Hawaii slotback Miah Ostrowski gave it a shot Tuesday before concluding his injured right foot would prevent him from playing in Saturday’s road game against Louisiana Tech.
“I have the straightaway speed, but I can’t make the hard cut yet,” said Ostrowski, who has missed the past two games.
Ostrowski is suffering from a dislocation of the Lisfranc joint in his right foot. He suffered the injury while scoring a touchdown against Washington on Sept. 10.
The usual recovery period is between four and six weeks. But Ostrowski had progressed enough that head coach Greg McMackin predicted Monday the junior receiver would be available to play this week.
Ostrowski competed in Tuesday’s passing drills, but showed discouragement as he walked toward the training room near the end of practice.
“The smart thing for me is to rest it one more game,” Ostrowski said. “I want to play. That’s why I’m disappointed. It’s hard to stay on the sideline. I’m a competitor and I like to compete. I want to be there with the guys, to do as much as possible to help out my teammates. Sitting out is the toughest part for me.”
The Warriors depart this evening for Houston, where they will practice for two days in preparation for Saturday’s game in Ruston, La. There is a bye next week. The Warriors then will be back on the road for a nationally televised game against San Jose State on Oct. 14.
“Miah is a great player,” McMackin said, “but I think we have some other great players who can step up.”
Justin Clapp will make his third consecutive start at right slotback.
Travel spot for Castle alum
Breyden Torres-Keohokapu, a Castle High graduate who played at Mount San Antonio College the past two seasons, is replacing Ostrowski on the 66-player travel roster.
In Saturday’s 56-14 victory over UC Davis, Torres-Keohokapu made the first two receptions of his four-game UH career.
“It was my dream come true as a little kid,” he said. “I was always watching Colt Brennan, Tim Chang. Playing in the game was overwhelming. I can’t really explain it in words, but it was awesome.”
Daily-Lyles stays on track
Backup middle linebacker George Daily-Lyles expects to make a speedy recovery from a strained left knee suffered against UC Davis.
He won’t play against Louisiana Tech, but expects to be back for the San Jose State game.
Meanwhile, he is undergoing his brand of physical therapy.
“They told me to try and not use the crutches because it will limit my mobility,” he said.
Daily-Lyles also is focused on another self-set deadline. He plans to earn his bachelor’s degree in May, the end of his third UH year.
“Summer school and a full workload every semester helped,” said Daily-Lyles, who is majoring in family resources.
Clay’s game taking shape
When your name is a homophone with a gold-medal decathlete’s, multi-tasking should not be a problem.
Brian Clay, a true freshman, is the primary backup to strong safety Richard Torres and free safety John Hardy-Tuliau.
“I’m not going to lie to you,” Clay said, “I’m definitely majoring in football right now. I’m actually doing OK in school. I passed my test yesterday.”
Clay is expected to receive an expanded role against Louisiana Tech’s hurry-up, no-huddle offense.
