AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. >> At the end of Thursday’s walk-through session at Falcon Stadium, the members of the Hawaii football team gathered at midfield, then turned to face outward.
“When you do that, what do you see?” UH coach Norm Chow said of the eve-of-the-game tradition.
“You see the other person’s back. It means: ‘We’ve got your back.’”
Of all of the rally methods, this one has the most traction.
It has been a unifying technique through this season on the blink. The Warriors have gone seven games and 61 days since their only victory, a trouncing of lower-division Lamar. They are 1-8 overall and 0-6 in the Mountain West Conference.
And they are on the road — again — for the sixth time in 10 games.
When they play Air Force in a nationally televised game tonight, quarterback Sean Schroeder will not be in the opening lineup for the first time this season. Jeremy Higgins, a third-year sophomore, will make his first start since 2009, when he was Saint Louis School’s starting quarterback.
Higgins understands both the heat of the spotlight and Colorado’s evening chill. The thermostat is expected to drop into the 30s during the game.
Higgins spent his freshman year in Logan, Utah, as Utah State’s backup quarterback.
“It gets pretty rough in Logan,” Higgins recalled. “It was negative 20s the spring I was over there.”
The other invisible obstacle is the thin air, which causes breaths to deepen and skin to dry.
At Utah State, which is at lower elevation than Air Force, Higgins recalled, “My hands would crack and bleed all over the place.”
At the tunnel leading to Falcon Stadium, there is a sign that reads: “Warning. Lack of oxygen. Elevation: 6,621 feet above sea level.”
“Oh, I remember this place very well,” said Chow, who has played and coached against Air Force. “This is a tough place to play.”
This is the Warriors’ second trip to Colorado in a month. They played Colorado State in a chilly game in Fort Collins.
The lesson of the CSU game?
“Double socks,” UH long-snapper Luke Ingram said. “The worst thing that can happen to you on the field is your feet going numb.”
There will be warmers on the field. The Warriors also have the option of using hand warmers, which are pouches that can be attached to waist bands. Against CSU, the Warriors were charged $100 for a pot of soup that could be sipped at halftime.
To keep his hands moist, Ingram will “put water on my snapping towel, spray it on my belt, get a little moistness on my hands before I snap. Sometimes it gets so cold you spray water down and by the time you run out, your towel will be frozen.”
Higgins said the best way to stay warm is to stay on the field.
“If you keep active, it won’t be in the back of your head,” he said.
Against CSU, several Warriors suffered from nose bleeds. The UH trainers instructed players to dab vaseline in their nostrils.
“They say that helps the breathing,” Higgins said.
Although Higgins will start, at some point in the game, Schroeder will play. Chow emphasized it is not a platoon situation, and that Higgins will play extensively.
The Warriors hope to finally have a strong opening.
This season, their nine opening drives resulted in eight punts and an interception. They are averaging 4.8 plays and 16 yards on their first possessions.
The Warriors also have had 38 three-and-out possessions this year, an average of 4.2 per game.
