Gerke leaves UH

Alex Gerke, who coached the UH running backs and offensive line, has accepted an assistant coach’s job at Utah State. UH head coach Greg McMackin said he will not fill the position until after the recruiting period ends in February.

COMMENTS

  1. lil's December 27, 2008 9:21 am

    1st!


  2. Tanks Ah! December 27, 2008 9:23 am

    Aloha guys. Happy Holidays. I should have stayed on Maui to avoid this power outage ๐Ÿ™‚

    Gerke gone joining former Weber St. coach Chad Kauhaahaa at Utah State. Wow, what will our Oline be like now?

    Hmmm…am I still first?

    Tanks Ah!


  3. big mac December 27, 2008 9:26 am

    Gerke was the best coach we had. He showed a lot of emotion at practice everyday. He leaving is a sad sign. We need help at OL and Brian Smith is not the answer. Gerke must have been frustrated at our teams lack of discipline and lack of a running game. Good luck to him and I hope Coach Mack gets the message.


  4. Stephen Tsai December 27, 2008 9:30 am

    It will be interesting to see who gets hired next.
    I think the assumption is Craig Stutzmann is next in line, but maybe they’ll go another direction.


  5. jm2375 December 27, 2008 9:38 am

    Top 5!

    Good morning Tsai-kos!

    I hope everyone survived last night. We got power back about 5am.

    Finally did the dishes this morning.

    Best wishes to Coach Gerke on his new job.


  6. sjmacro December 27, 2008 9:46 am

    Pepper our “eyeless” seeing eye dog wishes all the Tsaikos good morning. Blackout didn’t bother him ๐Ÿ™‚
    Midori hope you put the butane burner to good use last night.
    I wonder if Pomai, Florida Ted or wafan thought they broke the blog for a while last night.
    Patience everybody, things are porwering up. sjmacro &myki


  7. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 9:49 am

    Hope Mack fulfills all his “promises” now


  8. al December 27, 2008 9:50 am

    much luck to alex gerke.


  9. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 9:54 am

    …will USU allow Gerke to recruit in Samoa? He’s already been there! ๐Ÿ™„


  10. ai-ee-soos December 27, 2008 9:54 am

    Wow – Gerke leaving.

    Yup – I hope Coach Mac gets the message.

    And I hope he hires an experienced O-line coach.

    Promoting a GA to Wide Receivers Coach doesn’t make sense,

    at this time.

    C’mon Coach McLovin, everyone knows the O-line needs first

    rate coaching.


  11. al December 27, 2008 9:55 am

    i know many will have their own conjectures and assumptions. many will attempt to read between the lines on gerke’s leaving, but, hey, if you don’t know what is between the lines you only do one of two things:

    one, you knowlingly hurt somebody’s feelings.
    two, you make a** out of somebody in the mirror.


  12. al December 27, 2008 9:56 am

    d1…too funny.


  13. labrat December 27, 2008 10:04 am

    Aloha Gerke. Coaches leave all the time. Just got to go out and find the best one who is available. I have said it before. Not everyone wants to be in Hawaii.


  14. labrat December 27, 2008 10:09 am

    Any more JC signees???


  15. mctruck December 27, 2008 10:12 am

    UH needs coaches who have “fire” in their souls.


  16. djmitcho December 27, 2008 10:26 am

    somebody correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t Brian Smith play for Coach Cav while he was here. And didn’t he do his GA at OSU with Coach Cav?


  17. ai-ee-soos December 27, 2008 10:28 am

    re: post #11.

    Yup – agreed.

    Gossip and innuendos fuels a part of this blog,

    including posts by regulars.

    In fact, one poster runs off his mouth daily,

    yet he appears to be held in very high regard.

    (And, yah, I read this blog.)

    (And, yah, I post once in a while.)

    (And, yah, I look in the mirror – not too bad.)


  18. al December 27, 2008 10:31 am

    dj….that is correct. and while others hang a dismal portland st record on his head, brian smith inherited an already weak oline at psu and was there for one year.


  19. jus'Lrkn December 27, 2008 10:32 am

    Aloha and good luck AG. Bring back Coach Cav!


  20. djmitcho December 27, 2008 10:45 am

    It seems to me that Brian Smith is qualified to be the O-line coach here at UH. He learned to play in this system under one of the best coaches there is, and also studied under Coach Cav. Those who make remarks about his qualifications are not qualified to do so. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither is a great o-line. Give the guy some time to work with these guys and maybe build a little cohesiveness. Now that it will be just Coach Smith, maybe he can put his stamp on the o-line.


  21. Da Punchbowl Kid December 27, 2008 11:10 am

    twenny one!


  22. Jus'Lrkn December 27, 2008 11:10 am

    Coach Cav- The Warrriors OL is calling you!


  23. JD December 27, 2008 11:11 am

    Brian Smith seems to be very knowledgeable and competant as far as technique and scheme. Im more concerned about his ability to teach and motivate. Doesnt appear to be a great recruiter either.


  24. Da Punchbowl Kid December 27, 2008 11:11 am

    Good luck to Coach Gerke!

    al, I agree.


  25. lil's December 27, 2008 11:14 am

    still no power at work ๐Ÿ™


  26. Da Punchbowl Kid December 27, 2008 11:18 am

    Isn’t that a good thing, lil’s?


  27. BigWave96744 December 27, 2008 11:37 am

    Gerke previously coached at Utah so going to Utah St is like going back home. Good luck to him.

    I would like to see a coach with NFL experience.
    Previously under JJ, we were able to recruit by telling kids that their coaches had NFL experience (ie Singletary, SunGod, Cav, McKnight, Glanville, Mouse).


  28. bstunna2002 December 27, 2008 11:56 am

    Bring back Dennis Mcknight he’ll light that fire under all these players he’s familiar with the offensve scheme I believe he actually helped coach the oline at one point while he was here. The kids need someone who’s able to not just teach techniques but also get them motivated.


  29. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 12:05 pm

    If you end the season leading all of CFB in sacks allowed and PF’s (not sure about the second one, but I would be surprised if UH wasn’t the leader), how much “motivation” do you need? Certainly more physical talent would help but IDK about bringing back one of the guys who was previously responsible for coaching the OL that just finished this season.
    I see a lot of validity to what Pride. wrote a few weeks ago about DM and WS and how they “helped shape the future” of this years’ OLinemen.


  30. UH recruits December 27, 2008 12:23 pm

    GM said Stuzz is the next hire. if he said that, that is what he will do.
    i am ok with that along with bringing in a x nfl guy that doesnt need the money, but wants prove himself at GA to ‘help’ out and move into the o-line job.


  31. jus'Lrkn December 27, 2008 12:23 pm

    If Mac waits until Feb to find an OL coach- what will Mac tell the OL recruits that haven’t committed and what will he tell the OL prospects? We could lose a few more OL recruits before Feb.


  32. lil's December 27, 2008 12:30 pm

    Da Punchbowl Kid:
    not really, i got tons of stuff to get done before the end of the day today, and no electricity means none can get done


  33. Pride. December 27, 2008 12:32 pm

    Screaming and yelling with today’s athletes only turns them off. I believe that if an athlete is out on the field then he or she is a motivated enough person and doesn’t need to be yelled at in order to perform. Pushed prodded yes but not yelled at. I agree that certain boundaries need to be set to establish discipline however yellers and screamers are not needed.

    What the players need are tools to put into their toolbox. They need to add tools and they need a chance to sharpen those tools. Tools come in the form of teaching by coaches in the area of technique and basic fundamentals. Last year’s spring schedule was terrible. We needed an AD, and then we needed a head coach, we needed a coaching staff, and then we needed to recruit. After recruiting we had to put together a spring practice schedule, while getting to know each other as coaches, and then we had to put together offensive, defensive, and special teams schemes. Then we had conditioning, and fall practice, and six long road trips. In the meantime we hired a recruiting coordinator and had to iron out his responsibilities. Then we had problems with the returning QB qualifying for school, and the previous head coach had no one else with extensive playing experience. And did I mention six long road trips?

    Find good athletes, give them tools, help them sharpen their tools, put them in position to make plays, and sit back watch and evaluate. Eventually, good recruiting will establish competition. Competition will be your best motivator.


  34. Pride. December 27, 2008 12:33 pm

    Don’t we already have an O-Line coach?


  35. koakane™ December 27, 2008 12:34 pm

    good day 8) tsai-ko kane’s and wahine’s in the 808 country. was was very interesting last night especially with the island wide black out. hope you and yours was safe. ๐Ÿ˜€ thank goodness we had plenty practice with all the tgate cookouts yea.

    james ๐Ÿ˜ฏ must have been supa happy at Mai Tai’s with no lights. congrats to ajoe for winning dem tics, enjoy the game.

    kinda huhu at all the callers who were mad because waianae power plant had to be regenerated then the waianae coast got power first. next time city plannsers decide to build power plants, more homeless shelters, garbage dumps, a rail system then step up east side and stop complaining. ๐Ÿ˜ˆ


  36. my new idea December 27, 2008 12:36 pm

    new GA for rb with experience playing either rb or oline to help BSmith
    stuzz to wr to give rlee time to over see everything
    smith stays at oline.


  37. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 12:37 pm

    Ed Marinara


  38. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 12:38 pm

    ….AFLAC!


  39. Pride. December 27, 2008 12:38 pm

    What you tell the potential O-line recruits is that we established an NCAA record for sacks in a season. Competition is wide open for all five starting slots. If you want to play right away, there is no place better than in Hawaii. Then be true to your word and give everyone a chance. Evaluate by atheleticism, and not how well they perform the techniques. You can teach technique. You have a more difficult time teaching quick feet and superior balance. Give the young athletic guys a chance to show their stuff. If they have quick feet and good balance, then teach them how to play.


  40. jm2375 December 27, 2008 12:42 pm

    Pride. – as usual, well said. I bow to your wisdom. “I’m not worthy!” ๐Ÿ™‚

    Don’t think McKnight would come back. He’s comfortable up in Oregon. Would Mack want him anyway?


  41. brew808 December 27, 2008 12:43 pm

    ๐Ÿ˜€ ~~~โ€ข~~~~โ€ข~~Aloha..Tsaikos..and..Warrior..Nation!!!~~โ€ข~~~~โ€ข~~~ 8)

    I hope everyone survived the storm and blackout. It just shows you can never be prepared… enough! ๐Ÿ˜ฏ

    DPK – I hope you took the opportunity to get some writing in… BTW – how’s the novel? “… it was a dark and stormy night….” ๐Ÿ™‚

    Okay- I’ll chime in on the OL discussion. I hope I don’t get admonished by brother al for being too critical. I really try hard to keep my critical and often cynical yap shut, and support the team. But….

    IMHO – Re: OL play and coaching
    Gerke –> Gone. Goodbye! Good Luck! ๐Ÿ™‚
    Smith –> He had his chance. He had his season. He (IMHO) needs more “seasoning”, seemingly on the personal relationship aspects. ๐Ÿ˜ฏ
    BigWave96744 –> makes an excellent point (as always) in #27. We need an OL Coach with OL/play experience, coaching mentality and actual coaching experience, and preferably NFL playing experience. Oh, did I mention “experience“? ๐Ÿ™„ As we have learned, OL play is the foundation of any offensive scheme – including the R&S. BTW – I don’t have any recommendations. I leave that to the experts, beginning w/ Pride and perhaps JD the AD.

    Re: Mcknight
    bstunna2002d1ๅณถ is correct as there have been discussions of this on previous blogs. My humble read/summary is that DM was not an OL guy, but learning on the job. There had been multiple coaching changes in the last four years, and it’s clear that didn’t help. So at best, the DM “experiment” gets an I for Incomplete.

    So, my vote for OL Leadership (coaching and players) is –> NEXT!!! ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ™„ ๐Ÿ˜€

    Ahhh…. I see the wise one, Pride, has spoken. I’ll still post my humble blather for the rest of you to ignore… ๐Ÿ˜ณ ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ


  42. jm2375 December 27, 2008 12:44 pm

    uhhh, what’s d1 been drinking? what’s he talking about?


  43. brew808 December 27, 2008 12:49 pm

    Rumor is the power outage on Oahu was cause by someone’s extreme use of electricity preparing a fabulous (yet exclusive) Cuban dinner…. ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜†


  44. koakaneโ„ข December 27, 2008 12:49 pm

    wow very powerful and optimistic insight by bruddah pride but so true so true especially here in the 808 state. talented athletics need only to be given the right tools and then molded to get the job done rest should take care of itself. skilled players will make adjustments but good coaches plan excellent schemes that provides a winning outcome.


  45. Jon December 27, 2008 12:52 pm

    O line and RBs were the 2 most underachieving units on the whole team. Gerke will not be missed.


  46. brew808 December 27, 2008 12:52 pm

    Is koakane still at the pavilion? ๐Ÿ˜†

    I see that the last Rainbow Classic will go one as scheduled. How many Tsaikos are going? We need reports of the two baboozes at mid-court! ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜†


  47. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 12:53 pm

    jmxxxx,

    Drinking Diet Pepsi and watching CFB….


  48. Pomai December 27, 2008 12:56 pm

    sjmacro your right I couldn’t figure out what was going on, I could get to the HA main site but not to the blog. Then I couldn’t get to any of it. Bah Humbug~~~~


  49. brew808 December 27, 2008 12:56 pm

    d1ๅณถ – and eating….? ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ™„ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ


  50. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 12:56 pm

    …perhaps an off-season 3-on-3 basketball league for the OL might help identify those with the prerequisite athleticism? (a “little” birdie helped me think of this)


  51. Jus'Lrkn December 27, 2008 12:57 pm

    I am not knowing….Good stuff!


  52. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 12:58 pm

    brew,
    You know me all too well ๐Ÿ™‚


  53. jm2375 December 27, 2008 12:59 pm

    brew – you’re off a couple of days – that was Christmas Eve when I was also trying to pay attention to the game. ๐Ÿ™


  54. brew808 December 27, 2008 1:01 pm

    Yup – just guessed that some things might have “defrosted” last night and had to be consumed right away, steaks, boxes of chxn wings, pizzas…. ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜†


  55. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 1:02 pm

    …one problem with UH playing a high-profile team like ND is that now that ND won, all the talking heads keep mentioning the game! ๐Ÿ‘ฟ


  56. Pomai December 27, 2008 1:03 pm

    Excellent post Pride, the one other thing you can’t teach is “Heart” either you have it or you don’t.


  57. brew808 December 27, 2008 1:03 pm

    Yup to #53, but my “off timing”, “off-the-cuff” comment got the expected results…. ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ™„ ๐Ÿ˜€


  58. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 1:04 pm

    …and then again, If UH had won…


  59. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 1:06 pm

    Hmmm… Florida St. scores on a deep fade in the corner of the EZ… to a 6’6″ WR!


  60. brew808 December 27, 2008 1:12 pm

    Dang! I’m not a fan of Lou Holz! Plus, he makes me think about … ND! ๐Ÿ˜ˆ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ™„ :mrgreen:


  61. jm2375 December 27, 2008 1:15 pm

    d1 – gomen ne. Not watching terebi right now. Hubby addicted to Mario Kart.


  62. Pride. December 27, 2008 1:22 pm

    Offensive line problems as I started awhile back started when the short bald headed guy left for Oregon State. It was compounded by poor recruiting at that position of our home state. I disagree with what some posters have said that we need to out-of-state to get good offensive linemen. In my opinion, we need to fight harder to keep the good in-state linemen home. We need to rally the troops and keep them home. We will never win the battle, but we need to be in the battle. We can’t just stand by and idly watch them go to the Pac-10, MWC, and WAC schools out west, or east or whatever. The last staff blew it with local recruiting. This staff will be way better.


  63. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 1:24 pm

    jmxxxx,

    No worry.
    I keep you up to date…

    let’s see,
    contact your doctor about Flomax….design your own Capital One card….feedom is built on a Harley….and Pat White is a better NFL prospect than Tebow ๐Ÿ˜ฏ


  64. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 1:24 pm

    feedom?
    no, freedom


  65. brew808 December 27, 2008 1:26 pm

    Reading Pride’s most excellent posts is truly one of the best parts of being a Tsaiko and following the Warrior Beat!!! ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜†


  66. Rick HS December 27, 2008 1:26 pm

    I am glad this trying season is over. Next season will be better, I hope.


  67. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 1:26 pm

    …oh, and no forget the double order of Xylotrim ๐Ÿ™‚

    heheheh


  68. koakaneโ„ข December 27, 2008 1:26 pm

    re: BSmith as oline coach I have no problem with his continuing next year. But he needs some help and what a good time to give him some beginning coaching 10 lessons. He needs to remember what he was taught and how he was taught it then ask for help if he forgot. BSmith has to add to his tools box so he can teach adjustment to players techniques which needs work. Case in point (Histakake) he was a dline player, how much oline blocking techniques did he have when doing battle with experienced dlinemen. what was his point of reference if a, b, c doesn’t work or how does he counter this move etc. same can be said for the experienced Estes.

    Lastly BSmith has to place himself into the role of teacher. I will try to explain. When I observed the individual drills against the dline there was a lot of frustration by the oline because they always got beat. At no time did I see they work on individual techniques such as alignment, spaceing, jab step, punch, breaking holds, recovery step etc. they went right into learning what blocking formation to use for the next opponents. Maybe he need to give input on the practice schedule and say I need time to do this, this and this because I need the time correct mistakes.

    Ah much to say but not my place. Pride looks like prayer meeting at Hungry Lion soon. Bwhaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa


  69. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 1:28 pm

    btw,
    anyone seen one big huhu buggah from Hilo?

    see you folks later….


  70. lil's December 27, 2008 1:30 pm

    got power! now back to work, have a nice day everybody ๐Ÿ™‚


  71. brew808 December 27, 2008 1:31 pm

    freedom is what William Wallace exclaims in “Braveheart”.
    feedom is what our d1ๅณถ blurts out between chugging diet pepsi and hearing that Pat White is a better QB prospect that Tebow….
    ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ™„ ๐Ÿ˜†


  72. Pride. December 27, 2008 1:33 pm

    Local offensive line recruits:

    2004 – Keoni Steinhoff 6-2 295(walk-on? or recruit? not sure)
    2005 – Aaron Kia 6-4 275
    2006 – Bryson Ginlack 6-3 275
    2007 – John Manu-Olevao 6-3 312
    Levi Legay 6-3 270
    Drew Uperesa 6-2 245
    Clayton Laurel 6-2 270(walk-on?)
    2008 – Tui Tuiasosopo 6-2 300
    Kahai Choy 6-0 275

    That’s seven recruits and two walk-ons in five years. That’s why I say that I saw this coming four years ago.

    Compare the above to this list:

    Loacl boys playing offensive line at other D-1 schools:

    Max Unger 6-5 300 Sr. Oregon
    Wilder McAndrews 6-4 290 So. Oregon State
    Jeremy Perry 6-2 338 Sr. Oregon State
    Ryan Pohl 6-3 285 So. Oregon State
    Una Smiley 6-6 325 Jr. Oregon State
    Tavita Thompson 6-6 308 Sr. Oregon State
    Shane Lauvao 6-3 305 Jr. Arizona State
    Kai Maiava 6-1 311 So. UCLA
    Micah Kia 6-5 297 Jr. UCLA
    Abe Markowitz 6-2 280 Fr. USC
    Mykenna Ikehara 6-3 305 Fr. Washington
    Reed Lesuma 6-3 302 Jr. Washington State
    Vaughn Lesuma 6-5 329 Sr. Washington State
    Sione Tau 6-5 325 Fr. Colorado
    Mike Matamua 6-4 305 Fr. San Diego State
    Trask Iosefa 6-1 315 So. San Diego State
    Ikaika Aken-Moleta 6-2 305 Jr. San Diego State
    R.J. Willing 6-5 312 Jr. BYU
    Tyler Williams 6-1 300 Jr. Utah
    Sean Tesoro 6-2 295 Fr. UNLV
    Ramsey Feagai 6-2 360 So. UNLV
    Sunia Vaitai 6-4 345 Fr. New Mexico State
    Steve Lightsy 6-4 370 Jr. San Jose State
    Lawaia Naihe 6-2 305 Sr. Weber State

    That’s too many guys that we are losing and is partly why we are hurting at that position.


  73. bstunna2002 December 27, 2008 1:34 pm

    Didn’t Dennis Mcknight play oline in the NFL? I think he would be an excellent addition he will definetly get our rb’s to be agressive especially with Sula and Chizzy comng on board. While I agree only yelling at players won’t get you results discipline needs to happen I believe a combination of positive reenforcement and holding people accountable will serve as a better motivator. These kids are in school for free savings thousands of dollars on tution and room they need to look at this as their Job only them will these guys learn how to maximize their potential. Case in point D.Bess was out there most mornings and after practices catching passes. Gentlemen hard work and discipline pays off.


  74. Rabidfanman December 27, 2008 1:38 pm

    Wow…lots of whining and the season is over! Move on and remember its still much better than what we had hoped for at the end of January. If you still feel sore, I got some milk in the fridge you can have. And some left over turkey, and ham, and turkey soup, and ham soup….

    Face up to the fact (if you can) that the former coach left in a fashion meant to seriously hamstring the football program, the former athletic director finally managed to come up with a quality schedule for a well established program, all in the middle of recruiting – not to mention the loss of all the quality players we lost to graduation last year as well as those led to believe they were NFL caliber. It was a lose-lose-lose situation from the get go, and to complain about it now, when it was admittedly so-so, is about as dumb as the guy complaining on the radio about paying 400-500 a month for electricity and it shouldnt happen! Hell, He saved 20 bucks! Enough for a plate lunch today and a six pack!

    If you want to focus on the negatives, feel free to do so. Quietly if possible. Really quietly! If not, you might look into expressing your frustration over stuff you have no control in a 1-point font size.

    Oh…and have some milk from the fridge ๐Ÿ™‚


  75. brew808 December 27, 2008 1:39 pm

    Pride – There’s no way to offer scholarships to all of these deserving student-athletes. How do you select the “right ones”? You have to let some go. In an ideal world, it would be UH first (choice)…. but we only approached that scenario with Coach Cav. ๐Ÿ˜•


  76. bstunna2002 December 27, 2008 1:47 pm

    d1- I believe Alot of what happened this year with the oline had alot to do with bringing in a coach who was unfamiliar with the offensive scheme and bringing in a rookie coach with no d1 coaching experience. To make matters worse you have the guy who doesn’t know the offensive scheme help the rookie coach out what can we really expect. It’ll take some time for B Smith to gain the respect of his players but once he does the oline will be okay until then we’ll have to wait and see.


  77. Da Punchbowl Kid December 27, 2008 1:47 pm

    brew808:
    December 27th, 2008 at 12:43 pm

    DPK – I hope you took the opportunity to get some writing inโ€ฆ BTW – howโ€™s the novel? โ€œโ€ฆ it was a dark and stormy nightโ€ฆ.โ€

    ____________________________________________________________

    Brew-

    If I had made a novel out of last night with those words it might have gone something like this:

    “It was a dark and stormy night; Sweety and I were at Safeway and had just picked up some roasted chicken and were perusing the salads when suddenly, the store went completely pitch black. A high pitched, blood curdling, feminine sounding scream of sheer terror pierced the darkness next to our shopping cart. Then Sweety told me to stop screaming and to hold her hand while we made our way to the exit…” ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ˜†


  78. brew808 December 27, 2008 1:50 pm

    Okay… I’ll bite. The beauty of blogs such as the Warrior Beat is that the reader can pick and choose what he/she wants to read, and skip the rest. It’s a wonderful, open forum/format. I think we should all remember that.

    Now, ignoring my own advice…. Sheesh…. I admit that many of my posts deserve to be “1-point fonts”…. so might Post #74. IMHO…. ๐Ÿ˜• ๐Ÿ™„ ๐Ÿ™‚


  79. jm2375 December 27, 2008 1:50 pm

    dpk – rotflmao!!!


  80. Stephen Tsai December 27, 2008 1:51 pm

    I heard a name that’s being tossed around โ€” fourth hand, of course โ€” but it’s an interesting choice. But that person can’t be hired until after signing day.


  81. brew808 December 27, 2008 1:52 pm

    DPK – I’ve heard that high-pitched voice on some video clips. I’m not surprised. So did Safeway let you purchase the chxn, w/ or w/o the salad? BTW – I’m glad you didn’t mention the wet puddle beneath the shopping cart…. ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ™„ ๐Ÿ˜€


  82. koakaneโ„ข December 27, 2008 1:56 pm

    return in a while so catch you’alllll lattttass

    esmeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee


  83. brew808 December 27, 2008 1:58 pm

    ST – Do the marketing guys appreciate all of your efforts to keep readers in suspense with tempting/tantalizing tidbits of information? You’re an expert…. ๐Ÿ˜€

    Can you confirm that the Rainbow Classic is a go? Any problems with the visiting teams? I was expecting to read about that in today’s late-edition HA! Has any work been done to patch the leaks in the SSC roof? Mahalo. ๐Ÿ™‚


  84. brew808 December 27, 2008 1:59 pm

    ๐Ÿ˜ณ sorry for all the bold font…. ๐Ÿ˜ณ


  85. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 1:59 pm

    Rabidfanman,

    I wouldn’t say we’re whining. More like constructive criticism to what has been noticed all year long with this team. There is much experience here, with former players, coaches, etc…that if you sit back and read the comments there is some valid points that come across the screen. I wouldn’t say we were in a lose-lose situation either. As a player it doesn’t really matter who your Coach is cause you gotta play the game anyway. It comes down to heart, desire, discipline, doing your part, execution on and off the field! Besides, Coach Mack and the players read this blog too. They know that although our comments may not be what they want to hear, at least they know that we care about our Football Team and want them to succeed!


  86. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:01 pm

    I wonder if any Tsaikos are impacted by the travel delays out of HNL? We know there’s a bunch headed to LV to collect previously deposited funds plus interest! ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜†


  87. Ralph December 27, 2008 2:02 pm

    we get ripped by ND and the lights go out for 12 hours…bad omen…lots of natural fireworks, lightning and thunder on the wessai


  88. Kazz December 27, 2008 2:04 pm

    Brew808,

    By all accounts the Rainbow Classic is still on for today. I’ll call UH at 3pm when the box office is supposed to open to confirm.


  89. Da Punchbowl Kid December 27, 2008 2:06 pm

    Brew-

    Most tragically, no. They tried to get the generator on and it wouldn’t work so we all had to leave without purchasing anything. Cold rice, canned tuna and low sodium shoyu ended up being my rustic, candle lit Punchbowl dinner last night. Regarding the other question, all I can say is that I had the courtesy of calling out as I left: “Attention produce: Spill clean up on the salad aisle!” ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ˜†


  90. Stephen Tsai December 27, 2008 2:07 pm

    Yep, UH says Rainbow Classic is a go.


  91. Pride. December 27, 2008 2:08 pm

    Rabidfanman, I hope I’m not the one that you are calling a whiner? Because I don’t drink alcohol. Never. I’ll eat cheese, but I’ll never whine.


  92. Stephen Tsai December 27, 2008 2:09 pm

    Re: Suspense
    Mike Washington used to always refer to himself in the third person. His famous line after a punt return for a touchdown was: “That’s what Michael Washington do.”
    So in answer to the suspense over the next coach: “That’s what ST do.”


  93. jm2375 December 27, 2008 2:09 pm

    brew – yes! GW vs. Vermont @ 5pm, then UH vs former WAC foe CSU.

    http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/20081227/BREAKING02/81227028/1352


  94. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:13 pm

    Okay…. so collectively, we won’t “hold our breath(s)” waiting…. We’ll simply continue to beg, whine, and speculate like the baboozes that we’re sometimes labeled… ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ณ ๐Ÿ™„


  95. jm2375 December 27, 2008 2:14 pm

    out of curiosity – why is a-joe’s date tonight Stretch and not a-joe’s waaaaay better half, a-sports? Methinks the zebras need a whack of the lead slippah every, say, 5 minutes? ๐Ÿ™‚


  96. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:15 pm

    Hey…. I don’t know what to do…. jm2008 is being so nice to me….Mahalo! Aren’t GW and Vermont teams that the Hoyas use to beat up on the court? ๐Ÿ™„ ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ


  97. Garret December 27, 2008 2:16 pm

    pride,

    Excellent posts, I always appreciate your insight. You brought up many important points and provided many reasons to think positively about the situation. I agree with almost everything you said–the only thing I would put a disclaimer on is that your list of local OL recruits has to be taken into context.

    Some recruits just want to go to the mainland and that cannot be helped–UH couldn’t give scholarships to all of those on your list anyway. Some recruits could be swayed to stay in Hawaii and the old staff tried hard (Jeremy Perry comes to mind). There will be several names (Hasiak, etc.) that will be added to the mainland school list each year no matter how hard Mac and the rest try.

    We also have to keep in mind that local support of the Warriors was at a much lower levels 3-4 years ago than it is now–the 2006 and 2007 seasons (plus the hype between the 2006 and 2007 season) got the state behind the team more so than in years, which helps influence local recruits. However, before that the support (and JJ’s dispute with the former Kahuku coach which I think was at least half JJ’s fault because UH needed things to be smoothed out) wasn’t the same. It is not a coincidence that the 2007 OL class you listed had a lot more names on it than in those other years…and that was under the previous coaches.

    What the former coaches did well and what I hope the current coaches continue is in targeting players on the mainland with significant ties back to Hawaii. Players like Hercules Satele and John Estes have been significant contributors. I also hope that the pipeline to Samoa results in OL recruits. If both of those recruiting avenues are working well, in addition to the improved local recruiting under Mac, then UH will have a stocked OL every year…but many players will be added to the list you made above because each top-tier mainland or Samoa recruit means one less local recruit.

    The key isn’t to just get more local players, but instead to get the best players that fit the OL’s needs. For example, a powerful but slow run-blocking specialist might fit some other schools more than UH.

    It is important that Mac and the rest of the coaches take local recruiting to the next level (which they are with home visits, camps, reaching out to the high school coaches, etc.) because in many cases it is most feasible to keep a top recruit near home rather than convincing a comparable recruit to come from the mainland. Plus, it takes a lot less time and money to recruit a local player–time and money are always limited resources when you have to fly so many hours to get to a mainland recruit and that costs so much more than driving.


  98. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:17 pm

    Re: #95

    …. it’s related to the dark….. ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ˜ˆ


  99. Stephen Tsai December 27, 2008 2:20 pm

    Well, I bet I could tell Brew since he does have high government clearance. But then again,he’s related to the Shinsato twins and, well, that’s just not fair. So he’ll have to wait.


  100. Garret December 27, 2008 2:21 pm

    This Kamehameha LB is looking to go to Idaho. UH has a *lot* of excellent LB commits already, several excellent recruits from the mainland.

    There are several linebackers on the Hawaiian Islands getting significant recruiting interest this year, and chief among them is CONRAD SHEIDT, a rover/linebacker with outstanding closing speed. Two weeks ago he made a verbal pledge to the University of Idaho, and has received offers from Arizona, Hawaii, and Army this recruiting season. Heโ€™s solid to Idaho, but a new school is in the mix.


  101. Garret December 27, 2008 2:22 pm

    Bess is mentioned as a key to the Miami-Jets game.

    WR Davone Bess has also become a major component to Miami’s offense since that Jets loss in September. He has 48 catches for 515 yards and averages 10.7 yards-per-catch. His style has been compared favorably with top slot receivers such as Wes Welker and former Jet Wayne Chrebet. Bess is the second-most prolific undrafted rookie receiver in NFL history, behind Chrebet’s 66 catches.


  102. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:22 pm

    You know… even on a dreary, rainy, (dark?) afternoon…. you have to sit back and enjoy any discussion involving Pride and Garret…talking football…. IMHO ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ˜€


  103. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:24 pm

    ๐Ÿ˜† … the “hip” group versus the “dorks”….again…. ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜†


  104. Da Punchbowl Kid December 27, 2008 2:25 pm

    Okay, I know that lot’s of other posters are thinking it so I’m gonna say it once so we can all move on. Regarding the exit of Coach Gerke and the impending vacancy on the staff, I have faith that Coach Mac will make a good hire there. But I have a candidate in mind who I know Jim Donovan would approve of, and believe it or not, so would Uce2 most likely. And there is no doubt he would be a big help coaching the O-line in tandem with young Mr. Smith.

    You guys are all thinkin’ it too, so let’s just put it out there and be done with it:

    “Mr. Pride. Your old team needs you. How soon can you sign on as an assistant “special needs” coach for the Warriors? As soon as you and Coach Smith have the O-line on track, you could “float” to help with other team needs like recruiting, back field blocking, slack key guitar and falsetto singing. Waddya say big fellah? If need be, you can do this job AND your old one. Or not.”

    Okay, now that we’ve made that “courtesy” offer, we can move on. ๐Ÿ˜‰


  105. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:26 pm

    Hmmmmmm…. how do you pronounce “SHEIDT”? Just wondering…. ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ™„


  106. Stephen Tsai December 27, 2008 2:26 pm

    By the way, why do all power outages happen at night?
    And why do they happen when I’m driving back from Costco? Spent $150 on groceries. Saw the lighting as I’m making the drive around Makapuu. Then darkness.
    By the way, as Steven Wright once wondered, how can you tell if yogurt is spoiled? Seriously. I bought a case of yogurt yesterday.


  107. Garret December 27, 2008 2:26 pm

    brew808,

    Compared with pride and several others here, I’m in the list of dorks!


  108. djmitcho December 27, 2008 2:30 pm

    Gonna add my opinion to the O-Line discussion. First, if you are playing D1 football, you should be able to get yourself fired up. If doing the Ha’a with your teammates before the game starts doesn’t get you fired up, then something is wrong with you. Second, I think the O-line, as a unit, should be doing everything together. If it deals with football, they should be doing it together. If the coaches decided to do super games again, make sure the o-line is all on the same team. I know as a former student-athlete myself, time is a precious thing, but the o-line needs to spend more of it together. In the offseason, especially the summer, not only do they need to run, lift, and workout together, they need to sacrifice some personal time to watch film just like the skill positions do. I know during the summer, some guys go back to the mainland, but maybe they need to sacrifice a little more by staying during the summer. Just from watching the Hawaii Bowl, there were basic protection breakdowns. It seemed there was no communication between the guys on the line. Simple d-line stunts by ND seemed to confuse the o-line. This could have been easily picked up with a little communication between players during the play. The o-line needs to be a such a close unit, that they should be in each others shoes. Without naming him, there is one guy on the o-line who should be taking charge of this group and making sure it happens. That’s what I think needs to happen with the o-line IMHO.


  109. Garret December 27, 2008 2:32 pm

    I had thought that Brian Smith was the primary OL coach and that Alex Gerke was primariliy the RB coach and that he’d help out with the OL when needed. However, yesterday ST indicated that both Smith and Gerke were kind of co-OL coordinators without a clear understanding of who was in charge of what…given that setup, I could see how things would be difficult.

    So, I wish Coach Gerke well at his new job (except for when UH plays Utah State!) and am hopeful that being the clear-cut OL coach will help Coach Smith mold the OL in the manner that he wishes.


  110. jm2375 December 27, 2008 2:32 pm

    brew – idk. Hoyas usually play easy preseason games, but didn’t usually schedule area teams for whatever reason. Woulda been nice back in da day to see Ewing vs Bias.


  111. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:32 pm

    ….and role-model, recruiter, coach, adviser, counselor, motivator, enforcer, teacher, instills PRIDE in one’s on/off field character and performance…. Yup! He’s got my (humble) vote! ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ˜€


  112. Garret December 27, 2008 2:34 pm

    pride’s analogy about tools and a toolbox is an excellent one. In fact, I’ve used that in the past when I spoke to students at Castle, Kailua, Roosevelt, and lots of high schools in the mainland…though I was talking about Engineering the same analogy applies to the OL.


  113. Da Punchbowl Kid December 27, 2008 2:35 pm

    There are NO dorks posting here!

    Only highly informed, intelligent, passionate, good looking Warrior Football fans. Like me.


  114. Garret December 27, 2008 2:35 pm

    DPK and brew808,

    I would love for pride to help the Warriors out…but I’m guessing a GA salary would be a HUGE pay cut compared to what he makes now!


  115. Koa-mahu December 27, 2008 2:36 pm

    rancidfanman – who died and made you queen?!?! sorry honey, but there is ONLY 1 Queen…and that’s me.


  116. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:38 pm

    ๐Ÿ˜ณ Sorry, my #103 post was meant for ST, and since we’re talking in innuendo… he knows what it means. ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ™„


  117. Garret December 27, 2008 2:38 pm

    I would believe the talk about how Stutz will be elevated from GA. Mac and Ron Lee have referred to Stutz as UH’s WR coach, and they can’t keep him as GA for much longer if they want to keep him.

    Aren’t coaches limited to 2 years at GA or was that an old rule? If that still applies, then they would have to get ride of someone next year if they wanted to keep Stutz…and how many WR coaches would be available who are as qualified as him?


  118. Da Punchbowl Kid December 27, 2008 2:41 pm

    Tsai,

    Just have Koakane test the yogurt for you. If the yogurt doesn’t get sick, then it’s still good.


  119. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:42 pm

    Koa-mahu – Re: “Queens”…. What happened to maryanne? Also, there was at least one other person who has vanished from the blog…. Plus, sometimes J(J), Jason, & homey refer to encounters downtown…. ๐Ÿ™„ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜€


  120. Garret December 27, 2008 2:42 pm

    ST,

    If the yogurt was in your refrigerator and the refrigerator wasn’t opened much, I would think that the yogurt would be okay. You can try smelling or tasting one to make sure…if you bought it from Costco that would be a lot of waste if you had to throw it away!

    I would just eat one and see if there was any reaction to it…but I probably hate to throw away food more than most.


  121. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:43 pm

    ๐Ÿ˜ณ Dang…. sorry about not closing my bold tag again… ๐Ÿ˜ณ


  122. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:45 pm

    ST – Simple! Isn’t the boyfriend still there? ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜†


  123. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:47 pm

    Hmmmmmm…. so the yogurt cost about $8. What else do you think ST bought for the other $142??? Sorry for all the questions and ramblings…. ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜ณ


  124. Stretch December 27, 2008 2:47 pm

    Stephen Tsai:
    December 27th, 2008 at 2:26 pm
    By the way, as Steven Wright once wondered, how can you tell if yogurt is spoiled? Seriously. I bought a case of yogurt yesterday.

    Eat one and if you keep going #2 for the next 24 hours, then it is bad. If you don’t, then it’s safe for the rest of the family.


  125. jus'Lrkn December 27, 2008 2:47 pm

    Wonder if Jesse Sapolu would be interested in coaching the Warriors OL? Wishful thinkn! ๐Ÿ™‚


  126. LizKauai [iMac] BELIEVER December 27, 2008 2:49 pm

    Hiya!
    Mahalo, Pride.
    nuff said.

    ST- If you kept the yogurt unopened in a cool place, now chill it and it should be ok.

    lil’s- nice to see you here!

    DPK- I miss you and Sweetie…


  127. Garret December 27, 2008 2:50 pm

    Three more MWC schools will switch to running the spread offense…that is bad because it means they will be competing for the same type of recruits on offense as UH.

    It appears Wyoming, New Mexico and San Diego State are doing everything possible to jump start offenses and recruit at a higher level to compete with Utah, TCU and BYU, the top three finishers this past season.

    They’re hired to put a premium on explosive offenses โ€” the dreaded spread โ€” now the fashion from coast to coast. Recruiting, as expected, will be top of the list.

    In Albuquerque, former Illinois assistant coach Mike Locksley fired up the Lobo base by preaching “attack” offense and “attack” defense. Labeled by Rivals.com as one of the “best recruiters around,” Locksley has vowed to scrounge around Pac-10 territories in southern California and Arizona and then hit Big 12 country in Texas to find the merchants that will deliver the goods.


  128. jm2375 December 27, 2008 2:50 pm

    dpk – good looking? does that mean brew needs to leave his mask ON when he’s blogging? ๐Ÿ˜†

    *ducking for cover*


  129. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:50 pm

    IMHO – not all good players make good coaches… ๐Ÿ˜ฏ

    Garret – if you had to choose, which daughter would be the yogurt taster? Or would it be Mr. or Mrs. “Santa”? ๐Ÿ™„ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜€


  130. Garret December 27, 2008 2:52 pm

    Taking the Outback Bowl teams to an Outback Steakhouse resulted in the expected carnage…they all ate like Tsaikos!

    Hereโ€™s how the 5,500 pounds of food were broken down:

    750 pounds of steak, 750 pounds of chicken, 900 pounds of ribs, 700 pounds of bleu cheese wedge salad (that was surprising), 200 pounds of green beans (thatโ€™s my weight in green beans).

    The big item (literally), 950 pounds of Bloominโ€™ Onions. Thatโ€™s enough crispy goodness for a small nation. Thatโ€™s a GNP of grease.

    For desert, how about 1,300 pounds of cheesecake?

    Also, there was 85 gallons of barbecue sauce and 60 cases of soda and water.


  131. Da Punchbowl Kid December 27, 2008 2:54 pm

    Garret-
    Was it you who had that list of current UH O-line men? Just to re-iterate some of what Pride was saying earlier, I think that if we give these guys the “tools” (and bring back the 220s) we could have a great front five. I don’t recall all of the names, but the competition factor Pride mentioned would certainly be there.


  132. brew808 December 27, 2008 2:55 pm

    jm2008+1=2009 – Just when I was about to turn the page…. There are published photos of someone with a goofy grin…. her shirt has some chocolate stains on it…. ๐Ÿ™„ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜€


  133. Garret December 27, 2008 2:56 pm

    brew808,

    I’m the taste-tester for my family…like I said, I don’t worry too much about things spoiling unless I can smell something odd or it tastes funny. It was my duty to save Santa time by eating 5 of the cookies that my girls made!


  134. Da Punchbowl Kid December 27, 2008 3:00 pm

    Thanks Lizzie-

    We’ve been out of it this year with the death in the family and my son staying out here this last month. He’s staying at Uncle Bulla and Auntie Lyn’s hotel with a friend for a week, so I have time to goof off on here today. Nice to be rolling around wif the Tsaikos today.


  135. Garret December 27, 2008 3:00 pm

    DPK,

    Someone else has posted the list of UH OL. I think that pride is correct that there was a dip in OL recruiting in a couple of classes which resulted in a lack of depth. A few key recruiting battles were lost (like Perry) which hurt. However, the 2007 and 2008 classes added depth, plus the long-awaited arrival of LaCount (we’ve been hearing about him since 2007!) and the JC OL recruit(s) should provide for increased competition this offseason and all next season.


  136. brew808 December 27, 2008 3:00 pm

    ๐Ÿ˜† I saw that! I’m certain that the one bumbucha cookie at 7 o’clock was consumed by “Santa”. ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜€


  137. Garret December 27, 2008 3:01 pm

    brew808,

    By the way, I responded to your comment on Lori’s blog…


  138. brew808 December 27, 2008 3:04 pm

    #136 should come after #137… ๐Ÿ˜€


  139. madeinhawaii December 27, 2008 3:07 pm

    Hey! Power’s back in Kaneohe.. phew. Hope everyone had a safe weekend so far and will continue to do so.

    I wanted a nice quiet Christmas weekend this year… see what happens? Gotta watch what we wish for, eh?

    Season’s ended. We know where the weaknesses are, I guess spring practice is when we’ll find out if we have the remedies.


  140. Garret December 27, 2008 3:13 pm

    Somebody had to eat the biggest cookies…but all of this indulging has resulted in my gaining 4.4 pounds in a couple of days! This is even after I worked out hard on the elliptical machine.

    In addition to that Japanese buffet on 12/24, we went to Hometown Buffet last night and I ate more than I’ve ever eaten at a Cattle Call! We were sent a coupon that gave Lori and me unlimited food and soft drinks for $11.99 total. The kids were $5 total. I think they lost money on us.

    This is our first Holidays away from our parent’s cooking and the local food, so we’ve indulged a little to make up for it. Last night the 2 steaks, plate of shrimp, pizza, tacos, salmon, etc., were great…though I would have traded it all for Mom’s pan lau lau or the chicken/mushroom dish that is my favorite from my Mom.


  141. Garret December 27, 2008 3:15 pm

    Well, I’ve been posting too much so I’d better get back to work. Work days tend to be when I post a lot…when we do family stuff or I’m not working (so I’m off the computer) then I post a lot less like earlier this week.

    I’m not even getting paid for the work that I’m doing today…I’m going to complain to the boss! But she’s making portugese sausage fried rice so I guess that is payment enough…


  142. brew808 December 27, 2008 3:24 pm

    It’s a good thing the P-sausage fried rice is low-cal, and that there aren’t any tempting buffets in LV, and that there aren’t anymore cookies or graham-cracker houses to consume…. ๐Ÿ˜†

    Wow – UCal sure has some ugly uniforms…. ๐Ÿ™„


  143. el guapo December 27, 2008 3:35 pm

    The roadrunner finally came back to work after 20 hours.

    Why does the O-line coach, or any coach for that matter, need to have played in the NFL? The short bolo-head guy who went to Oregon St didn’t but he was a great coach.


  144. jm2375 December 27, 2008 3:35 pm

    yeah, brew is on the see-food diet. ๐Ÿ˜† ๐Ÿ™„


  145. Kekoa December 27, 2008 3:36 pm

    Howzit Tsaiko Ohana…and you too Jm2008.

    The Ceded Lands regained power 1st at about 10:30 PM last night for about 10 minutes, and then lost it. Came back up again just after midnight, and has been rock steady since.

    We were ok here with our emergency adult beverage supplies keeping us quite comfortable. Checked on the neighbors, and they were all doing very well with additional beer & wine supplies.

    No need to go anywhere, and just stayed tuned to the radio stations as they gathered their resources and broadcasted updates and answered interesting calls from around the island.

    Congrats to A-Joe and A-Sports as they will be sitting in the “Front Row” at the SSC!

    ST, I’m still intrested in tickets…to next year’s Hawaii Bowl against Temple (…and ‘down goes Frazier!’) It doesn’t matter that they don’t have a winning team. Frazier prolly never noticed yet anyway!


  146. brew808 December 27, 2008 3:36 pm

    TD – Cal!!! Man – there’s nothing like SPEED! – What – review? ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ


  147. Committed Road Warrior December 27, 2008 3:38 pm

    Hi everyone!

    It’s been a while since I’ve posted. Just wanted to say best of luck to Coach Gerke in his endeavors at USU. Hopefully Coach Mac makes a good hire with the vacancy.

    I’m stuck in LAX where my flight’s encountered a small delay of ~1/2 hour. Hopefully it won’t get any bigger. I’m getting hungry.

    Whooooooooosh………


  148. Kekoa December 27, 2008 3:39 pm

    PRIDE: He is da man! No doubt. He is worth too much to be able to put him on salary. He should be brought in as a consultant/motivator. He can be paid a handsome amount of money…ok, ok…an insane amount of money that way, and still keep his day job.


  149. brew808 December 27, 2008 3:39 pm

    KekoaA-Sports has been replaced by Sssttttrrreeetttccccchhhhh. Gotto look out for two baboozes court-side. ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜†


  150. oxymoron December 27, 2008 3:40 pm

    ST – actually…Steven Wright said that about sour cream, not yogurt. Back to topic, if your O-Line lets your QB get killed that many times a game, you would think that adjustments would have been made. Granted, injuries and the QB shuffle didn’t help the cohesion of the O-Line, but my opinion is that a good O-Line coach would have made SOME sort of adjustment(s)…kinda like how JJ should have made some adjustments vs. Georgia in the Sugar Bowl instead of letting Colt get hammered.


  151. brew808 December 27, 2008 3:42 pm

    Kekoa – I told my sister to do some “name-dropping” at Baldwin’s. They said, “Who’s Kekoa”? ๐Ÿ™„ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜€


  152. Da Punchbowl Kid December 27, 2008 3:46 pm

    Brew-

    Kekoa’s a a regular poster here. And a damn fine one, too! ๐Ÿ˜†


  153. Kekoa December 27, 2008 3:50 pm

    Whoops!…spilled the blue ink bottle over everything…Sowee!


  154. brew808 December 27, 2008 3:51 pm

    ๐Ÿ˜• Huh? You got me puzzled on that one (#152) DPK??? ๐Ÿ™„ I know bruddah Kekoa went to that school that looks down on Damien and FHS. BTW – I was thinking of your Safeway adventure. You know the sad thing is that the roasted chxn and salad probably was tossed after the power outage! What a waste…. it might have been really good followed by some yogurt! ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜†


  155. brew808 December 27, 2008 3:53 pm

    Huh? So Esme caused the power outage? ๐Ÿ™„ ๐Ÿ˜• ๐Ÿ˜†


  156. Ralph December 27, 2008 3:56 pm

    watching Cal….we need a rb who runs north south and down hill likes #4 does….his name is Shun White…..warriors got to many east west runners looking for an opening-a big one….


  157. Kekoa December 27, 2008 3:57 pm

    Brew ~ Blog name “Kekoa.” Real name is listed with the HPD bomb squad under “persons of interest.” ST and Wena can tell you how excited they get when they hear ‘that’ name. Hehehe…

    In my former line of work, there were many code names. My family on Kauai and Oahu are still confused over the different names they receive in the mail from parts unknown.


  158. JD December 27, 2008 4:01 pm

    In my opinion giving up the most sacks in college football history right after nearly setting that same record at his previous school indicates the jobs not getting done as an oline coach. Lack of talent def has something to do with it but this wasnt most sacks in the history of the game kind of players thats for sure. And when I mentioned motivation I never said anything about yelling. Its more about having the respect of your players and keeping a high intesity for every practice. Cav was great at this. Just my opinion. Im still behind Mac and think theres a lot of positves in the direction he has this program going. With Brian Smith, the offensive line just isnt one of them.


  159. brew808 December 27, 2008 4:01 pm

    ๐Ÿ˜€ Kekoa – Actually, I know plenty…. ๐Ÿ˜ฏ 8) ๐Ÿ™„


  160. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 4:06 pm

    2009 Warrior Football Offensive Lineman…

    Returning Offensive Lineman

    50 Laupepa Letuli 6-4 320 Sr.
    53 Levi Legay 6-3 270 So.
    55 John Estes 6-3 295 Sr.
    56 Matagisila Lefiti 5-11 295 Fr. (Redshirted)
    58 Joey Lipp 6-3 270 Jr.
    61 Austin Hansen 6-4 285 Fr. (Redshirted)
    63 Brysen Ginlack 6-2 310 Jr.
    64 Ray Hisatake 6-3 315 Sr.
    65 Kaha’i Choy 5-10 275 So.
    66 Adrian Thomas 6-6 305 Jr.
    67 Tui Tuiasosopo 6-0 310 So.
    72 Clayton Laurel 6-2 280 Fr. (Redshirted)
    73 Drew Uperesa 6-2 280 So.
    74 Raphael Ieru 6-2 315 Sr.
    77 Aaron Kia 6-5 290 Sr.
    79 Daniel Johnson 6-4 290 Sr.

    Incoming Offensive Lineman…Grayshirts, Recruits, Walk-Ons, Transfers

    Brett Leonard 6-5 310 Jr.
    Jordan Loeffler 6-4 265 Fr.
    Benson Ma’afala 6-2 305 Fr.
    Chauncy Makainai 6-4 315 Fr.
    Whitley Fehoko 6-1 320 Jr.
    David Garness 6-5 280 So.
    Kainoa LaCount 6-7 285 Jr.
    Bronson Tiwanak 6-2 305 Jr.

    Not sure if this is everybody, but I think it is for the most part…


  161. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 4:06 pm

    Did anyone else not really miss their hard copy of the HA today? ๐Ÿ˜•


  162. Kazz December 27, 2008 4:07 pm

    Hope to see a few Tsaikos at the Stanley in a bit!

    :mrgreen:


  163. brew808 December 27, 2008 4:09 pm

    Thanks P-Boy! For those asking, or keeping track, P-Boy previously posted the list of Warrior OL. ๐Ÿ˜€


  164. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 4:14 pm

    You welcome…

    Eh what time UH’s BBall game start tonight?


  165. brew808 December 27, 2008 4:15 pm

    7:30 HST – but it is the second game of a double-header.


  166. jm2375 December 27, 2008 4:30 pm

    d1 – just thinking the same thing, especially since the subscription rates are going up, up, up. Plus da odda pepa keeps bugging me to come back…. Guess the only things I’d really miss are the comics….


  167. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 4:35 pm

    Mahalos…


  168. my new idea December 27, 2008 4:36 pm

    i think it safe to say UH got stuzz 2 cause his bro is there! he is the pipeline to St. louis High and ILH red schools. might be a good thing to bring him on as full WR coach or risk losing him.
    offensive coord needs to role his sleeves up and get to work with brian smith and the running backs.
    how about Nate Iloa as GA RB coach?


  169. d1ๅณถ December 27, 2008 4:38 pm

    jm2008.95833,

    I don’t read the comics anymore and the .pdf version no mo’ all da “Advertiser-ments”

    Many comments asking the HA to make the .pdf version available all the time…


  170. labrat December 27, 2008 4:49 pm

    I hate it when former assistant coaches go to WAC teams or teams that UH plays often. You know he is going to use what he learned here against us. Even when Bolo went to OSU you know they picked his mind. And we see him every year now going after some of our best olinemen. Will we see Gerke back here????


  171. el guapo December 27, 2008 4:55 pm

    Wasn’t Gerke the one who didn’t know Manti?


  172. jm2375 December 27, 2008 4:59 pm

    d1 – but then what would I put in my recycle bin for Uncle Mufi to collect? ๐Ÿ™‚


  173. Bulla December 27, 2008 5:02 pm

    aloha Tsaikos,

    hope everyone survived the blackout in Honolulu. we were supposed to leave for maui on a 7:50 pm flight last night…surprise, we left at 1:45am, landed at 2:30 am because our plane was blocked in by another plane that parked behind us…….long, long day.

    waikiki was nutz, my cel phone ringing off of the hook but all is well.

    maui is wonderful, full power, full of sunshine, and full of aloha.

    i heard last week that Gerke was jumping ship, new HC at USU trying to build his staff as fast as he can. uphill battle, it’s USU, no major fan base to work with, and revenue could be a problem in the next few years. but logan is logan, and it’ still behind the big boyz of Utah and BYU in the state.

    take care, blessings to all, be safe out there

    bulla


  174. Bulla December 27, 2008 5:03 pm

    el guapo,

    you are right


  175. al December 27, 2008 5:11 pm

    d1ๅณถ:

    December 27th, 2008 at 12:37 pm
    Ed Marinara

    oh, you just made me hunger for some paesano’s.


  176. Ralph December 27, 2008 5:16 pm

    JM2375 give Mufi all the ann Kobayashi posters you took from everybody’s yard this pass election.


  177. Ralph December 27, 2008 5:24 pm

    pass=past what happened to my spell check


  178. jus'Lrkn December 27, 2008 5:24 pm

    NEW COACH -CAV…SEPOLU..

    ๐Ÿ™‚


  179. chawan_cut December 27, 2008 5:48 pm

    see everyone at the Rainbow Classic tonight!


  180. brew808 December 27, 2008 5:53 pm

    Re: #157 –

    Ralph – #4 for Cal is Jahvid Best. He’s out of Richmond, CA. A Soph, 5-10, 195 and his 40 time out of HS was 4.4. I don’t think that is correct as he is lightning quick and has a NO2 after-burner!

    Go Bears! ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜†


  181. Kekoa December 27, 2008 6:12 pm

    DPK ~ I see you set a pretty high standard as Santa Claus helpers go these days. Santa must have been very pleased.


  182. bighilofan2 December 27, 2008 6:39 pm

    Howzit Tsaikos everywhere.

    great posts. my lips are sealed!!!!! ๐Ÿ˜€

    no huhu today. ๐Ÿ˜€ just happy thoughts. ๐Ÿ˜€

    the sun will be shining brightly somewhere tomorrow. ๐Ÿ˜€

    lessee, where was I? oh yea …. 987, 988, 990, 991… 1000.

    repeat

    1….2…..3…. ๐Ÿ‘ฟ

    kinda hard to get that bonefish outta my @…. ๐Ÿ˜†

    but I’m trying….. ๐Ÿ˜†


  183. bighilofan2 December 27, 2008 6:42 pm

    Good Luck Mr. Gerke!


  184. Kekoa December 27, 2008 6:44 pm

    Brew ~ You know Richmond as much as I do. Only 2 kind of athletes come from out of that neighborhood. The Quick & the Dead!


  185. bighilofan2 December 27, 2008 6:46 pm

    Listening to FSU’s Bowden tonight. Still has the fire. He must be 80+. Inspiring and a great motivational leader. Our Mack is like that…

    Mack is our leader. We gotta trust in his judgment. His coaches HAVE to back him up. Especially Ron and Cal Lee. End of story.


  186. Ralph December 27, 2008 6:48 pm

    you’re right brew, just saw the mvp post, but I did see the name shun white name on the espn board after he scored


  187. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 6:50 pm

    Jahvid Best is a good running back, but he wouldn’t have been starting if my boy James Montgomery from Sactown stayed at Cal and didn’t transfer to Washington State. Jimmy was backing up Justin Forsett last year. Regardless, when we play Washington State he is a guy to watch for. He had to sit out this season due to transfer rules but he is frikkin dangerous! He dominated in high school and was in line to start this year for Cal. He is fast and shifty, a legit 4.3 in the 40. His Senior year he rushed for over 2,000 yds. and 39 TD’s. In his HS career he had over 4,900yds rushing and 82 TD’s. I tried to talk him into going to UH but one of our own Iolani grads who played for Cal, Joe Igber, was a big influence in getting him to Cal. Anyway, he’s now at Washington State and could be a guy to keep an eye on!


  188. Kekoa December 27, 2008 6:51 pm

    BHF2 ~ Remembah wat I toll you ’bout Gerke?…That was a big part of the reason he’s gone.


  189. Bulla December 27, 2008 6:51 pm

    if we’re going to throw names out for the UH staff, i officially throw the name of Brian Derby in the hat.

    could do worse, could do better, but he is a viable candidate

    IMHO


  190. Ralph December 27, 2008 6:51 pm

    Brew he looks as tho he runs 4.4, our 4.4 guys exist on paper only…someday I hope UH actually picks up guys with 4.4 speed…JJ used to mention that Peters and Rivers were speed burners in the 4.4 category but at the combine, quite a shock, closer to 4.7


  191. el guapo December 27, 2008 6:55 pm

    BHF2 (no huhu)

    do you know who Jordan Loeffler’s father is? I’m just wondering which family he’s from.


  192. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 6:56 pm

    Richmond/Oakland is a shit hole…I hate that place, have a cousin who lives there. If you want to know what Boys in the Hood is all about, then go visit sometime…


  193. brew808 December 27, 2008 6:58 pm

    Ralph – I’ve seen photos of you and your knife …. so I won’t disagree with you. ๐Ÿ˜ฏ

    Kekoa – several quality athletes from Richmond and surrounding areas… including our D. Bess. ๐Ÿ™‚

    P-Boy – Cal does a good job getting quality athletes but still struggles to compete with USC. ๐Ÿ™ Consistency in winning is a problem for all Cal sports. ๐Ÿ˜•


  194. brew808 December 27, 2008 7:04 pm

    Yeah, East Bay is a bad place. You can get shot or beat up for looking at people, wearing the wrong colors, or just being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I was concerned when the Addahknows went to visit. I figured leadfoot would be safe, but A-Joe might get in trouble with his “big-eye” grin. ๐Ÿ˜†

    Speaking of A-Joe…. isn’t the midcourt, front-seat circus about to start starring two Tsaiko baboozes? ๐Ÿ˜€ ๐Ÿ˜ฏ ๐Ÿ˜†


  195. Kekoa December 27, 2008 7:13 pm

    PB ~ You got it! Not so Rich-mond.

    Brew ~ …and the plural of Baboozes would be….?

    A-Joe does have the that wide-eyed country boy look about him, but da boy got game!…and playz a mean bass guitar. Not to mention his graphic art skills.


  196. Ralph December 27, 2008 7:13 pm

    anyone know the area around cal state los angeles or anything about the college…what the campus is like….csla has a graduate program that my daughter wants to major in…


  197. Stephen Tsai December 27, 2008 7:16 pm

    oxymoron:
    Indeed, you are correct.
    And the Sugar Bowl was a puzzler. The entire week leading to the game, Laupepa Letuli was a tight end. Then in the Sugar Bowl, nothing.


  198. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 7:16 pm

    brew808,

    To be honest ainokea about any California College Football Team, I only keep track of friends, family, or the Hawaii boys who play on those teams.

    Ralph,

    That is true about the 40yd times, they are not accurate at all. It doesn’t matter though cause 40yd. only lets you know how fast you are in a straight line. Guys like Davone and Chad Owens weren’t fast in the 40, but I guarantee they were harder to catch then a straight line speed guy because they were quick and had game speed. One guy who has game speed but is listed as running a 4.7 in the 40yd. is Inoke Funaki. In the games it seems he is a lot faster than that. If our secondary just knew how to put themselves in the right positions they wouldn’t have to be 4.3 guys. Guys like Leonard Peters, Jake Patek, Nate Jackson, were good at putting themselves in positions so they wouldn’t get burned and they were all in the 4.6 – 4.7 range.


  199. brew808 December 27, 2008 7:16 pm

    “โ€ฆand the plural of Baboozes would beโ€ฆ.?” –> Tsaikos ๐Ÿ˜†


  200. Ralph December 27, 2008 7:19 pm

    first game over and the area is more than 90% empty….in the next 30 minutes there better be a big rush to the seats or this SSC will look half empty…I wonder if everyone expects an invitation from JD to attend the game before they go…


  201. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 7:21 pm

    Yeah how come the Stan Sheriff look so empty, I thought this was the Rainbow Classic…what da heo? Wow, I didn’t even know Vermont had a basketball team…wonder if they have a football team too???


  202. bighilofan2 December 27, 2008 7:31 pm

    El Guapo,

    Daniel Loeffler the corn grower is his father. retired policeman is his grandfather.

    Kekoa,

    I remember….

    …. and my lips are sealed… ๐Ÿ˜€


  203. el guapo December 27, 2008 7:38 pm

    Thanks BHF2

    Daniel is my classmate.


  204. jm2375 December 27, 2008 7:40 pm

    brew808:

    December 27th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
    โ€œโ€ฆand the plural of Baboozes would beโ€ฆ.?โ€ โ€“> Tsaikos

    speak for yourself, brew!!!


  205. bighilofan2 December 27, 2008 7:45 pm

    Brew

    us Tsaikos gotta hang on the blog, keep talking, keep encouraging the Warriors to think about the future, work hard. Thats our job, keep talking positive. say enough to let the coaches know we are watching, and hoping for the best, and we’re wishing them the best for all of us..

    so don’t be calling us baboozes… ๐Ÿ‘ฟ


  206. bighilofan2 December 27, 2008 7:55 pm

    el guapo,

    i’ll tell Daniel da guapo said hi.


  207. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 7:55 pm

    Still get planny empty seats but at least SSC filled up somewhat since last game…

    Anyway, here we go boys time for akshon!


  208. al December 27, 2008 8:01 pm

    who’s sepolu?

    bulla, it appears that a candidate for the coaching position may have been approached. judging from the february dateline, methinks that a coach under a current contract will step forward.

    also, mr. tsai never mentioned that this coach would replace the current oline coach nor be an oline coach as well.

    hmmmmm.


  209. bighilofan2 December 27, 2008 8:06 pm

    I’d like to invite Manase Jesse Sapolu to speak to the oline returnees for next year and their coach Mr. Smith Jesse is the Offensive Line Coach for the Edison High School Chargers in Huntington Beach, Ca.
    and a 83 UH Grad and 49er Hall of Famer at C-G. He would come if asked. If nothing else, for the big Mo. Very quiet, but super intense.

    You know something else? and I say this from the bottom of my gut!

    whatever Coach Mack wants, I’ll support. He is a class act!

    GREAT JOB COACH! My prayers are with you.

    Go Warriors!


  210. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 8:06 pm

    He talkin bout Jesse Sapolu I thinkin?


  211. bighilofan2 December 27, 2008 8:09 pm

    and you wanna know why I say that about Coach Mack? He looked up at us die hards by the tunnel. He didn’t look down. One classy guy!


  212. al December 27, 2008 8:10 pm

    i don’t think sapolu would leave his family to take an asst coaching job in hawaii. not now anyway.


  213. al December 27, 2008 8:13 pm

    pboy…..it looks like chizzy “make you dizzy” dimude is a running back out of the same mode as bradley. as a jc guy he may be a bit more physically mature. i believe he was an early recruit by mack and just that his name was kept under wraps until later in the game.

    in fact, many thought we were recruiting his teammate troy evans, although that was not the case.


  214. Ralph December 27, 2008 8:15 pm

    don’t see any tsaikos….considering the arena is kind of empty if the cameraman would pan the audience once in a while we would be able to see them. chawan would be easy to locate, he wears orange in back of the basket area with the maniacs…


  215. bighilofan2 December 27, 2008 8:15 pm

    al,

    i’m not thinking of a permanent position, i’m thinking of how he shows up in Samoa for the mo faktah! our guyz need da mo too. its a lonely job in the off season, getting yhourself ready. for the players and the coaches. they all gotta visualize the crown. thats how i’m thinking Jesse could be used. big production. announce dates, like a mini camp kinda thing for the coach, that just so happens to wind up by the workout areas so the ncaa don’t have a fit….


  216. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 8:18 pm

    al,

    From what I’ve seen Chizzy could be an impact guy, but again the OLine needs to learn how to block! Regardless, if Coach Mack and Ron say we going run the ball more, than frikk put in some running plays that not so predictable IMO. Almost 99.9% of the time I can tell when we going run the ball.


  217. SIMPLE December 27, 2008 8:20 pm

    screw the connections, go for the juju – Tatupu!


  218. bighilofan2 December 27, 2008 8:27 pm

    simple,

    and who are the conections?

    bwaaahaaaaahaaaaaaa.


  219. al December 27, 2008 8:30 pm

    bhf….i hear you man.


  220. bighilofan2 December 27, 2008 8:30 pm

    okay i admit it.

    the idea of a nfl guy puttin fire into the players and coaches in a nice but powerful way, really gets me thinking about simple”s connections. ๐Ÿ˜€


  221. bighilofan2 December 27, 2008 8:35 pm

    and you gotta give the mfl guy a title… soz da coaches really pay attention, for their own development, for our development, for our State.
    This “State” stuff is no joke to me. I could be cheering the Vulcans. Thats my home team. But I choose our State team, the Warriors! and nobody better forget that about us Warrior Fans. ๐Ÿ‘ฟ

    Thats my opinion and I’m sticking to it! ๐Ÿ˜†


  222. jus'Lrkn December 27, 2008 8:36 pm

    Sorry. Sepolu – Sapolu


  223. Da Punchbowl Kid December 27, 2008 8:49 pm

    Tatupu?

    Interesting…


  224. al December 27, 2008 8:51 pm

    pboy…..
    i think we have improved ourselves offensively with the aquisitions of chizzy and sula. i think both will make immediate impacts to our offense. we will miss farmer and his blocking abilities, but, as far as running the ball, well we just improved our stock immensely.

    heun, who is now deemed healthy may end up at de. altho undersized, his whirling dirvish style may just land him a new position.


  225. al December 27, 2008 9:03 pm

    so did the odd couple make it to the game tonight?


  226. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 9:05 pm

    al,

    I like Sula and think that he was a great pickup. People have been knocking him on his speed and stuff but anybody who can rush for over 1,800 yds and 20+ TD’s consecutive years is badass in my book. If he builds up and works on his skills he could be something special. Heun played LB so I’m sure he could help on the defensive side of the ball and will make an impact. He has a motor and isn’t afraid to lay the smack down!

    I just wish LWJ would play to his abilities. I know he didn’t want to play Safety at Nebraska, but since he hasn’t proven anything in the backfield, maybe we could use his speed as a Safety???

    Anyway, I’m hoping for a better running game next year if there is one. I thought we would run the ball more this year but that went out the window. Plus our running plays are so predictable that if I was a defensive coordinator I would salivate at the chance to play Hawaii.


  227. jus'Lrkn December 27, 2008 9:14 pm

    Jerome Bettis for running back coach!


  228. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 9:22 pm

    jus’Lrkn,

    Eh what you smokin? ๐Ÿ™‚


  229. al December 27, 2008 9:23 pm

    as mentioned many times before it is all about game speed.

    nate ilaoa sure could reel off some big gains because of his make you miss ability, read the hole quick, and his game speed. it also helped that he was as big as a tatupu or campbell and a bettis.


  230. J-Force December 27, 2008 9:33 pm

    Howzit everyone,

    I just can’t wait till next year. GO WARRIORS!!!


  231. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 9:36 pm

    Nate Ilaoa was a beast.

    I remember when he first played as a slot receiver and he caught the ball and the defender bounced off of him like 4 or 5 yds. and I was like dayum who is this guy. Nate was deceptively fast for his size and had the ability to break ankles as well as tackles!


  232. jus'Lrkn December 27, 2008 9:40 pm

    Ha PB! Smokn not good to’ me, drinkn Heiny.

    No harm in dreaming…:)


  233. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 9:41 pm

    Eh I just seen a glimpse of JD and Kindashy…


  234. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 9:44 pm

    jus’Lrkn,

    True, I just saying though Jerome Bettis ah?


  235. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 9:45 pm

    Wow, the basketball team look horrible in the 2nd half. Shooting 18% only 3 shots made about 4 min. left sheesh…


  236. Kekoa December 27, 2008 9:46 pm

    Nasty Nate!…Fresno game…scores…runs thru the end zone…out the perimeter gate…no can stop!

    Took the shuttle pass and exploded thru the secondary. Took a bus load of people to stop him on damn near every running play.

    I was hoping Jake Heun would give us some of that this season. Injury bug, tsai.


  237. Pauoa Boy December 27, 2008 9:52 pm

    Kekoa,

    I hoping Jack Sula can develop into that type of bruising running back that got moves to break your ankles too!


  238. Garret December 27, 2008 9:53 pm

    Free play link time. Please ignore my next 5 posts if you do not want the off-topic stuff.

    The music industry has given up on using lawsuits to prevent people from downloading music illegally.


  239. Garret December 27, 2008 9:54 pm

    This report really surprised meโ€“gas stations are making more money now when gas is averaging $1.50 per gallon around the country than they made when gas was over $4 per gallon! The credit card companies are making less now, but the gas stations are making more.


  240. Garret December 27, 2008 9:55 pm

    It is hard to imagine that this 14-year-old girl lives for about 4 months without a heart, and after she got her heart transplant she is fine now. She had internal bleeding, kidney and liver failure, and couldnโ€™t breathe on her own half the time. She had no heart in her body for 118 days while she waited for a transplant!


  241. Garret December 27, 2008 9:55 pm

    Trained rats are able to help defeat land mines (they do a better job than current mechanical detectors) and detect tuberculosis (early detection saves lives and prevents others from getting infected).


  242. Garret December 27, 2008 9:55 pm

    There are few open, sunny spaces in Barcelonaโ€ฆso they are putting solar panels over mausoleums with the support of the families involved.


  243. Garret December 27, 2008 9:56 pm

    Free play links pau.


  244. Garret December 27, 2008 9:57 pm

    I agree about how Sula and Chizzy should upgrade the running threat in the offense. However, I hope that they can block well and find their way for the shovel/screen passes, as that is also needed for the offense.


  245. Ralph December 27, 2008 10:00 pm

    I saw kinda shy and JD several times on TV, never smiled once with his arms folded…..kind of discouraging to run a tournament and your team, the host team, plays in the afternoon games and nobody is around to watch….do the cheer leaders and rainbow dancers show up for the afternoon games, hardly anybody will be there-got to work…maybe stretch will be there doing marketing, since there will be beer


  246. Garret December 27, 2008 10:05 pm

    Wow, that was *not* a good result today for basketball team. I’ve been to two Rainbow Classics when the men played during the day, and the stands were so much emptier than they are at night.

    I’m not sure if Momo and Mrs. Momo will be there since Momo works during the day. Their grandchildren are on Maui so their third seat will be empty.


  247. jm2375 December 27, 2008 10:13 pm

    Ralph – apparently, UH will play at night regardless. They finally figured it out after all these years.


  248. Kekoa December 27, 2008 10:18 pm

    Hi jm2009 ~ Is there an outside chance of you having triple chocolate cake around the playhouse? I got cash from a bailout deal with da Mrs!


  249. Garret December 27, 2008 10:20 pm

    jm2375,

    I thought I read something about how that UH would play at night even if they lost…but it has been so hard to find articles since the power outage that I thought I had imagined it.

    I didn’t read up on how that would be done because I was hoping that UH would win the first game…I guess I’ll read about it in tomorrow’s paper.


  250. jus'Lrkn December 27, 2008 10:23 pm

    One way UH can keep our kids at home is to build a big time program with influential star- quality coaches. Unless UH joins the PAC-10/11 we need to find our niche to attract and recruit our top players. Hawaii raises and trains up their children only to have mainland schools “harvest” the cream of the crop.

    Said all that to say this- If a big name/NFL coach helps us win games and attract our kids to UH, let’s do it. Then again, I know nothing about the business end- Just passionate about UH Football.


  251. jm2375 December 27, 2008 10:25 pm

    Any sightings of the 2 baboozes @ center court?

    Any sighting of Leroy Lutu Sr? I dvr’d the game. Thanks, guys. grrrr….


  252. jm2375 December 27, 2008 10:27 pm

    Kekoa – got a little left over from Christmas Eve dinner. Even better, I’ll email you da recipe so you can make it for Mrs Kekoa. ๐Ÿ™‚


  253. Ralph December 27, 2008 10:46 pm

    jm game is on at 10:30 pm replay on ch 5


  254. jus'Lrkn December 27, 2008 10:48 pm

    PB- Jerome Bettis as RB coach is unrealistic to say the least, but imagine if..(sip, sip) ๐Ÿ™‚


  255. jm2375 December 27, 2008 10:48 pm

    Kekoa – oops. you snooze you lose. Hubby just consumed the last of the cake.


  256. Ralph December 27, 2008 10:48 pm

    jm erase the dvr, save your mental health, the bows scored only 3 fgs in the second half with about 4 minutes to play….spend the time bonding with your kids


  257. Zatoichi December 27, 2008 10:49 pm

    Agree with some of you out there, who better than Jesse Sapolu. All pro lineman who I believe if interested should be considered. Think with what we do have coming in as far as redshirts, grayshirts, and recruits, we do have a lot to work with. Who better than Sapolu.


  258. Kekoa December 27, 2008 10:50 pm

    jm ~ The email box is cleared of all my opala…pls do send the recipe! I look forward to sharing the results with you…and Jason of course!


  259. jm2375 December 27, 2008 10:52 pm

    Ralph – you mean the large one (hubby) or the smaller (real) one? ๐Ÿ™„


  260. Ralph December 27, 2008 10:54 pm

    I notice the 49’er vs redskins game won’t be on Fox, preempt in Hawaii with the Dolphins vs Jets game….ST is in hog heaven, missing a party for the jets, but can he cheer against Davone?


  261. Ralph December 27, 2008 10:56 pm

    the smaller one, the bigger one got to much bonding already and he can’t see straight….


  262. jm2375 December 27, 2008 10:59 pm

    Ralph – I would only watch it if there were Tsai-ko or Lutu Sr. sightings. So were there any?


  263. Kekoa December 27, 2008 10:59 pm

    G’nite…End of a very ‘memorable’ day with family. Gotta get some rest.


  264. jm2375 December 27, 2008 10:59 pm

    Kekoa – you got mail. (aol)


  265. Kekoa December 27, 2008 11:05 pm

    Tank Q jm2375-2009…Recipe just in. You may ask Mrs. K if I made it or not.

    Don’t believe her if she says Pops made it…besides it’ll come out tasting like a cross between Oysters and raw O’io if he baked it.


  266. Ralph December 27, 2008 11:13 pm

    no lutus and no tsaikos, only errant passes by the bows….oh, they also shot bricks


  267. Ralph December 27, 2008 11:16 pm

    mystery coach how about tony tuioti! Aranda coaches the running backs or lumpkin coaching the running backs….by the way, what did lumpkin do this pass season…


  268. HiFlyer December 27, 2008 11:18 pm

    Could not miss c_c behind the basket and I thought I saw a glimpse of strecth, if he was wearing a hat.


  269. Ralph December 27, 2008 11:28 pm

    stretch always wears his baseball cap, a/joe must have had his hat on. so if you saw two baboozes wearing hats at a basketball game, its them…


  270. roysan16 December 27, 2008 11:40 pm

    About how Smith knows the offense well, Rolo said:
    โ€œHeโ€™s very knowledgeable of the system from the O-line to the receivers. He knows everything about the offense. Heโ€™ll be able to do more than a lot of people who know the offense but not the pass protection. Heโ€™ll be valuable to the program.โ€ (HA)

    Hmmm…huh…gulp… I read this on garrets blog 1/25/08

    With all the dragon slayers rumbling about, I just wanted to add this….for them…hehe.


  271. SteveM December 27, 2008 11:52 pm

    Been searching Don Quijote stores for the karaoke microphone song chip #5 60’s-70’s Pop Rock. Finally found it at the Waipahu store today. I am very pleased. Not sure what our neighbors think, though ๐Ÿ™‚

    Too bad my place is so small, otherwise we could have a BBQ and karaoke party.

    Goodnight everyone!


  272. Big mac December 27, 2008 11:56 pm

    I can’t wait till 2009. 2008 was the year to forget after a great 2007.


  273. al December 27, 2008 11:57 pm

    the basketball team recruited forwards and no real guards who can handle the ball or shoot.

    shootz, the way they shot tonight i could take all of their lunch money every day.


  274. labrat December 28, 2008 12:04 am

    CSU was running and UH was jogging. What is up with the conditioning program????


  275. jm2375 December 28, 2008 12:05 am

    Time fo go nene. Oyasumina-tsai. Hasta manana.


  276. Jason December 28, 2008 12:16 am

    ▌Arenโ€™t coaches limited to 2 years at GA or was that
    ▌an old rule?

    Garret: My understanding is that you are limited to two years unless you make significant progress toward your graduate degree, in which case you get a third year as a GA. But I still think Stutz is the best guy to take Gerke’s place.

    How about Michael Brewster as a GA?


  277. Pomai December 28, 2008 1:21 am

    Not to knock Jesse Sapolu or Stuzz but I went over this with Uce2, you don’t need to have NFL experience to be a good coach. BSmith had his first year at the position with guys who where already here, lets give him a chance to show what he has. The one thing I would like to see BSmith do is get it across to the players that if they disrespect me they will be not playing but sitting on the bench.


  278. LizKauai [iMac] BELIEVER December 28, 2008 1:35 am

    Sweet Warrior Dreams!


  279. Stretch December 28, 2008 1:39 am

    Wanted to drop a short note before heading off to bed.

    Thanks to JD & Kinda Shy for allowing AJoe and I to sit in the first row, right behind the team and also for the halftime snack.


  280. chawan_cut December 28, 2008 1:48 am

    thanks to midori7 for a ticket too.
    and ralph, i was there. i don’t put on that sweater until the 2nd half. no sense distracting our team when we shoot.


  281. Ralph December 28, 2008 2:06 am

    Al Tsai reports in this mornings edition that mac will hire a coach who will also have o line responsibility and he also answered ST question that two coaches can work together-“absolutely”……better talk to your birdie and get the latest


  282. Ralph December 28, 2008 2:08 am

    how come I saw kinda shy and JD but not you two…..


  283. maryann(e) December 28, 2008 2:09 am

    Hi everybody!
    I’m back!
    Been in Upper Mongolia the past six months.
    I had to defend my “Genghis Khan” belt in the Mongol Sumo Asso.
    I would’ve won 47 straght matches ‘cept that termites got into my competition model peg leg and it snapped in half}


  284. Ralph December 28, 2008 2:13 am

    Jason missed you Maryanne, he baked a lot of brownies this Christmas just for you. Koamahu is ogling Jason boy but still has the hearts for jesse James


  285. Ralph December 28, 2008 2:32 am

    Ferd’s column in this morning online HA describes a basketball program going downhill. Attendance at under 4K on a saturday night and in our own tournament…BB beating P. view, chicago state, and E. Washington before losing to a CSU team that lost 6 in a row and all 4 on the road will definitely hurt future attendance…it’s great to be warrior fans but paying warrior fans may want to sit out this season-where is the value..


  286. BigWave96744 December 28, 2008 2:34 am

    Happy Belated birthday to Nate “Nascar” Nasca 12/27

    and today 12/28 is the 21st Birthday Malcolm “I can do the Electric Slide Badder than the Ha’a” Lane


  287. Koa-mahu December 28, 2008 2:35 am

    my ears were ringing while *working* in downtown tonight/this morning..


  288. al December 28, 2008 2:49 am

    no worry ralphie….the lil birdie knows all and gave advanced info regarding this situation.

    tweet, tweet.


  289. al December 28, 2008 2:52 am

    speaking about tweetie birdies….along come both maryanne and koa-mahu. not a coincidence i’ll bet.


  290. Pride. December 28, 2008 3:00 am

    So what’s the scoops Uncle Al?


  291. Pride. December 28, 2008 3:01 am

    What is the lil birdie saying?


  292. Pride. December 28, 2008 3:01 am

    By the way Papa Al, isn’t time for a cattle call?


  293. BigWave96744 December 28, 2008 3:06 am

    Stephen Tsai:

    December 27th, 2008 at 1:51 pm
    I heard a name thatโ€™s being tossed around โ€” fourth hand, of course โ€” but itโ€™s an interesting choice. But that person canโ€™t be hired until after signing day.

    Is it Brian Te’o
    ๐Ÿ™‚


  294. BigWave96744 December 28, 2008 3:07 am

    Oh No… Pride is up and blogging..
    I better go Moi Moi..


  295. Pride. December 28, 2008 3:10 am

    Goodnight Dave.


  296. BigWave96744 December 28, 2008 3:11 am

    BTW,
    Chime in on my conspiracy theory on the Blackout and Obama..

    http://www.sportshawaii.com/sh/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=30007

    Oh, and it strictly for entertainment purposes
    Ok, lights out….
    See who ever can make it at the David Veikune Award Ceremony at Tiki’s Bar and Grill at 4pm….


  297. bighilofan2 December 28, 2008 3:14 am

    hiya Pride.

    so watcha thinking? about UH football, I mean.


  298. Pride. December 28, 2008 3:19 am

    Good morning Hilo Fan. I like the recruiting so far. I’m excited about that. However, we will need it to be like that for at least four more years to see significant change.


  299. iwonderwhytheyhateme December 28, 2008 3:23 am

    re: NEW COACH

    GM is hiring or whatever promoting Stuzzman to what Receivers Coach?

    Dear COach Mac-As a season ticket holder before I knew what football was I implore you to look at the ENTIRE POOL of eligible coaches.

    You took and continue to take the heat for hiring what was considered inexperienced and young coaches. Here is your oppotunity to see if things need some change. Its good to have youth, but like ying and yang we need a balance. You have the youth of Rolo and Smith, and Malloe.

    Let your next hire be someone who has a proven record in the collegiate/nfl ranks who will contribute the knowledge gained over the years.

    I make my remarks again that Auburn, Tennessee, Washington, CLemson etc etc all have coaching staffs that got dumped with the Captain. Can we at the VERY LEAST make an inquiry in that direction?

    IMagine that….Hawaii recruiting coaches that have been with the likes of the SEC and Pac-10. I like the sound of that very much! haha

    GO Warriors!!!


  300. Pride. December 28, 2008 3:25 am

    nowonderwhytheyhateyou. Because you make a lot of sense.


  301. iwonderwhytheyhateme December 28, 2008 3:26 am

    ok i read that people are saying Stuzzman (sp) should be Gerke’s replacement. Its probably due to my ignorance but what are the reasons for this?

    I will put it out there and be a sore thumb but I will be sorely disappointed if Coach Mac just goes ahead and promotes Stuzzman w/o looking at the HUGE pool of jobless coaches right now especially those that come w/ storied careers.


  302. iwonderwhytheyhateme December 28, 2008 3:33 am

    pride,

    well you never know. i say you should never ever close yourself off from looking at all the options. you do that and you may shut urself out from a very positive and fruitful choice.

    if mac looks at all the coaches available and still picks Stuzz thats one thing, but if he just picks him for the sake of “continuity” or convenience than something is not right.


  303. iwonderwhytheyhateme December 28, 2008 3:43 am

    but then again i guess if you wait to screen coaches what happens to all the other o-line recruits?

    i guess you could just say that B-Smith has the o-line and that the new coach is for some other positions RB or whatever.

    you know, I was in a similar situation…well sort of…its a long road but similar nonetheless. When i played golf in HS, my first 2 seasons we had a very experienced older coaching staff. They werent the best players in the state nor have they ever been but they knew how to coach. When they retired, we had a few of the best amatuers in the state…i mean the best of the best Governors Cup and everything. They were a very young group…the head coach and some of the assistants except for one which happened to be Ted Makalena’s Nephew.

    IN any case this was a top notch golfing crew. 4 Top Amateurs and 1 well known Pro. But for some reason due to the age, the players did not respect the HC. Try as he might with yelling and what not, it didnt work. He did not have that special touch…that ability to give and gain respect. The younger coaches could relate to us more, but the older coaches knew how to point us in the right direction and keep us out of the wrong ones.

    It is easy to command, but difficult to lead.

    The young coaches commanded…but the older coaches new how to lead. ANd I want to honestly say it was from experience. You need the experience to learn how to interact with the players.

    just my 2 cents.


  304. Pride. December 28, 2008 3:43 am

    You’re right “hateme” But then again, what can we afford? How much are we willing to pay? I agree with you though, right now there are probably a lot of coaches looking for work? Washington, Utah State, New Mexico State, San Diego State, Wyoming, Auburn, Clemson, Tennessee, just to name a few. Not to mention a few NFL assistant coaches who will be out of work real soon.


  305. iwonderwhytheyhateme December 28, 2008 3:47 am

    pride,

    u pinned it on the head. i guess what it comes down to a lot of the times. and you know this from being in the bizz is that money is the great equalizer. w/o it you are hard pressed to get the shiniest and fastest toys. one day the state will realize the importance of athletics and i think we will get there one day…


  306. Pride. December 28, 2008 3:49 am

    Whytheyhateme. Well said. Leading, teaching, coaching. A person may possess a lot of knowledge, but not know how to teach. Happens more often than we think, unfortunately.


  307. iwonderwhytheyhateme December 28, 2008 3:53 am

    to each and everyone,

    i need to go to sleep. i got a massage today and i feel nauseous/dizzy…its a wierd feeling. first time i ever got a massage. was good though.

    anyway. all you tsaikos, thanks for a great season of well informed and entertaining posts. probably wont be coming on as much but i will be luuuuuuuuuuuurrrrrkkkkkkiiiiiiinggggg.

    with that, this is Captain Honolulu…Signing Off!

    GO Warriors!


  308. bighilofan2 December 28, 2008 4:04 am

    nowonderwhytheyhateyou

    amen!

    i’m a neighborislandseasonticketholder. gonnabeonenextyeartoo.

    tomeGaFlaOSUBSUandND means the big schools do not consider us anything but a tune up. we didn’t lose like that because our coaches were lacking political skills, we got bad lickings because of things we can fix. c’mon coach, listen to 302.


  309. Kekoa December 28, 2008 4:05 am

    Pride ~ Al’s little birdie woke me up. No can go back sleep now. Actually the UH bb replay put me to sleep early in the 1st half!

    Nowonderwhytheyhateyou does make a lot of sense. Whenever you have a coaching staff with a collective body of experience, you have more Mana’o to share with the players.

    Check your email.


  310. bighilofan2 December 28, 2008 4:10 am

    c’mon coaches, listen to 304.


  311. Kekoa December 28, 2008 4:12 am

    Big Hilo ~ Eh!…you up strangling cheekens again?


  312. Pride. December 28, 2008 4:19 am

    Gang is up early…or late.


  313. bighilofan2 December 28, 2008 4:22 am

    I know this much.

    Coach Mack has the opportunity to look at his entire staff and come up with a plan on how to make UH a top notch program. Coaching, Recruiting. Leading (see 302, 304), planning, Leading, public relations, Leading. It comes down to … Leading… It takes one Leader.

    Go Warriors.


  314. bighilofan2 December 28, 2008 4:25 am

    KEKOA,

    HIYA i’m vizualizin one top notch program. one jesse sapolu would be a big help to Brian right away, cuz da oline guyz need da it faktah to straighten out dare heads. immediate gratification. oddawize day’ll get it evenshally, in myh next lifetime. ๐Ÿ˜€


  315. Kekoa December 28, 2008 4:26 am

    What kine mischief you cookin’ up for ’09? I say we concentrate our efforts on containing da “E Bolla” virus. First we gotta secure one good replacement. How about we nominate *Kinda Shy* to be the interim coach while we do a nation wide search.

    Get plenny wahine coaches around da country with decent track records that can coach circles around dis clown. Apply the same principles we spoke of above in choosing a fb coach.

    I say a new Female coach would be a refreshing change. Maybe the wahine will respond better to someone they can relate to, who happens to know the game better than the guy occupying the seat at the end of the bench now.

    75 fans is not enough to pay the wages for one janitor in the SSC. That’s how critical the situation is to me.


  316. Pride. December 28, 2008 4:27 am

    Hekoti Fakava. Anyone remember him? That’s what we need in the offense. We need the punch you in the mouth running back. Maybe Jack Sula can be that guy. I’m looking for that guy who will be the tailback in that power I that we use on the goalline. Two linebackers at fullback, two offensive guards at tight end and run that power lead off of the four and five hole, or a dive off of the two and three hole, just like the old days. Score everytime we get inside the twenty.


  317. Pride. December 28, 2008 4:29 am

    Heikoti Fakava, Travis Sims, Nate Ilaoa, James Fenderson. All of these guys, punch you in the mouth kind of guys.


  318. Kekoa December 28, 2008 4:34 am

    Oh btw, I’m not ignoring the problems wit da fb team. I’m leaving it to da HC. He get lots of headaches to deal wit post season. He’s a smaht man, he knows how to solve problems. Gotta give him chance to deal. Rome wasn’t built in a day, or even one season.

    All these good intentions and suggestions pouring in unsolicited, must be hell to deal with! I say we let him sort it out.


  319. bighilofan2 December 28, 2008 4:34 am

    Kekoa,

    I follow you. just saying that at the spring game, i saw BSmith coaching the o guyz in the game right in front of me, and i recall dis one guy who wuz sitting on the bench and looking the other way, maybe pretending he not listening, i dunno.. i translate that attitude to the penalties.

    but you right, Bolla get choke problems. and he ain’t seein it because the fans just ain’t showing up at all. at all. Marilyn, get on it girl. he’s suckin up the women’s athletic karma. naughty bad.


  320. Pride. December 28, 2008 4:36 am

    I’ll never forget the look on the faces of the Aztec defense when June Jones closed out the last game in 2005 against San Diego State by running the ball up inside with the 355 pound Reagen Mauia. Mauia made three yards every play by falling forward. That Aztec defense wanted no part of Reagen. I always thought that the offense should have that aspect at all times. The ability to pound the ball inside at all times. That pushes the defense to play you honestly.


  321. bighilofan2 December 28, 2008 4:37 am

    Peace Kekoa.

    Peace Coach Mack~~~~

    Happy New Year guyz!


  322. Pomai December 28, 2008 4:38 am

    One of the problems of having youth in your coaches is that this is really their training ground so to speak, if you look back at some of the good coaches CFB/NFL their first or second jobs where with teams that did not necessarily have a winning season, yet they gained very valuable experience. If you look real close at some of the best coaches it took years before they reach the level that they have maintained into the head coach position.


  323. Pride. December 28, 2008 4:40 am

    Okay Kekoa, I take your advice. I go let go the football program and focus now on the wahine basketball team. What you like me do? How you like me help? You like me put on my shoes and give them girls a few tips on big man moves from the big man’s camp I went learn from Pete Newell? I can you know.


  324. Pride. December 28, 2008 4:42 am

    Only ting Uncle, get hard time put on my shoes. Every year da shoelaces keep moving farher and farther away. Aisoos.


  325. bighilofan2 December 28, 2008 4:42 am

    Proper prior planning prevents poor performance! ๐Ÿ˜€


  326. Pomai December 28, 2008 4:44 am

    The trick of it is that Mack has to get the right mix of young coaches with little experience and older coaches that have that already and can teach the younger ones on the fly. This I would imagine is a very difficult thing to accomplish, that is getting the right mix!


  327. 808ike December 28, 2008 4:46 am

    New post.


  328. Kekoa December 28, 2008 4:53 am

    Pride ~ Ha!…You know I’ve always been one that encouraged your involvment with motivating the fb players. I know you are just kidding about ‘helping’ the wahine in that way…but then again, maybe they could use a little help with their inside game. Maybe learn from you how to block out better under the boards….Hmmmm!

    I meant for the wbb coach to be the next project dat me and my able assistant rabble rouser bhf2 could help get off the ground. We made enough noise to get Frazier to move on.


  329. heres one! December 28, 2008 3:26 pm

    Just FIRE o-line coach Smith and get a real coach already !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    have some balls for once Mack


  330. Jaysson December 29, 2008 5:29 am

    post #40 (sorry if someone else mentioned this) McKnight isnt at Oregon, hes at SMU with JJ.

    post #75 – good gathering of names Pride! Keoni Steinhoff was a walk on, Clayton Lauren was a scholie, belive he was a greyshirt but I remember seeing a picture of him online on signing day. And you’re giving Kahai Choi about 2-3″in height, he cant be more than 5’9 or 5’10 and Tui about 2″. But they should both make contributions next year.


  331. Uce2 December 29, 2008 11:40 am

    Quoting: Pomai:
    December 28th, 2008 at 1:21 am

    “Not to knock Jesse Sapolu or Stuzz but I went over this with Uce2, you donโ€™t need to have NFL experience to be a good coach. BSmith had his first year at the position with guys who where already here, lets give him a chance to show what he has. The one thing I would like to see BSmith do is get it across to the players that if they disrespect me they will be not playing but sitting on the bench.”

    Pomai-
    That you “went over this” with me does not make your conclusion or position correct or sound. So there is no further misunderstanding: I do not agree with your argument and conclusions.

    Imagine for a moment a potential O Line recruit for UH learning he would be coached by Brian Smith, a guy who has not played in the NFL, has never been selected to the Pro Bowl, and who does not have at least one Super Bowl ring. If I were the recruit, I would not be particularly excited about that prospect. Imagine again this same O Line recruit learning from Offensive Coordinator Brian Teo that he, the recruit, would be learning directly from and playing for former NFL Pro Bowl and Super Bowl center Jessie Sapolu. The recruit, unless he is mildly retarded, would be more excited about this prospect as opposed to the former.

    Image this scenario being repeated again but this time change the names of the coaches the potential recruits would be playing for and you can image what UH’s prospects will start to look like.

    Guys like Niko Noga, Al Noga, Jesse Sapolu, Mike Ulufale, Maa Tanuvasa, and Chris Maafala all have what in life and in especially in coaching we call “presence”. Mike Singletary has this same quality. Each of these men all bring intensity to whatever they do. This is why they are among the best to have ever played the game.

    Each of these people understand the personal sacrifices one must make to be “a winner”, as Singletary has demanded from each of his players and coaches. They have made this demand of themselves and they will make this demand of anyone who plays for them.

    Not having been “a winner”, it is hard for a Brian Smith or a Rolovich or a Mack to understand this. This concept is equally hard for most people who read this blog to understand. That’s okay.

    I’d like to see UH hire more people like those listed above. I’d also like to see UH pick up more coaches from Hawaii’s high schools. Brian Teo would be an excellent pick up for UH. This is the man who raised, taught, and coached the greatest football player to ever come out of Hawaii – Manti Teo. Imagine Brian Teo pushing and nurturing the UH players to be the best in the same way he nurtured and pushed Manti Teo to be the best.

    I agree with DPK that Pride would also make an excellent candidate for the recent vacancy on the UH coaching staff.

    I’ll tell you this. If Sapolu were the O Line coach, I guarantee you no one playing for him would ever give him any lip. Smith has this problem because the boys all know is never played in “the show”.

    It’s like the military. Guys who have never been in combat respect and listen, without question, to those who have been in combat. Football is the same. I don’t any sane player, similarly, would ever give an Al Noga or a Niko Noga any lip, again, for the same reasons as stated above.


  332. big mac December 31, 2008 2:43 pm

    If former NFL players make good coaches why don’t come out and lobby for the job? All Warrior fans wish we could have Jesse Sapolu. The question is does Jesse want us?


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