Play ball!

It’s that time of the year. Maybe not football season, but practice is just as crucial.

top 5!

cheepono out!

top 10!

do-ti-la-so-fa-mi-re-do

Some fine pikshurs there, Mr. Tsai. Doesn’t the blog picture taker get some credit?

Howzit Everybody

Go Warriors!

good morning and good morning again.

spring practice already? wow……….

If Hawaii ever started a state lottery, I wonder if JD could ask for the same type of deal to support athletics like Oregon has. I knew of a lot of state lotteries that went to support education, but never knew one that specifically targeted the money for college athletics. 88% of the money for athletics, 12% for merit-based scholarships…wow.

Money flowing from the state lottery to the seven athletic departments at Oregon’s state universities has jumped from about $1.6 million to $5 million annually as part of the deal that banned state-sponsored sports betting to appease the NCAA and win the tournament bid.

This is how the windfall happened: In 2005, the Oregon Legislature voted to ban the Oregon Lottery’s NFL-betting games to meet a condition from the anti-gambling NCAA. Months later, Portland was named a 2009 tournament site.

But the Legislature had approved the betting games in the late 1980s to prop up money-losing athletic departments, and schools didn’t want to relinquish that income. So lawmakers replaced the betting funds with 1 percent of total lottery proceeds, with the money continuing to go toward college athletic departments (88 percent) and need- and merit-based scholarships (12 percent).

Portland State got $900,000 in lottery money last year, more than double its previous take and a sizable chunk of its $10 million budget. But the Vikings still cut their wrestling program this month.

At Oregon State, a $46 million sports budget swallowed its $1.2 million slice from the lottery last year without so much as a burp. Rising costs and a smaller allocation from the university’s general fund just about canceled out the increase, said Todd Stansbury, OSU executive associate athletic director.

At Oregon, the $1.2 million in lottery money was both a small slice of its $56 million budget and crucial to one of its operating principles. The Ducks, who tout their economic self-sufficiency, would have lost money last year if not for the increase from $675,000 to $1.2 million in lottery money.

Another way that UH could support athletics–U-Dub covers the tuition of scholarship athletes, a huge savings for their athletic department.

Washington’s athletic department receives no money from the university’s general fund, though it does receive nearly $2 million in tuition waivers from the state.

Arizona State took $10.6 million from its university general fund last year, and Washington State took $5.6 million.

And, as Williford pointed out, Oregon State receives general-fund money: $2.1 million last year, on top of its $1.2 million lottery take.

JD has reduced concession prices, but I don’t think he would go as far as what the Cincinnati Reds just did:

The Cincinnati Reds’ concessionaire is launching a value menu, offering a few food and drink items for a dollar.

Fans will be able to pay a buck for any of six items: hot dog, soda, peanuts, popcorn, ice cream or Redlegs Chew candy, Dierig said. The items are smaller than the standard that sell for $3.50 or so. For example, the hot dog is “one size smaller” than the standard dog, Dierig said. It’s one-tenth of a pound, vs. the standard size that’s one-sixth of a pound and sells for $4.50 at the stadium.

Welcome to the blog Mr Colomaohana!

Registrar,

The GPA that A-House referenced was Stutz2’s high school GPA.

Howzit, Garret!

Mr Colomaohana: WTH?? They not pau laying pipes yet? Sheesh! I hope baby #6 is sleeping in traffic.

Registrar,

I’m not disagreeing with you, I was just trying to provide clarification. Stutz2 is taking 6 core courses at UH and his high school GPA was 3.4. Mr. A-House read them together and thought that was his UH GPA. If UH was on the quarter system then he might have a college GPA already, but Stutz2 is in the middle of his first semester at UH.

Garret
Thanks

Koakane
Will do
Hopefully we can make it on April 25th.

Kekoa
Aloha. Sorry but got daddy duties today. If no finish, boss lady going start world war 3. Maybe next time when me and Mrs C can take off. Eat for us.

CURRENT SEASON TICKET HOLDER DELAY ON RENEWALS

BLAME THE WAC. A UH ticket office employee tells me that until the WAC confirms their conference schedule.

ST, can we get a Basketball recruiting update??? Any commits over the weekend? How is it looking for Jeremy Lay and Kevin Menner?

so tua looks like he’s gained another 10 pounds. he just could be the surprise of next year’s pro day, don’t you think?

with his size he could very well be an nfl tight end. does he still run well? he got decent hands and his toughness can’t be replaced. perhaps a free agent type next year.

just thinking aloud………….

so may i interpret the shedding of the long locks by many a warrior an indicator of the seriousness that some are treating this year as all business?

that would also help in lowering the number of personal foul penalties, just from a psychological standpoint or perspective by the zebras. you know, shed the locks, shed the “bad boyz” look and good boys don’t play dirty.

(psychological or tsaikological?)

mr. colomaohana…

welcome brother.
good move on your part…….kissing up to one’s boss, publicly on the blog goes a long way and will pay great dividends in the future.

Hi Coloma and Mr. Coloma!

Was great fun talking story and laughing with both of you.

KK- you now on my official “He’s-gonna-rue-the-day list!” 👿

jr25…hello…how you figgah! 🙄

Great day to make it to practice and watch the boys!

oh one more thing.

mr. colomaohana, if i were you, i would get my own name. get rid of the “mr. (wife’s name)” handle.

i tell you why, we used to have one wife (—-) here before and her husband was “mr. —-“. poor guy could never get any respect because he was “mr. (wife’s name)” and not his own man.

Al and kekoa
Yes priorities

Hi Rob25.

Thanks to blackberry will check you guys later on the road.
Daddy duties calling, got to regulate.

Oh no he din’t!!

*Covering my ears before Colomaohana comes in.*

Start of spring practice… Wish I could be there.

Rob, are you going? Taking pictures? 😉

Happy Belated Birthday Liz!!!!! Will you be able to make it over to O’ahu in July? If not, at least I can see you in September!!!

Hi Ronnie! Hi Colomaohana!
Just finishing up my saimin… with planny straight hot mustard (no shoyu) to get the gullah gullas out later… whew!

Yes-, God-willing, I don’t want to miss the July blast!
Also 99% sure I can make it to the KK for Frank25 on May 9.

HiHo- back to work!

A-House,

I agree, taking 6 core subjects in the first semester of college is *very* ambitious! I’m guessing that Billy Ray was well-prepared for college by his high school and that he works just as hard on his schoolwork as he works on his football, so he can handle it.

Taking that many classes now should help Billy Ray graduate early, especially since he’s starting a semester early. I’m guessing that he’s not planning to redshirt and he wants to graduate in December 2012 instead of May 2013. Plus, this way he can take a lighter load in the Fall during football season.

While Spring Practice will be underway today, any odds on when the WAC schedule is gonna be released?

This week? Next week? Middle of June?

The sooner it comes out, the sooner I can plan for this year’s upcoming road games (other than Vegas) and which ones I may or may not attend.

VJ is the only player listed on the roster for the 2010 Under Armour All-American Game.

Friday Night Lights (I know ST likes the show) just got its 2-season renewal.

It’s official: NBC and DirecTV have come to terms on a two-season, 26-episode pickup of “Friday Night Lights.”

Deal calls for the Imagine TV/Universal Media Studios drama skein to continue through a fourth and fifth season of 13 episodes each. As they did this season, “Friday Night Light’s” third, DirecTV will get the first shot at airing the segs commercial-free before they bow on NBC. The negotiations between the Peacock and DirecTV hit a roadblock last week but ultimately resumed and the agreement was reached today.

I was wondering if Coach Mack gonna redshirt the freshmen QBs this year?

duffer…..no need that stuff. das why get kim chee, harm ha, and bagaong. more efficient than colon cleansers and more cheap.

POPOLO_LOCO:

Hawai’i, 9/12/09 at Qwest Field
Tickets to the general public will go on sale through TicketMaster beginning June 1st at 206-628-0888 or http://www.ticketmaster.com)

$55 ($50 + $5) Club Seat + Facility Fee
$42 ($37 + $5) Charter Seat + Facility Fee
$29 ($24 + $5) Preferred Seat + Facility Fee
$16 ($11 + $5) Upper End Zone Seat + Facility Fee
$7 ($2 + $5) Value Seat + Facility Fee

Not sure about when UNLV tickets will go on sale, but when they do and if you opt to buy directly through them, then:

Single Game Ticket Options Sideline Endzone
Hawaii $35.00 $25.00
Group rates not available for the Hawaii and BYU games.

In addition to the Washington State game info from my post #78, here’s a map of Qwest Field with the pricing scheme for the game (opens in PDF):

http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/wast/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/09-qwest-field-map.pdf

Sure hope we get reports from the practice. Well, at least reports after the practice (not that I will be awake for them).

Yea!!! Liz is coming to town!

Yup Ronnie…but no camera! 😳

Interesting. The Huskies will now open their practices to the public. Sarkisian (sp?) is trying to get the guys used to people so when they travel to crazy stadiums they will not be shocked by the noise and crowd.

Geez. What kind of observers does he expect at Spring Ball?

Kazz . . .

They have intelligent spectators at their games, though. They are actually quiet when the UW has the ball and go wild while they are on defense. 75,000 screaming fans has got to be a distraction.

http://picasaweb.google.com/chawancut/UhPics#
misc uh wallpaper & pics i made or found(helmets)

Hmmm… practice should be wrapping up about now.

Hope KITV or KGMB got some good shots of today’s first go-around.

I was sitting through a safety course earlier this evening and couldn’t help but think about a Tsaiko story. No laugh:

“The Tsaiko is most noticeable to humans and comes out of its shell when found in one of three native habitats: the confines of Aloha Stadium, sprawling across the grass practice fields at the University of Hawai’i, or loading up on foodstuffs from the buffet line all the while singing at the Karaoke bar. In their natural state, the Tsaiko is a fun-loving bunch who welcomes all into their clan and makes them feel at home. They span the spectrum with regards to age, occupation, and other affiliations but all have in common the love for one thing: UH football.

Spring time marks the movement of the Tsaiko habitat from the buffet lines and Karaoke bars back to the grass practice fields to graze on the beginnings of UH football. They make their return to the practice fields and the Tsaiko cycle begins again.

CRW – ROTFLMAO!!! You described us to a “T”!!!! 😀 😆 It’s a classic. It should be read in tribute at the next Blog Bash!!

Practice was good..Tsiako’s were represented well..I watched QB’s and receivers…Lots of good catches and Alexander and Raush looked sharp..Avery made a couple outstanding catches- but boy is he thin..One guy that caught my eye was Jett Jasper..looks like real potential..I am sure there will be many reports to follow..

Howzit Tsaikos.

Good reports
Curveball and Kazz.

thanksabunches!

Go Warriors!!!!!

Practice today looked good as I was driving up. Almost all of the players were out there doing drills and getting ready for practice. As soon as the horn sounded for the official begining of practice, the warm up drills looked crisp and appeared the players were putting in a lot more effort into the drills.

I spent most of the time watching the OLine guys. They spent the practice working on their feet. Feet placement and shuffling to stay in position. Last year their techique was bad and it put them in bad position to make the blocks. If they continue to work on what Shaw it teaching them, I will go out on a limb and say they will NOT lead the country in sacks again this coming season.

Committed Road Warrior –

Your thesis is awesome! How come you know so much about the Tsaiko Nation and I don’t think I’ve had the pleasure of meeting you or requesting your autograph in my “book”. Two things at the top of my “to do” list. Mahalo for sharing!

The NFL has announced the preseason schedule; here’s the Redskins’ schedule (Colt’s team):

Aug 13 @Baltimore 7:30PM
Aug 20-24 vs.Pittsburgh
Aug 28 vs.New England 8PM
Sept 3-4 @Jacksonville

To be televised:
Friday, Aug. 28 New England Patriots at Washington Redskins CBS (8 p.m. ET)

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

New device for first responders pinpoints the location (within a few feet) of people inside burning buildings or other structures where there is an emergency.

The office of the Dalai Lama asaked the University of Toronto to check its computer for signs of malware, and they found a big spying operation that has infiltrated at least 1,295 computers in 103 countries! The malware can even turn on the camera and audio-recording functions of the infected computer, letting people in China see and hear what goes on in the room the computer is in.

Some Ohio people had pink water coming out of their faucets because an equipment malfunction led to a chemical overload.

GARRET

Researchers are studying houses made from straw that could allow for cheaper homes that are more earthquake safe

yues, but what about the big bad wolf factor?

Wow-the Redskins are lucky that line-up is the pre-season (Baltimore, Pittsburgh, New England & Jacksonville) & not the regular season! Jim Zorn may let Colt start just to set him up for failure. I was still hoping for a miracle trade that would let Colt have a shot in Denver, Chicago, New York or somewhere similar where they have less than impressive QB situations. Thanks to Zorn, I think Colt’s stock has crashed; out of sight, out of (other teams’) mind(s). Josh Daniels doesn’t seem to grasp that Colt may be the answer to his dilemma. He could have a QB that has even more potential than Cutler but without the diva attitude & whining personality!

I share Garret’s optimism about Coach Shaw & the O-Line. I’m already optimistic about the punting with Dunnachie coming in (and Grasso being gone) because that’s worth at least winning 2-3 close games rather than losing them. I’ve got a feeling that having Coach Tormey’s experience will stabilize our heretofore suspect Special Teams unit as well. I’m truly looking forward to this season as a pay-back year.

Tom,

LOL! I actually thought about the Big Bad Wolf factor when I read that article…I was wondering if someone would comment on that.

where are you pride.?

I really like Coach Shaw. He was coaching up the guys all the time, giving out pointers and whatnot. Seemed like he noticed everything.

I liked what Coach Smith was doing with the RBs too. He doesn’t look like an OL coach in a RB coach’s costume. He looks like a real RB coach. With a smaller group of players, I’m hoping this allows Smith to grow as a coach; I still think he’s got a very bright future ahead of him.

I really liked how Mack was taking things seriously too. When driving in today with Kekoa and koakane, we passed by as he walked to practice, and he was his cheerful self. But during practice, he was different. Still complementing players for good things, but taking things seriously all the time too when it came to instructing the players and coaches.

Of the players I saw today, a few really stood out. Seems like Inoke and Jon Medeiros switched jerseys, which really confused me at the time. But Inoke looked good as a RB, very fluid. Raw as a blocker, though.

Saw a little of Bradley as a WR. He’s got a good first step and a long stride that should help him as a deep threat, but he’s gotta work on more fluid cuts — I think that’s probably why he’s practicing at the X receiver, to get some work making cuts. Eventually, as he gets better, they’ll probably move him to Z to challenge Lane, that’s his more natural position due to his speed and first step.

Watching the OL close up, I can see why the coaches like Aaron Kia at LT. He just has a LT body. Tall frame, long arms. Hope it translates to better play, though. I never was a fan of his, but he did okay today. Laupepa Letuli really stood out at RT, he got a couple loud commendations from Coach Shaw during the OL-DL one-on-ones. Ray Hisatake and Raphael Ieru were okay as the starting guards, but I really liked what Bulla Ginlack did today in the one-on-ones.

Tua Mahaley had some good speed rushes in the one-on-ones, and he was nice enough to say Hi after practice. Jake Heun — man, I wish he were at RB. He showed a nice first step today, he’s a good athlete.

Watched a little bit of the corners, nothing too serious but just looking to see how a couple of them I’m high on were doing. Lewis Walker and Steven Christian both look like they’ve filled out their frames a little bit. I’m a big fan of both of them, so I hope they get decent shots at playing time. Physically, they have some good tools to work with.

Most of the time I spent today was watching the OL, so I can’t say too much about the others. Nothing really bad, I liked the discipline and the atittude. We’ll have to see if that continues through the entire spring camp.

GARRET:

I actually thought about the Big Bad Wolf factor when I read that article…I was wondering if someone would comment on that.

You know how it is with us literary types…

Hear Yee, Hear Yee announcing Ronnie’s Party Bash.
Be advised Tsaiko Country to keep this date clear.
Saturday July 4, 2009
5:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Bay View Golf Club Restaurant (45-285 Kaneohe Bay Dr. Phone 247-0451.)

Please join us in Fellowship, Fun, Family and Fudd as we welcome Ronnie back to Hawaii. Let us take this opportunity to reacquaint ourself with this long, lost and waverly soul.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Please consult SteveM. web page (http://home.roadrunner.com/~smurashi/tsai-kos/) for updated information and other notes about this event.

41 inches!!!!
too bad you don’t get paid by the inch.

DPK: We were thinking of you during the practice. We were wondering what this yellow stuff was on the tree near us … We just figured you marked it as your own. 😀

Stephen: Local girls are nō ka ‘oi. 😀

Speaking of which, I didn’t see Nalani there today. Kaha‘i sure looked bigger!

Thanks to all for the practice reports, one of these days I will attend one so I can see for myself how well the they are coming along.

Watched the interview with Mike Trapasso and what a difference a year makes.
I find it ironic that Coach Trap’s biggest complaint about the newly condensed NCAA schedule may play into his strength–pitching.

Yeah, Ok, it is true, playing Nevada, NMSU and Fresno State on the road is prolly the worst case scenario this year, given the altitude venues; but Coach has recruited a bumper crop of young arms over the last two recruiting seasons and they just might pan out in an abbreviated regular season featuring 56 games.

Im talking about Josh Slaats, 6 5″, So., Sam Spangler 6 1″ So., Alex Capaul 6 3″ So., Conner Little 6 6″ Fr., Matt Sisto 6 5″ Fr., and Lenny Linsky 6 3″ Fr.

This is Mike Trappaso’s game–pitching.
He is good at it and from what we have witnessed thus far from a team hitting below .250–it plays to his game–strikes, D, clutch hitting and small ball.

What else can he do with 5 hitters, including your clean-up guy, batting at .231 or below?
The bows have two in the starting lineup struggling at the .200 line. Yikes!

Well, San Jose State will test this theory.

They are whacking the ball, against good competition at a .335 clip. Higher than Costal Carolina brought into the Les (.315).
Vinnie Catricala is the only Rainbow hitting above .300.

The 16-5 Sparts have played 11 games against Big West and West Coast Conference teams.
These two conferences have had 7 teams ranked in the top 25 this season.
The BWC, agruably maybe the best conference in the nation.

It would be sensational to see our Bows take three but a split wouldnt derail our chances.

“This may be a six team race”, Coach Mike quiped, “every game will count”.

“San Jose State is a very good team fundamentally and they they dont beat themselves”, he said “we will have to beat them”.

Yep, indeed.
The Les is a pitchers park and the bows need to win their WAC-hometown series against SJSU, Sac State and LaT.

He doesnt discount hitting either, especially on the road above the timberline.
“We play Nevada and NMSU at high altitudes” he said, “and although I would like to see good pitching, realistically, balls will be flying out”.

Well, we shall see about that and for now, at least, we need to focus on the SJSU series, where young and eager arms will be matched against hot bats in stadium built for pitchers.

If the 2009 Bows are going to make a statement–it will come by the end of this weekend.