SAN JOSE, Calif. »For Thursday’s walk-through session at Spartan Stadium, Hawaii head coach Greg McMackin gave an impassioned speech that walked through the history of the Warriors’ best road conquests.
He spoke of the upset of nationally ranked Fresno State in 2008, his first year as UH head coach, and the storm-soaked victory against Utah State last year.
He then pointed to the section of the stadium where the most vocal San Jose State supporters will sit during tonight’s ESPN-televised game. The best way to starve a hostile crowd, he emphasized, was to feed the scoreboard.
"See it," he told his 64 players. "Believe it. Then achieve it."
The Warriors responded with a rousing collective cheer of "WAC champs."
"We’re still the defending champions," McMackin said of the Western Athletic Conference title the Warriors shared with Nevada and Boise State in 2010. "It’s not getting easier."
The Warriors put to rest the stunning Sept. 17 loss to Nevada-Las Vegas with consecutive victories against UC Davis and Louisiana Tech. They are 3-2 overall and 1-0 in the WAC.
But for the fourth time, they are on the road.
"This is a good group of players," McMackin said. "They travel well."
The Warriors should be at full strength. Slotback Miah Ostrowski is cleared to play after missing three games because of a foot injury, and middle linebacker Corey Paredes has shown no ill effects of a strained knee that kept him from practicing last week.
The Warriors are expected to have a large following despite this being designated as one of three San Jose State homecoming games. (The Spartans have trumpeted October as "homecoming month.") There was a UH pep rally in downtown San Jose on Thursday night, and a large tailgate planned for today.
"This is an important game for us," McMackin said, noting the Warriors are in "playoff mode."
The Spartans also are motivated for what could be the final meeting in a series the Warriors lead 17-16-1. The Warriors are scheduled to leave the WAC — and the Spartans — at the end of this academic year.
After years of being held down by sanctions resulting from poor Academic Progress Rate scores — they lost 57 potential scholarships during a five-year period — the Spartans now have the NCAA-maximum 85 players on scholarship.
"That really helps," quarterback Matt Faulkner said. "We hope it will pay dividends."
The Spartans are 2-4, including 1-1 in the WAC, but have shown promise under second-year head coach Mike MacIntyre. The Spartans are a mix of youth (six true freshmen started last year) and experience (three players are in graduate school).
Faulkner praised MacIntyre for instilling a fun-but-focused atmosphere.
"We’re looking forward to the opportunity to go out there and perform," Faulkner said.
