Hawaii to Play Fourth Road Game in Six Weeks

UH running back Joey Iosefa will help the Warriors Saturday at Fresno State. Photo courtesy of UH Athletics.

By Rodney S. Yap

The University of Hawai’i Warrior football team will play its fourth road game in six weeks when it travels to the San Joaquin Valley to play Mountain West rival Fresno State on Saturday, Nov. 3 (1 p.m. Hawaii Time), at Bulldog Stadium.

The Warriors (1-6, 0-4 MW) are in the midst of a five-game losing streak after suffering their fourth road loss of the season to Colorado State (42-27) last week in Fort Collins, Colo. UH has dropped its last seven conference games dating back to last season and 10 of 11 against Football Bowl Subdivision opponents.

“They have such good talent; they’re not necessarily the top shoot-and-gun team,” said Warrior head coach Norm Chow. “They’ll throw some intermediate balls and they’ll break tackles. They’re so talented, they make big plays and they present a real problem. Their offensive coordinator and I coached together at Utah last year. Dave Schramm is his name . . .  a very good football coach and he loves to spread people out. He’s a very good football coach and he presents a real problem.”

Hawaii head coachNorm Chow at his weekly press conference on Monday. Photo courtesy of UH Athletics.

The Bulldogs (6-3, 4-1) are tied for second in the Mountain West standings under first-year head coach Tim DeRutyer. Fresno State has won four of its first five league games with its only loss to nationally ranked Boise State. The ‘Dogs are ranked in the Top 20 nationally in total offense (19th) and passing (14th) behind quarterback Derek Carr, who is 10th in passing at 307.3 yards per game. Defensively, cornerback Phillip Thomas leads the country with seven interceptions.

“It’s tough and I feel for these young people,” said Chow, when asked about the team’s four road games in six weeks. “I really feel for these young guys. I’m not used to it. I’m used to getting bus and getting on a charter with first class seats. But it’s tough, (our players) are crammed in the back, 6-foot 5-inch players sitting next to some old grandma with her grandkids for five hours. It’s hard now, it’s really, really hard. You’ve got to give them credit. They hang in and they don’t complain. Not one guy will complain.”

The teams have a long rivalry which dates back to 1938. The Bulldogs have a slight 22-21-1 advantage in the series including a 11-7-1 edge in games played in Fresno, Calif. The Warriors have won the last three meetings at Bulldog Stadium (49-27 in 2010; 32-29 OT in 2008; and 68-37 in 2006).

When asked about Sean Schroeder, Chow backed up his starting quarterback.

“Sean got hit 20 times. He got hit 20 times after he threw the ball. I counted them. I looked at the tape. I studied tape. Receivers didn’t always run the right routes and we didn’t protect well enough. Yes, he made some bad decisions, but you can never blame the quarterback. It’s too easy to blame the quarterback. It’s too easy to give him all the credit, as well. But right now he gives us the best choice, the best option and no one’s hurting more than Sean, and to hear some of the criticism pisses me off.”

Game 8

Who: Hawai’i (1-6, 0-4 MW) vs. Fresno State (6-3, 4-1 MW)

When: Saturday, Nov. 3, 2012

Time: 4:00 p.m. PT / 1:00 p.m. HT

Where: Fresno, CA; Bulldog Stadium (41,031)

Television: Live statewide on Oceanic Pay-Per-View (Digital Ch. 255) with Kanoa Leahey (play-by-play), Darnell Arceneaux (analyst), and Lori Santi (sidelines).

Radio: ESPN 1420 AM will carry the game live with Bobby Curran (play-by-play) and John Veneri (analyst). Chris Hart and Gary Dickman host the “Countdown To Kickoff” beginning at 11:00 a.m. HT, and also the halftime show. Neighbor islands can listen live on KNUI on Maui, KHLO in Hilo, KKON in Kona, and KTOH on Kaua’i.

Audio Webcast: Live audio streaming on espn1420am.com

Live Stats: Live in-game stats are available at gobulldogs.com

Series Information: 45th meeting. FS leads 22-21-1.

Warrior Storylines

Fresno State owns a slight 22-21-1 advantage in the series, including an 11-7-1 edge in games played in Fresno, Calif…UH has won the last three meetings in Fresno, including a 49-27 victory in 2010. Fresno State’s last win over UH at home was in 2004 (70-14)…The Warriors are 0-4 on the road this season while Fresno State has won all four home games. UH is allowing an average of 47.5 points per game on the road while the Bulldogs average 50.0 points per game at home…The Warriors have lost their last seven conference games dating back to last season, which is tied for third longest in school history. UH’s current five-game losing streak is also tied for third longest in school history…The last time UH started a season 1-6 was in 2000, when it finished the regular season 3-9 overall and 2-6 in the Western Athletic Conference…The last time UH opened the season with four straight conference losses was 2009 (lost first five).