As the University of Hawaii football team prepares for its next game it should learn from Ohio State’s mistakes, as well as its own.
The No. 1 team in the country’s offense came out for its home opener so flat that 41-point underdog UH stayed within 17 of the Buckeyes into the fourth quarter — this, despite Hawaii never getting close to the red zone, let alone the end zone.
UH can’t allow a role reversal Saturday when UC Davis comes to Aloha Stadium. It can’t be casual like Ohio State, expecting a walk-over and using the first half as warm-up time.
Yes, trying to score against the national champions is a lot different than doing so against an FCS team. But Hawaii must step on the Aggies quickly and efficiently and not let them think they have a chance.
There was no line out on Sunday, but it’s fair to say the Aggies (0-1) are a big underdog to UH, though maybe not as big of one as UH was to Ohio State.
Having only three days of practice after playing at Virginia Tech last Monday affected the Buckeyes. That should serve as a red flag to Hawaii as it returns and prepares for a team that crosses two fewer time zones than UH did to get back to the islands.
These Rainbows — we’ll call them that exclusively today, in honor of those outstanding throwback uniforms — are great tacklers. They contained some of the most explosive talent in the land, and Ohio State’s longest play was a 24-yard pass.
But the Buckeyes ran 22 more plays than Hawaii. That was because the Rainbows managed only 12 first downs and gave up four turnovers. As well as the defense played, it couldn’t make up for that, and that’s also why the Buckeyes scored more points in the fourth quarter than the first three combined.
Sound familiar?
This was often a problem early last season, when defense was the team’s strength. It played well enough to beat Washington, but the offense managed just one touchdown and UH lost 17-16.
After that first pass from Max Wittek to Dylan Collie for 29 yards, the Rainbows offensive game plan Saturday was as retro as their uniforms. The mindset of spreading it out and scoring in bunches like the old days must have got lost somewhere on the way to Columbus.
Yes, when UH threw the ball mostly bad things happened: sacks, drops or interceptions.
But that was after five running plays in a row following Ohio State taking a 7-0 in the first quarter. On second-and-1, with the ball near midfield, UH ran instead of taking a shot downfield. Then three more runs for a total of four yards, and a punt.
You can say the run wasn’t established enough to make play-action viable. But what about a trick play or two?
Now, its the Rainbows’ turn as the heavy home favorite. Now, they go up against an underdog from across the ocean with nothing to lose.
The best thing Hawaii can do is learn from Ohio State’s mistake of treating a game like a scrimmage. The Rainbows need to be as fired up for the Aggies as they were for the Buckeyes and Buffs.
Reach Dave Reardon at dreardon@staradvertiser.com or 529-4783. His blog is at Hawaiiwarriorworld.com/quick-reads.
