Temple and Hawaii officials were closing in on a deal in which their football teams would meet in a game next month.

Earlier this week, a proposal that would have allowed the Warriors to add a 13th game this season seemed dead.

But Temple, which initiated talks, is willing to make considerable concessions, including waiving an appearance fee that could have been as high as $250,000.

If the game materializes, it would be played Friday, Dec. 7, at Aloha Stadium. That would avoid scheduling conflicts the next day involving the UH men’s basketball game at the Stan Sheriff Center and a Pop Warner festival and swap meet at the stadium.

"I hope we can make it happen," said Manoa chancellor Tom Apple, who addressed the Warriors before Thursday morning’s practice. "It would be a great thing for our players to play another game. Temple is a pretty big-name place coming from the East Coast."

The so-called "Hawaii exemption" allows teams playing a football game in Hawaii to exceed the NCAA limit of 12 regular-season games. The Warriors are scheduled to play 12 games this year. Temple has an 11-game schedule and is desperate for a 12th game.

Temple made the initial proposal to UH in July. But with UH’s season tickets and pay-per-view subscriptions sold, and the administrative distractions following the botched Stevie Wonder concert, the proposal could not gain traction.

The deal was pronounced dead earlier this week only to be resurrected when Temple made counterproposals. In one scenario, UH would not charge season-ticket buyers for the extra game.

"If we can play this game, it would be for the players’ benefit," UH coach Norm Chow said. "Everything we do is for the players."

The Warriors, meanwhile, were scheduled to depart Thursday afternoon for Saturday’s game at Fresno State. They spent the night in Los Angeles. They are scheduled to travel by bus to Fresno.

Hawaii will travel with 60 players. Receiver Chris Gant, cornerback Tony Grimes and safeties Bubba Poueu-Luna and Leroy Lutu Jr. did not make the trip.

Owens breaks mark for all-purpose yards

Former University of Hawaii standout Chad Owens caught three passes and returned four kicks to set pro football’s record for all-purpose yards in a season Thursday night.

The Toronto Argonauts speedster entered the game with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats needing 73 combined yards to break Michael "Pinball" Clemons’ 1997 record of 3,840. Owens set the mark with a 29-yard kickoff return against Hamilton midway through the second quarter of the Argos’ final game of the regular season. Owens finished with 95 yards to raise his single-season total to 3,863 yards.

Star-Advertiser staff