I was happy I was able to hang in there and it just kind of shows how far I've come along and how much Colt and Tyler have helped me."

Right on. He looked really good out there.

And finally Ferd Lewis writes how UH will have a target on their backs against Louisiana Tech, as well as other teams down the road.

This time the Warriors arrive with a target on their backs bigger than a town house. Their No. 23 national ranking marks them for any team looking to make a splash. Their Heisman Trophy candidate of a quarterback and endless ESPN love make them a ripe target. It is a role the Warriors will take with them everywhere they go this year.