Tom Mason, the University of Hawaii football team’s new defensive play-caller, is a terrible waiter.

He dislikes waiting to get the football back to the offense and, in the past month, was antsy waiting to complete the process to join the Rainbow Warriors’ coaching staff.

"It was painful," said Mason, who needed to resolve contractual obligations at Southern Methodist, where he was the interim head coach and defensive coordinator in 2014, and at UH. "I’m one of those guys who’s, ‘Let’s sign and get it over with.’ You have to make things fit at SMU, you have to make things fit at Hawaii. You have everything you have to go through. I’m like, ‘Holy cow, just get it in the mail.’ "

Now that Mason’s one-year contract is signed and sealed, he is prepared to deliver an attacking defense. At SMU, where he was defensive coordinator for seven seasons, he had the green light to blitz every play.

"We didn’t quite do it that way, but we were about 60, 70 percent pressure throughout the season," Mason said.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the Northwest spread offenses were the most innovative in college football. Mouse Davis, Keith Gilbertson, Dennis Erickson and Don Read were among the creators who kept defensive coaches on heavy doses of Pepto Bismol. Mason was one of those defensive guys.

"That was original stuff," said Mason, who coached at Eastern Washington and was coordinator at Portland State and Boise State. "It was interesting because (defensive coaches did not know) what to do with it. That was the start of it. As you got used to it and grew with it a little bit, then it was OK."

For seven years, Mason was the linebackers coach at Fresno State, when the Bulldogs’ 4-3 defense had memorable battles against the Warriors’ four-wide offense.

"Back and forth," he said of the UH-FSU battles. "They were pretty good."

Following the 2009 season, his first as SMU’s defensive coordinator, it was decided to switch from a 4-3 to a 3-4 scheme.

"We went through that first year with the (opponents’) spread offenses, and I didn’t think we could handle those athletic quarterbacks with (SMU’s) defensive ends," Mason recalled. "We switched to a 3-4 because we knew we could recruit linebackers and speed guys."

Mason then spent two weeks in the offseason studying under Dick LeBeau, the architect of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 3-4 defense and creator of the zone blitz. Those sessions helped Mason hone the so-called fire-zone coverages that are key to his blitzing defenses. In 2012, SMU’s defense set the NCAA record with seven interceptions for touchdowns.

The Warriors switched to a 3-4 base when Kevin Clune was hired as defensive coordinator in January 2014. Clune left UH last month to become Utah State’s defensive coordinator. Mason’s preference is the 3-4, although he has an extensive background in the 4-3.

"I’m really excited about going over there and coaching those kids," Mason said. "Those kids have always been a play-hard group of kids. …I’m really looking forward to it. Hopefully, we can get the corner turned on it and get the program back and going strong."