Fresno on ESPN2, Secondary, Mario Cox, Detmer, Etc.

UPDATE: From the Star-Bulletin, WAC commissioner Karl Benson announced that the UH-Fresno State game will be on ESPN2.

UPDATE 2: Press release from the UH Athletics Department about it.

Ferd Lewis writes that ESPN is expected to announce today that the UH-Fresno game next Friday will be on the network.

While the game will be shown nationally by ESPN, it will be viewable in Hawai'i only through the existing KFVE/Oceanic Time Warner Cable pay-per-view package, parties involved have said.

When ESPN did not select the game in June as part of its contracted Western Athletic Conference package, KFVE included it in its pay-per-view offerings and a Fresno station secured the rights in its area. But when ESPN came back Monday and asked to pick up the game above the five allowable games from one school, UH and Fresno State agreed only if their local rights holders were protected.

The article also discusses the WAC and UH's relationship with ESPN and how generally games are not blacked out in local areas.

Even before this Fresno deal, UH was set to be on ESPN for the final three games of the season. Brian McInnis writes about how the Warriors have a chance to make a big impression with these games on national TV.

"I think this is a great, great opportunity for kids across the country, who're giving letters and who're interested in Hawaii, to get a peek at us firsthand," Bess said.

"Players would see how family-oriented we are and how we play together," added junior safety Erik Robinson, a Texan who had never seen Hawaii on national TV.

With the season-ending injury to Keao Monteilh, Stephen Tsai writes how the secondary might shake out during the days leading up to the Fresno game.

Defensive coordinator Greg McMackin said Desmond Thomas will replace Monteilh as the free safety in the Warriors' base defense for the next game, Nov. 10 against Fresno State. Jacob Patek is the strong safety.

But after that, it gets murky. With a bye this weekend, the Warriors are using this week's practices to audition Dane Kealoha Porlas, Ryan Mouton, Erik Robinson and Spencer Smith as the third safety.

"They have a lot of good qualities," said Rich Miano, who coaches the secondary.

Stephen Tsai had a blog post regarding the importance Monteilh had as the "orchestrator of the defensive secondary". He'll definitely be missed.

Also from that post (and today's article) is news that Mario Cox has been dismissed from the team.

June Jones said it would be "accurate and fair" to report that Cox is no longer on the team, but that he will remain on scholarship as long as he is in good academic standing.
Jones acknowledged there is no chance Cox will return to the team this season.
Jones declined further comment.
But people familiar with the situation said Cox violated Jones' three-strike rule involving missed classes, meetings or assignments.

Sorry to hear that. He seemed like he was right on the cusp of making a big impact. Let's hope he'll be able to turn it around and get another chance.

Herman Frazier tells McInnis that the probe into allegations by Ian Sample has been completed, but still needs to be reviewed.

"I would say that the (review) committee (faculty athletic representative Peter Nicholson, vice chancellor on campus Ron Cambra, and compliance coordinator Bill Bryant) did a thorough job on looking at everything that was available to them," Frazier said. "So at this point we're going to have to wait and see how the chancellor (Virginia Hinshaw) feels about it, and have a statement after she's had a chance to review."

And finally, Ferd Lewis talks to career touchdown record-holder Ty Detmer about the charging Colt Brennan.

"I figured I'd be getting a call here real quick," Detmer laughed from Texas, where news that Brennan is but three touchdowns away from breaking the career mark of 121 touchdowns finds him regularly these days. "My friends, here, they like to keep those (reminders) coming. They tell me my records are falling left and right."

"It will be one of the last major ones to go," Detmer said. "Any of the career marks, especially, mean a lot. It shows what you've done over a long period of time. It shows that it wasn't just a one-year flash-in-the-pan type of thing."

Classy guy. I remember when he had nice things to say (and a recorded congratulations message) when Timmy Chang broke his yardage record.