Warriors move past Michigan loss | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

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DAVID G. MCINTYRE / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER

Michigan safety Delano Hill intercepted a pass intended for UH wide receiver Marcus Kemp on Saturday.

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DAVID G. MCINTYRE / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER

UH linebacker Jeremiah Pritchard attempted to tackle Michigan wide receiver Eddie McDoom in the first half of the Warriors’ 63-3 loss to the Wolverines on Saturday.

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Think the movie “Morgan” flopped this Labor Day weekend?

Video of Michigan’s 63-3 victory over Hawaii on Saturday received harsh self-criticism.

The UH coaches watched video of the game during the charter flight from Detroit to Honolulu on Saturday night. Defensive coordinator Kevin Lempa said he watched the video two more times in his office on Sunday. Excerpts of the game were shown to the players during Monday’s meeting in the athletic complex’s auditorium.

And then the video was sent to the vault.

“It’s over,” said Lempa, who will not watch the video again. “It’s time to move on to the next game.”

The Rainbow Warriors, who lost their first two games by a combined 114-34, play their home opener against Tennessee Martin on Saturday at Aloha Stadium.

The Wolverines’ first offensive play resulted in safety Damien Packer’s interception. Their next seven drives ended with touchdowns. They amassed 512 yards. They averaged 8.7 yards per play on first down. The Wolverines did not have a fourth-down snap.

Lempa said he expected a difficult challenge for Michigan’s season-opener in the stadium known as the Big House.

“I didn’t expect that,” Lempa said of the outcome.

The Wolverines presented problems with quarterbacks who are accurate with quick releases, speedy players at the ball-handling positions, and multiple schemes, including a base formation utilizing both a tight end and fullback. The Warriors often struggled with their counter-alignments to close gaps.

Lempa said it’s hard to slow Michigan when the defense aligned in the right place. “It’s harder when you’re not aligned,” he said.

The Warriors reduced their physical mistakes. They missed 19 tackles in 89 plays against California in the opener in Sydney. On Saturday, they missed nine tackles in 59 plays.

“We’ve got to get better at tackling,” Lempa said.

Lempa praised freshman Jeremiah Pritchard, who started at strong-side linebacker and finished with five tackles, including two for loss.

“He’s going to be a good player,” Lempa said. “He can play.”

Safety Trayvon Henderson has been the Warriors’ top defensive player the past two weeks. Henderson had five tackles, and made a leaping breakup. Henderson has fully recovered from a torn ACL that kept him from playing in 2015.