Posts Tagged ‘Warrior Football’

Once again Hawaii football will open its season against nationally ranked powerhouse USC. The Trojans come to town with a National ranking of 14, the Warriors better come ready to play. The game will be nationally televised on ESPN.

This year may be the best chance they have ever had to knock the Trojans off their high-horse (pun intended), as this offseason has dealt several blows to the USC football program.

Pete Carroll is gone, and behind him he left a mound of rubble in the form of NCAA violations. I guess he knew what was coming and bolted. The Trojans are still loaded as usual, but this year’s Hawaii Warrior football team may be better than a lot of people think. The reason the Warriors season went so badly last year was because of the injury bug, and that bug hit the Warriors worse than any other team in the nation last year.

This year brings with it new prospects and hope. The Warriors look and act like they are ready for this challenge. USC head coach Lane Kiffin has already said he compares loss to Hawaii to the Appalachian State upset of Michigan a few years back. If that is not a slap in the face to the Hawaii football team then I don’t know what is. We are a Division I program playing at home! Michigan was beat at the Big House by a Division IAA team. The comparison isn’t even close. Kiffin was right on par though with the rest of his ridiculous statement throughout his career.

Whatever happens Thursday it should be fun. Aloha Stadium is sold-out and the game stands to be the most lucrative game in history for Hawaii. There are a ton of USC fans here that will be mixed in with the UH fans so the stadium atmosphere should be loaded with buzz and excitement for everyone. Lets hope our Warriors can mount a stand and pull off a big-time upset.

With everything that developed during this offseason regarding the WAC falling apart, an opening day win would be a breath of fresh air to WAC fans, and definitely a step in the right direction for Hawaii football. Good Luck Warriors!

Game Details

Who: Hawaii Warriors vs. USC Trojans

When: Thursday September 2^nd, 2010

Time: 5PM Hawaii Time

Where: Aloha Stadium

Nationally Televised: ESPN

Local Radio: ESPN 1420

The mania for Ibiza Style Foam Parties in Hawaii rages on taking on a Rainbow Hue covering all colors in the spectrum from the by now prosaic white to recently a Red Foam and an upcoming Yellow Foam Party, now add Green to the List.  UH Warrior Green.

The green of rampaging rollicking raucous UH Warrior Football fans celebrating with an After the Game Party on Thursday September 2^nd 2010 following the opening game against USC starting at 10PM.  Eightball Hawai’i & Billy ‘Gridiron’ Grafton have organized this homage to the UH Warriors, ladies get preferential treatment only $8 if they arrive before 11PM, everyone else pony up a bit more.  Thai Sweet Basic the one time Buddah Bar is on the 2^nd floor back of Safeway Manoa, space is limited so getting there early is a wise notion.

Those who have yet to experience an Ibiza Style Foam party should be prepared to bring board shorts, or beach wear, the skimpier the bikini the better, a change of clothes, a towel or two, a plastic bag, and AU suggest a waterproof camera to capture the moment (Olympus waterproof cameras).

While cannons shoot gobs of green foam DJ Billy G will be spinning a dynamic mix of electronic dance music, hip-hop, old school, 80s RB and more.  Naturally wearing UH Green is a plus, so get out support the Warriors and afterwards keep the party going to 2 in the AM at Thai Sweet Basil in Manoa.

If you are already a cable subscriber – and you want to get a fantastic deal on a couple of University of Hawaii football games, then this is a bargain basement deal that you need to jump on right away!

For less than it cost to go to a matinee movie, you can get access to two of the football Warriors’ away games: at Army and at Colorado. I know you are thinking that this may not be real, but it most definitely is! Instead of being charged over $60 per game, this limited time offer will allow you to enjoy UH’s first two road games for just a few bucks.

Oceanic is usually aligned with UH to sell you the pay-per-view package for $420 to $500 – that is if you’re fortunate enough to even have access to cable? And the road games alone for $300! Individual games, $25 to $65?

This offer negates that and in fact will allow you to root for the football Warriors for $6.95. That’s right, under seven-bucks for the first two UH away games. The only catch is that you have to order the “Sports Pak” by the end of August. Orders on September 1^st and beyond will be charged the regular per game fee.

Oceanic website. Simply go to the Oceanic website and you’ll see it in black, blue, brown and white. “The Sports Pak,” $4.95 a month, plus a $2 initial fee.

Check out oceanic pricing for more information.

Hurry! You won’t get another chance to root for the Warriors at this price! Go Bows!

This doesn’t come as much of a surprise, but in an announcement by the UH coaching staff yesterday, fourth-year junior Bryant Moniz was named the University of Hawaii’s starting quarterback.

Moniz came out of nowhere last year to start 8-games for the Warriors after then starting quarterback Greg Alexander suffered a season-ending knee surgery. There were so many injuries last year that Moniz actually did  nice job with what he had to work with.

Moniz actually entered the spring practices as the #1 quarterback, but then was placed on personal leave for the final three weeks of spring practice. It was then that the quarterback position was declared “up for grabs.” Moniz wasted no time regaining the number one spot, as it took him until only the fourth practice of the year to be named the starter.

Moniz is our No. 1 quarterback,” said head coach Greg McMackin, in a recent interview, who made the decision after consulting with offensive coordinator Nick Rolovich and receivers coach Mouse Davis. “He’s the unanimous pick. He’s got all of that game experience. Not only did he make the plays, he made plays when he was in trouble and got out of there because he was an athlete. He’s having an excellent fall camp.”

Coach McMackin said it will take at least another week to name a No. 2 quarterback. Of the guys in the running for back up quarterback, forth-year junior Shane Austen seems to be the logical choice, as he lead the Warriors to a big road win in San Jose State last year.

One thing is for sure, if the Warriors can stay away from injury this year, they look to have a pretty solid team. Opening day is set for September 2^nd against national power USC.

Colt Brennan, the former Heisman Trophy finalist who lead the University of Hawaii Football team to an undefeated season and a Sugar Bowl appearance against Georgia found himself without a job Monday as Washington Redskins cut him.

Well, it didn’t take long for the run and shoot offense specialist to land back on his feet as he signs a 1 year deal out of free agency with the Oakland Raiders. The raiders, who at one point put their whole franchise behind what would become a flop, JaMarcus Russel, might just be looking for a breath of fresh air. That is if Brennan can get back into playing shape (rumors he’s slipping a bit.)

However, the Raiders have recently become excited about the pre-season starting favorite Jason Campbell as he shows glimmers of leadership and hope for a struggling franchise. Only time will tell if Brennan will get a chance to prove his worth on the NFL stage.

The University of Hawaii football team kicked off its fall camp yesterday afternoon. This was the first of 27 scheduled practices. This camp will lead up to opening day, where Hawaii will take on national powerhouse USC. This game will be nationally televised, so the boys are preparing themselves for that as well. Opening kick-off against USC at Aloha Stadium is on September 2^nd. Right around 1-month.

Even with the tough dealings the WAC has had this offseason – Boise State leaving, anticipation is extremely high for the Warrior players, as well as for the fans. This will be coach McMackin’s third year, so big things are expected. After leading the team to a 4-1 record down the stretch last year, McMackin has very high expectations for this group of players.

Hawaii had its first losing season last year since 2005. They ended the year at 6-7. Another finish like that will not result in good things for the coaching staff, especially with playing in the WAC.

For all of camp the team will be housed in a makeshift dormitory at two spacious dance studios in the athletics complex. What initially started as a cost-cutting measure several years ago has turned into an annual tradition. It serves as a bonding experience for returning players and newcomers and also brings the team closer together.

The Warriors will conduct its first practice in shoulder pads on Saturday and will have single practice sessions for four of the next five days (Sunday off) until next Wednesday, when they begin two-a-day practices.

The starting running back for the junior college National Champion Mount San Antonio College in California has committed to playing football for the University of Hawaii. Lancer Tuitele has stated he will indeed be here in time to participate in Warriors training camp, which starts on August 4^th.

The Hawaii coaches apparently loved what they saw on his highlight video. Tuitele is listed as 5-foot-10, 190 pounds. He said he is capable of completing the pro-agility drill in 3.97 seconds. His vertical jump is 41 inches.

One of the main reasons for wanting to play in Hawaii is the fact that he has plenty of family here. He also said that his former college ran a similar spread offense like UH does so he is pretty familiar with the concepts.

The University of Hawaii seems to be getting some nice recruits for the upcoming season. They need to build as much excitement as they can, because playing in the WAC offers very little excitement. Tuitele is the second running back to commit to UH in the past few days. On Friday, Sterling Jackson, a 6-foot-1 225-pounder from Mendocino (Calif.) College, said he would join the Warriors.

Football season is just around the corner, and while there is not too much to be excited about for UH as far as the way the WAC is going, there is a possibility that the season opener with USC could be the most lucrative single game in the school’s history.

If UH sells out the game – or comes close to selling it out, then the school could pull in over $1.2 million on a single game. This would surpass the standing record of a little over $1.1 million set during USC’s last visit.

Things that are contributing to this? The main factor is the fact that UH has raised ticket prices for this one game. Sideline single-game tickets for the USC game only from $38 to $50 and student tickets from $8 to $15. Some premium locations also had changes. Another big contributor is the fact that USC travels well, and there are also plenty of USC fans in Hawaii.

With the interest in the Warriors opening game and how they will look, the first game for new USC coach Lane Kiffin, and the fact that USC has a ton of regulations levied against it, people are showing plenty of interest.

UH has already sold over 18,500 season tickets, which is a great number for them at this point of the year. The UH-USC game already has 30,000 tickets accounted for, which means with walk-up business – as well as more buyers in the next couple months, that this game has a good chance to sellout.

With all the bad news this offseason regarding the WAC, at least UH will make some money on their non-conference schedule. Get to these games and support the football team; otherwise you will just have WAC play to look forward to.

It is the end of spring and the beginning of summer. For University of Hawaii football this means the start of 11-on-11 scrimmages. What is missing? The coaches and trainers of course.

The NCAA allows football programs to set-up summer strength and conditioning programs, the catch?, coaches are not allowed to be anywhere near the practice vicinity. Yesterday the University of Hawaii football players were out in force as they started their strength and conditioning summer practices.

Everything is et-up before hand so the players know what drills to do and what to run, but it still takes leadership and dedication to pull something like this off. The players have to be dedicated and willing to take instructions from other players. So far – at least for Hawaii football, this has not been a problem.

Players are extremely excited for the upcoming season and are looking at this next year as a fresh start, one that will hopefully find themselves injury free and in contention for their first WAC title since 2007.

This is an exciting time of year for everyone involved in UH football. The season is around the corner and the players are looking to make a statement. This summer strength and conditioning period will serve to help them in the long run.

The man who is responsible for developing the run and shoot offense is coming back to the University of Hawaii football team as part of an attempt to bring the Warriors back to prominence. Mouse Davis will be the receiver’s coach, but will also serve as mentor to many of the players and staff.

Mouse is the original architect of the run and shoot offense, which has been utilized in Hawaii football since the June Jones first came to coach, and now with Greg McMackin and his current staff.

Utilizing this sort of offense allows smaller less skilled athletes to compete with the big boys and opens up the playing field like no other offense in football. During the June Jones years, Hawaii led the nation in either passing offense, total offense or both every year he was here. The offense is also famous for allowing good quarterbacks to become unstoppable offensive weapons.

Mouse stated that he is excited to be back in the islands and looks forward to all that there is left to accomplish with this team. He will be coaching the receivers and has said that Hawaii has a great stable of receivers that are all ready to go this year. Welcome back Mouse!