LARAMIE, WYO. >> During the Hawaii football team’s final road practice of the season, two hawks circled above Rocky Mountain High’s French Field in Fort Collins, Colo.

“And they made their sounds, so you can’t help but look at them,” UH coach Timmy Chang said. “I don’t know if it’s a good omen or a bad omen, but it’s definitely a sight to see two of them together. That’s like bucket-list stuff.”

In advance of today’s road game against Wyoming in Laramie, the Rainbow Warriors practiced on Tuesday morning at the Ching Complex and then departed on a red-eye flight to Denver that evening. They stayed in a Fort Collins hotel, conducting three practices at French Field, before making the 1-hour, 15-minute drive to Laramie on Friday.

“I love coming early,” said Chang, whose Warriors usually depart no more than three days ahead of a road kickoff. “I love getting adjusted. We’re the most traveled team in the country. When we get to places, rest matters to us. Coming up early gives us a chance to succeed on Saturday. I think we did it correctly.”

Chang was reminded of the potential consequences of traveling too close to a game. In 1996, because of flight delays, the Warriors did not arrive at their Wyoming hotel until 1 a.m on that game day. Kickoff was at noon. Wyoming won 66-0 in an outcome dubbed “Rout 66.”

This time, Chang chose a familiar preparation schedule. When Nevada coach Jay Norvell was hired by Colorado State in December 2021, he asked Chang, who was the Wolf Pack’s receivers coach at the time, to join his staff with the Rams. During the transition, Chang and the other new CSU hires lived in the Fort Collins Marriott — the same hotel where the Warriors stayed this week.

“We’re not home, but we’re making a home out of it because the guys are together and they have a bond that’s special,” Chang said.

The plan enabled the Warriors to make an incremental adjustment to Laramie’s 7,165-foot elevation. Fort Collins is 5,003 feet above sea level.

“We had good practices (in Fort Collins),” Chang said. “We had a chance to get prepared and ready for the game.”

Defensive coordinator Jacob Yoro also noticed the benefits of the early arrival. “Just being able to acclimate ourselves, I think the guys’ energy level is high,” Yoro said.

The Warriors ran sprints and pushed a sled symbolic of toughness to prepare for Laramie’s breath-seizing thin air. UH’s quarterbacks also will use moistened towels to improve their grip. Thin air often causes dry skin. “Fortunately, we got here early and have had time to work on it,” quarterback Brayden Schager said.

For the Warriors, a more daunting obstacle is Wyoming’s grind-it-out offense, led by quarterback Andrew Peasley and running back Harrison Waylee (102.1 rushing yards per game).

Yoro said the Warriors will need to replicate the defensive effort that held off Air Force last week.

“It’ll be a similar-type game,” Yoro said. “They don’t run the option (like Air Force), but they pride themselves on being physical. They’re going to try to run the ball down our throats. We need to step up.”