Mahalo for supporting Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Enjoy this free story!
University of Hawaii football team’s ETA is TBA.
After upsetting Air Force a week ago to reach 4-4 overall and 3-1 in the Mountain West, the Rainbow Warriors insist they have yet to arrive as a consistent force.
That point was emphasized when the Warriors followed a road victory over with San Jose State with a loss to UNLV the following week. UH coach Nick Rolovich said that sequence was a “reality check” that in the MWC “anybody can beat anybody.” The Warriors are hopeful of avoiding a similar letdown when they play host to New Mexico today at Aloha Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:07 p.m.
“We can’t take anybody lightly,” Rolovich said. “We’re not good enough.”
Quarterback Dru Brown, who has sparked the Warriors’ resurgence from a 1-3 start against nonconference opponents, insisted over-confidence or complacency will not be an issue.
“If you think that, you’re in big-time trouble,” Brown said. “We try to do what we do well better, and work on what we need to work on. We come out every day and try to improve.”
New Mexico and Air Force employ many of the same triple-option concepts. But New Mexico uses more formations and motions, and has quicker ball-handlers. As a high school senior, Lobos quarterback Lamar Jordan ran 40 yards in 4.38 seconds at TCU’s camp. Tailback Teriyon Gipson is capable of sprinting 4.47 seconds in the 40.
“Schematically, I think they do more (than Air Force),” Rolovich said. “And then you combine the amount of speed they have, they can be explosive. Even if your assignments are right, they have the ability to be explosive just because of the athletes they’ve got.”
The Lobos have 76 rushes of 10-plus yards, including 27 exceeding 20 yards and 11 surpassing 50 yards. The Lobos lead the nation in rushing, averaging 374.1 yards per game. They average 7.64 yards on first down. Gipson averages 13.0 yards per carry.
“It’s crazy to be in this offense,” said Lobos running back Richard McQuarley, who has rushed for 10 touchdowns in 70 carries. “There are a lot of plays. We get new plays every week.”
For all the amendments to the playbook, Bob Davie stuck to a basic philosophy when he left a TV football analyst’s job to become the Lobos head coach in 2012. Davie wanted to control the clock with a run-oriented offense utilizing triple-option schemes, and to create chaos with an attacking defense.
“For a lot of guys, it took some time to get that vision, that culture, instilled,” middle linebacker Dakota Cox said. “My first two years here, I know, weren’t great records. But it started coming together last year and we started buying what Coach Davie was saying.”
80