Well, that was fast.
With the Ching Complex’s 75-foot-wide scoreboard ticking down on the Hawaii football team’s 21-6 loss to UNLV this past Saturday, fans-turned-critics were calling “time’s up” on the Warriors’ 2-week-old season.
Online and on the talk show airwaves, there were attacks on an offense that did not score a touchdown against UNLV and a defense that has not produced a turnover in the first two games.
The reaction to the Warriors’ 0-2 start was predictable. There is a certain segment of the fan base that treats the panic button like a Family Feud buzzer. It is why Costco sells so many TP packs this time of year.
There were reasons for optimism after the Warriors went 9-3 last year, punctuated with a victory over Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele-led Cal in the 2025 Hawaii Bowl. QB1 Micah Alejado spurned potential lucrative opportunities elsewhere to return to UH for a third season. UH athletic director Matt Elliott secured multi-year extensions for head coach Timmy Chang, associate head coach Chris Brown and coordinators Anthony Arceneaux, Dennis Thurman and Thomas Sheffield. Supporters were increasing donations to name-image-likeness and revenue-sharing funds.
But the hype was not going to match the reality. The first two opponents — the ACC’s Stanford and Mountain West favorite UNLV — had revenue-share budgets that were estimated to be four times greater than UH’s’ $2.5 million for football. Does it matter? It does when UNLV can afford two power-4 quarterbacks. Oddsmakers placed UH as underdogs against Stanford and UNLV.
The Warriors also have not been whole. Their leading returning receiver, slotback Pofele Ashlock, still has not been medically cleared for games while recovering from a knee injury. Running back Cam Barfield, selected as one of four captains, has been sidelined the past seven quarters because of an ankle injury. Caught up in the NCAA’s five-for-five mess, cornerback Caleb “C-Bo” Brown has been waiting for his eligibility to be resolved.
The Warriors also had to find successors at both safety positions, on the interior defensive line, and on the O-line. Right tackle James Milovale and guards Zhen Sotelo and Kuao Pehopa completed their eligibility. Dean Briski moved from left tackle to right tackle.
While there is experience at slot receiver, the Warriors had to replace exiting transfers Jackson Harris and Brandon White at wideout. Alejado is still trying to develop a connection with the newcomers. Last season, Alejado’s connection was 35% on routes of 20-plus yards, mostly to wideouts. In the first two games, Alejado is 1-for-7.
Chang, who calls the offensive plays, has confidence in the run-and-shoot. Chang’s ties go back nearly 30 years, when he was running that offense as a Saint Louis School quarterback.
The Warriors are 0-2 for the 14th time since joining a conference in 1979. In seven of those seasons, the Warriors came back to win the ensuing game, most recently when they defeated Albany in 2023.
Chang remembered the heat then-head coach June Jones received when the Warriors opened 2004 with back-to-back losses to Florida Atlantic and Rice. The Warriors evened their record at 4-4, but absorbed a 70-14 beatdown by Fresno State the following week. A survey showed a growing distrust of the run-and-shoot. But then led by Chang and slotback/returner Chad Owens, the Warriors defeated Idaho and the Big Ten’s Northwestern and Michigan State to finish with a 7-5 regular season. UH beat UAB 59-40 in the 2004 Hawaii Bowl.
Chris Brown, who doubles as the linebackers coach, said he expects the Warriors to also rebound this season He said the defense is resolving breakdown issues. He expects Alejado to click with the new receivers.
“Here’s the thing, the boys haven’t lost any focus,” Brown said. “They know if they can win one game at a time, if they can win all the way through, the possibility of meeting UNLV in the (Mountain West championship game) is going to be even better. They’re motivated. They’re with the mindset that they’re going to win. In our eyes, we said that’s all part of the story. It would be cool to have a perfect season. But it would be a better story that will last a long time to know we went 0-2 and then ended up picking it up and rolling. These boys are strong in their faith, and they trust God’s plan for this team.”
