Game Day: UH at Colorado

Stephen Tsai has a game day preview with a breakdown of the offense, defense and specialists for both teams. Here's an excerpt about the UH defense:

With UH's multiple schemes and packages, there are 18 defenders who are considered to be starters. In the basic 4-3, Elliott Purcell and Kawika Ornellas will make their first starts of the season, and Richard Torres, who is usually the nickel back, slides over to strong safety, replacing injured Spencer Smith. In schemes involving five defensive backs, Torres stays at safety and Lewis Walker or John Hardy-Tuliau becomes the nickel back, or Torres goes to nickel back and Kenny Estes plays strong safety.

Tsai writes about the Warriors getting to meet Colorado's mascot Ralphie the Buffalo, who happens to be sponsored by Outback Steakhouse. Mmmmmmm, buffalo.

Even though the Buffaloes have their version of the haka, CU's quarterback Tyler Hansen explains why they won't do it for this game.

“That’s only a spring game deal, I guess,” CU junior quarterback Tyler Hansen said this week. “That’s (Hawaii’s) thing to intimidate us.

“We’ve seen it before. We’ve done it before. We know what it is, and it’s pretty cool to see. But we’ve got to come out and control what we can control.”

I don't understand what he's trying to say.

Kyle Ringo of The Daily Camera previews the game, and notes that the Buffaloes are wearing throwback jerseys for their home games this season.

This season`s team is honoring that era by wearing 1990 throwback jerseys in each of the six home games this fall. Players already know they need to make drastic improvement over last week`s performance, but the privilege of wearing the 1990 jerseys adds another level of responsibility for some.

I also hope it means that they'll be wearing those circa 1990 gigantic shoulder pads.

Tom Kensler of the Denver Post writes that this is a very important game for Colorado.

It doesn't take tea leaves — or access to the private thoughts of Colorado athletic director Mike Bohn — to know that anything shy of a convincing victory today over visiting Hawaii would render an uncertain future for the Buffaloes' season and the coaching staff.

This is a crossroads game for the Buffs. The psyche of the team, bowl aspirations and Dan Hawkins' job security are on the line this afternoon at Folsom Field.

Dave Reardon writes that this is a very important game for UH.

If UH is a program to ever be taken seriously on the national scene, this is the kind of game it needs to win, at least once in a while. Catching a big name like Colorado during a down cycle is a gift, but one UH has rarely cashed in on.

The Longmont Times-Call has another article about how important this game is for CU.

There’s no question this is a big one.

Hawkins needs this game. He is 17-34 at CU and simply can’t afford to have a non-ranked opponent from the Western Athletic Conference come into Boulder and beat his team. All signs point to him needing a winning season to keep his job for 2011. Lose today, and the chances for a winning season drop dramatically.

The team needs this game, too. Once this one is over, the Buffs take a week off before hosting perennial national power Georgia. The last thing CU needs is to stew over two straight losses for the next two weeks.

“It would really help us out in terms of positive momentum going into the following week,” McKnight said.

And from a couple days ago, more video previews from KHON and KGMB.