Between returning to Honolulu on Sunday afternoon and departing this Thursday, the University of Hawaii football team will have roughly 96 hours to repack and regroup.
Colorado State earned a decisive 49-22 victory this past Saturday, an outcome that accentuated the Warriors’ recent problems in completing passes and making defensive plays.
In the past three games, the Warriors have dropped 20 passes, a total that has contributed to quarterback Ikaika Woolsey’s inaccuracy. Woolsey completed 34 percent of his passes against CSU, and 48 percent in the past three games.
On the defensive side, the Warriors have struggled to apply pressure from the front, secure tackles consistently, and prevent opponents from grinding yards and time.
In the past four games, opponents are averaging 276.5 rushing yards per game and 5.13 yards per carry. During that span, the Warriors are on defense an average of 34 minutes, 52 seconds per game. The Warriors have been burned for five touchdown passes of 30-plus yards in the past two games and 11 overall this season.
"We’re not playing good run defense and we’re not playing good pass defense right now," UH defensive coordinator Kevin Clune said. "We need to get both fixed."
After Saturday’s game, linebacker Tevita Lataimua said: "I felt the coaches put us in good spots. We have to come back next week more focused. We just didn’t execute."
The availability of Marcus Malepeai, a versatile defensive lineman, is iffy because of a variety of ailments.
Running back Steven Lakalaka’s availability also is in question after he suffered a hamstring injury against Colorado State. He carried seven times for 30 yards.
On Saturday, Joey Iosefa rushed for 64 yards and a touchdown in his first game since recovering from an ankle injury and three-game suspension. He also was used as a wildcat, completing a 19-yard pass to wideout Quinton Pedroza.
Iosefa suffered a fracture in his right ankle against Oregon State in UH’s second game of the season. He missed the next four games while recovering, and was set to play in the Oct. 18 road game against San Diego State. But Iosefa was arrested on Oct. 12 on suspicion of operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol. Head coach Norm Chow suspended Iosefa for three games. Last week, Iosefa pleaded no contest to the petty-misdemeanor charge.
The plan was to give more carries to Iosefa in an attempt to siphon the game clock.
"We didn’t have a chance to run the ball," Chow said. "We wanted to slow the game down a little bit. But they jumped on us so quickly, we had to throw the ball a little more than we wanted to."
