Head coach Norm Chow is expected to lead the University of Hawaii football team’s practice this morning after spending the past two days with his ailing wife in Los Angeles.
Chow was scheduled to return to Honolulu on Monday night. The Warriors usually do not practice on Mondays. They had video reviews, weight-training and conditioning drills on Monday.
On Friday, Diane Chow suffered a brain aneurysm at the family home in Manhattan Beach, Calif. She was admitted into UCLA Medical Center, where she underwent separate procedures to stop small bleeding and drain fluids.
On Sunday, the Warriors returned from Houston following Saturday’s 28-14 loss to Rice. Chow instead traveled to Los Angeles to be with his wife. The couple’s four adult children also were at the hospital.
Defensive secondary coach Daronte’ Jones, who was promoted to assistant head coach this spring, has been handling Chow’s administrative responsibilities. Jones said it has been a collaborative effort amongst the coaching staff to fill in for Chow.
Chow also has been in contact with the coaches in planning for Saturday’s game against Wyoming at Aloha Stadium.
After opening the season 1-4 against nonconference opponents, the Warriors will play eight consecutive Mountain West games. In the locker room after the Rice game, Chow told the players the record has been reset to 0-0.
"I know what he means," co-captain Scott Harding said. "It’s great to put it into perspective like that, because that’s the truth. But it’s also hard to think that way when you’ve played those games you’ve lost. It’s hard to put them away completely because (victories) would have counted toward the bowl game."
The Warriors need a winning record — seven victories in 13 regular-season games — to earn an automatic berth in the Hawaii Bowl. The Warriors would need to go 6-2 in the MWC to play in the postseason for the first time since 2010.
"We still have a chance to go to a bowl game and we still have a chance to win the conference," Harding said.
To do so, the Warriors would need to improve an offense that is 108th among FBS schools with 336 yards per game. The Warriors have scored 10 touchdowns in five games.
"It’s such small things that are going wrong," Harding said. "The problem is it’s a different person every time. It seems to be happening throughout the whole game. We’re not clicking completely as a total 11 guys on a field of one. Once we get the 11 guys doing the right thing at the right time — whether it’s running a good route or making the right read or blocking the right guy — we’ll be fine. We’ll roll, and we’ll be good."
