By Dave Reardon

Harris Poll voter and former UH head coach Bob Wagner is now the athletic director at Kamehameha-Hawaii, on the Big Island. He graciously agreed to share some thoughts with UH Sports Extra.

It’s great to see UH having an outstanding season. It’s also interesting to see that despite all the criticism of their soft schedule it may have been a blessing for them. You would think that if they had opened at Florida instead of LA Tech that they would barely be in the top 25 or maybe not even be ranked right now. I think what is happening with their season and also that of Ohio State and Arizona State is going to make a lot of people question how they should do their non conference schedule if they want to get to a BCS game. All three were accused of having soft non conference schedules but look where they are in the rankings.

When I did my football/family sabbatical the fall after I left UH I remember visiting with John Cooper (the OSU head coach at the time) during an Ohio State practice about scheduling. At that time he mentioned that the last Ohio State team that won a National Championship was in 1968. He said no one could tell him who they played non conference. He mentioned at that time that they were planning to play the Bowling Green’s, Kent State’s, etc., in state D 1 teams that could benefit financially and that were as good as a Rice or an SMU but were very beatable. It looks like Jim Tressel may have inherited one of his schedules this year. Also, with teams playing more regular season games (more non conference games) softer non conference schedules become more important in keeping people healthy for league play.

Getting back to UH in hindsite it probably couldn’t have been set up any better for them. The extra bye(s) gives them a chance to get people healthy for their stretch run, they can polish up areas that they think need extra work, they can get the back ups some good work (help their depth), give the scout team players a chance to play (scrimmage) their own offense and defense (great for overall team morale), everyone can get a little more mentally refreshed, they can spend a little more time preparing for something that one of the remaining teams does that may be unique, and they can put in some new wrinkles in their O, D, and special teams that they may need to win a game down the stretch. They certainly have a wonderful opportunity.

***

WAC commissioner Karl Benson said (on The Bobby Curran Show this morning) a deal has been struck for UH’s Nov. 10 game against Fresno State to be shown by ESPN.

It does not affect the local pay-per-view broadcast, nor the 6:05 p.m. Saturday kickoff.

This means all five of UH’s remaining games (including a bowl game) will be on national TV.

^^^

Topic for discussion: Desmond Thomas will move in as the starting free safety now that Keao Monteilh is out for the year. Who do you like for No. 3 safety … Spencer Smith, Erik Robinson, Dane Kealoha Porlas or somebody else?

***

By Dave Reardon

Mike was my boss at the Gainesville Sun and is now the college sports editor at Yahoo. Here’s his quick take on the Warriors:

I like watching Hawaii play because I like high-scoring games, and both the
offense and defense do their parts to make sure it’ll be a high-scoring
game.

But if Hawaii does run the table, it will be in the BCS — just not the
title game.

UPDATE: Mike Huguenin has been booked as a guest on the Leahey and Leahey radio show, Monday morning during the 8 a.m. hour.

***

By Cindy Luis

first a big mahalo to UH sid Paka Bello, who let me borrow his password so i could us the wireless at the arena. we are on a four-week access and it ran out after Friday’s match.

As for Ferrell, she was not cleared to play this weekend. Percentage wise, she is still eligible to request a medical hardship. since she has played, she cannot redshirt.

By Dave Reardon

Jason Kaneshiro reports that the big items from June Jones’ news conference today are that Rustin Saole and Keao Monteilh could both be done because of injuries.

Saole, a backup linebacker and special teams stud, hurt his knee and Monteilh injured his shoulder Saturday. Tests are still being done on Monteilh, who is UH’s starting free safety. Saole is a senior, and Monteilh is listed as a junior, although records indicate he may be a senior in eligibility.

Linebackers coach Cal Lee is holding out hope that Saole is not out for the year. “The medical people haven’t told us yet,” Lee said. “But it may be an ACL (in which case, Saole needs surgery and is out for the season).”

More on these injuries and other UH football topics from Jason in tomorrow’s Star-Bulletin.

***

Bye-bye, again.

I’ve got this week off, burning off the rest of my vacation in anticipation of a very busy last two months of the year overflowing into January that could include documenting a Heisman finalist, perhaps an undefeated season and maybe even a BCS bowl. Yes, a lot of things have to fall into place, but they all could happen.

You will be in the capable hands of Jason Kaneshiro, Brian McInnis and Billy Hull this week in the newspaper, and I’ll try to get them to provide some insight on the blog, too. I might sneak away to Vegas for a day or two, but will be home most of this week and will probably have a comment or two to make.

Couple of corrections: Ryan Grice-Mullins has 27 receptions for 370 yards in the last two games. I typo’d 270 in today’s paper. And Jason Rivers now has catches in 45 games in a row to lead the nation, not 44 like I wrote in Warrior Replay.

***

Today’s a double-good day for Colt Brennan. He got WAC Player of the Week, and just got an e-mail announcing him as a semifinalist for the Davey O’Brien Award.

By Cindy Luis

Very nice ceremony before the match, unveiling the sculpture of Dr. Donnis Thompson. The alumnae match was fun to watch as well.

By Dave Reardon

Here’s the BCS standings:

1. Ohio State (9-0)
2. Boston College (8-0)
3. LSU (7-1)
4. Arizona State (8-0)
5. Oregon (7-1)
6. Oklahoma (7-1)
7. West Virginia (7-1)
8. Kansas (8-0)
9. Missouri (7-1)
10. Georgia (6-2)
11. Virginia Tech (6-2)
12. Michigan (7-2)
13. Connecticut (7-1)
14. Hawaii (8-0)
15. Texas (7-2)
16. Auburn (6-3)
17. Alabama (6-2)
18. South Florida (6-2)
19. USC (6-2)
20. Florida (5-3)
21. Wisconsin (7-2)
22. Boise State (7-1)
23. Virginia (7-2)
24. Wake Forest (6-2)
25. Clemson (6-2)

***

Just talked to Keao Monteilh. He said his visit to Queen’s today to check out his shoulder was rescheduled for tomorrow. He said his shoulder is very painful, and he was told there may be a fracture to the socket.

He agreed it’s a good thing the Warriors have a bye this week.

“A lot of people are dinged up,” said Monteilh, who got his second interception of the season last night.

***

Need some votes for Warrior Replay top five plays of the game. Tell me what you liked and why. (Sorry, Stephanie the Warrior greeting the starting defense not eligible.)

****

Colt Brennan is among four nominees for the AT&T All-America Player of the Week award. Brennan joins NC State wide receiver Donald Bowens, Texas running back Jamaal Charles and Colorado corner back Terrence Wheatley on the ballot list. Fans can determine the winner by text messaging VOTE to 87654 on their wireless phone.

Brennan, who won the award earlier this season, went 29-45 with 425 yards and six touchdowns in the undefeated Warriors’ 50-13 win over New Mexico State.

***

These are the highest rankings in school history, and 8-0 ties for best start in school history.

***

Star-Bulletin sports editor Paul Arnett voted UH 11th in the AP poll.

***

AP poll

1. Ohio State (59) 9-0 1615 1
2. Boston College (1) 8-0 1501 2
3. LSU (3) 7-1 1478 3
4. Oregon 7-1 1417 5
5. Oklahoma 7-1 1365 4
6. Arizona State (2) 8-0 1310 7
7. West Virginia 7-1 1286 6
8. Kansas 8-0 1164 12
9. Missouri 7-1 1121 13
10. Georgia 6-2 949 20
11. Virginia Tech 6-2 823 8
12. Hawaii 8-0 776 16
13. USC 6-2 742 9
14. Texas 7-2 728 17
15. Michigan 7-2 726 19
16. Connecticut 7-1 555 NR
17. Alabama 6-2 547 22
18. Florida 5-3 532 9
19. Auburn 6-3 530 23
20. South Florida 6-2 392 11
21. Wake Forest 6-2 259 NR
21. Boise State 7-1 259 NR
23. South Carolina 6-3 196 15
24. Tennessee 5-3 165 NR
25. Clemson 6-2 146 NR
Others Receiving Votes
Wisconsin 132, California 131, Kentucky 123, Virginia 33, Penn State 30, Purdue 22, Brigham Young 22, TROY 13, Kansas State 12, UCLA 11, Oklahoma State 5, Illinois 4, New Mexico 4, Rutgers 1.
Dropped From Rankings
Kentucky 14, California 18, Virginia 21, Penn State 24, Rutgers 25.

***

Coaches Poll

1. Ohio State (56) 9-0 1,495 1
2. Boston College (3) 8-0 1,414 2
3. LSU 7-1 1,324 3
4. Oregon (1) 7-1 1,280 5
5. Oklahoma 7-1 1,269 4
6. Arizona State 8-0 1,221 7
7. West Virginia 7-1 1,177 6
8. Kansas 8-0 1,108 10
9. Missouri 7-1 983 13
10. Georgia 6-2 791 19
11. Hawaii 8-0 769 14
12. Texas 7-2 753 16
13. Virginia Tech 6-2 736 9
14. Michigan 7-2 701 21
15. Southern California 6-2 679 8
16. Auburn 6-3 454 23
17. Florida 5-3 451 11
18. Alabama 6-2 439 24
19. Wisconsin 7-2 422 25
20. Connecticut 7-1 419 NR
21. South Florida 6-2 291 12
22. Boise State 7-1 218 NR
23. Kentucky 6-3 159 15
24. Clemson 6-2 145 NR
25. South Carolina 6-3 131 17

Dropped out
No. 18 Virginia (7-2, lost to N.C. State 29-24)); No. 20 California (5-3, lost to then-No. 7 Arizona State 31-20); No. 22 Penn State (6-3, lost to No. 1 Ohio State 37-17)

Others receiving votes

Virginia (7-2) 119; California (5-3) 118; Wake Forest (6-2) 115; Purdue (7-2) 107; Tennessee (5-3) 64; Penn State (6-3) 53; Illinois (6-3) 21; Kansas State (5-3) 20; Brigham Young (5-2) 13; Oklahoma State (5-3) 11; Cincinnati (6-2) 8; Texas Tech (6-3) 8; Houston (5-3) 4; Vanderbilt (5-3) 4; Colorado (5-4) 2; Florida State (5-3) 2; Oregon State (5-3) 2

***

Harris Interactive Poll

1 Ohio State (114) 9-0 2,850 Beat No. 22 Penn State 37-17 No. 21 Wisconsin 1
2 Boston College 8-0 2,665 Beat No. 10 Virginia Tech 14-10 Florida State 2
3 LSU 7-1 2,568 Idle at No. 17 Alabama 3
4 Oklahoma 7-1 2,451 Idle Texas A&M 4
5 Oregon 7-1 2,433 Beat No. 7 USC 24-17 No. 6 Arizona State 5
6 Arizona State 8-0 2,291 Beat No. 18 California (Cal) 31-20 at No. 5 Oregon 8
7 West Virginia 7-1 2,232 Beat No. 25 Rutgers 31-3 Idle 6
8 Kansas 8-0 2,047 Beat Texas A&M 19-11 Nebraska 11
9 Missouri 7-1 1,923 Beat Iowa State 42-28 at Colorado 13
10 Hawaii 8-0 1,640 Beat New Mexico State 50-13 Idle 14
11 Texas 7-2 1,514 Beat Nebraska 28-25 at Oklahoma State 16
12 Georgia 6-2 1,507 Beat No. 9 Florida 42-30 Troy 19
13 USC 6-2 1,312 Lost to No. 5 Oregon 24-17 Oregon State 7
14 Virginia Tech 6-2 1,286 Lost to No. 2 Boston College 14-10 at Georgia Tech (Thur.) 10
15 Michigan 7-2 1,283 Beat Minnesota 34-10 at Michigan State 21
16 Florida 5-3 921 Lost to No. 19 Georgia 42-30 Vanderbilt 9
17 Alabama 6-2 891 Idle No. 3 LSU 24
18 Auburn 6-3 844 Beat Mississippi 17-3 Tennessee Tech 23
19 Connecticut 7-1 829 Beat No. 12 South Florida 22-15 Rutgers NR
20 South Florida 6-2 602 Lost to Connecticut 22-15 Cincinnati 12
21 Wisconsin 7-2 572 Beat Indiana 33-3 at No. 1 Ohio State NR
22 Boise State 7-1 394 Beat Fresno State 34-21 San Jose State NR
23 South Carolina 6-3 322 Lost to Tennessee 27-24 OT at Arkansas 17
24 Kentucky 6-3 284 Lost to Mississippi State 31-14 Idle 15
25 Wake Forest 6-2 272 Beat North Carolina 37-10 at Virginia NR

Number of first place votes shown in parentheses.

Other teams receiving votes: California (Cal) 250; Virginia 203; Purdue 194; Clemson 169; Tennessee 127; Penn State 63;
UCLA 24; Cincinnati 15; Illinois 15; Kansas State 10; Rutgers 10; BYU 7; Oregon State 5; Texas Tech 5; Troy 5; Air Force 4;
Arkansas 4; Oklahoma State 3; Colorado 2; Texas A&M 2

Dropped out of the Top 25: California (Cal), Virginia, Penn State, Rutgers.

***

By Dave Reardon

Colt Brennan threw six touchdown passes and the Warriors intercepted three passes.

Brennan passed Timmy Chang for the UH career record for TD passes, and Davone Bess tied Michael Carter and Chad Owens for the career touchdown mark.

Ryan Grice-Mullins caught three touchdown passes and Adam Leonard got his fourth interception of the season.

UH is now 8-0 and poised to climb in the BCS standings and the national polls.

***

UH nominated Brennan and Leonard for WAC Player of the Week honors,

***

By Cindy Luis

compliments of RichKern.com

#2 Penn State def. Iowa 3-0
#3 Stanford lost to #6 USC 1-3
#5 Texas def. Colorado 3-0
#6 USC (H) def. #3 Stanford 3-1
#7 UCLA (H) lost to #9 California 2-3
#8 Wisconsin def. Purdue 3-1
#9 California def. #7 UCLA 3-2
#12 San Diego lost to San Francisco 0-3
#15 Kansas State (H) def. Iowa State 3-1
#19 Ohio (H) def. Buffalo 3-0
#20 Michigan lost to Michigan State 1-3
#21 Oklahoma (H) def. Texas A&M 3-1
#22 Minnesota (H) lost to Ohio State 2-3
#24 Cal Poly (H) vs. UC Davis No scores yet

By Dave Reardon

* No ha’a-haka showdown … The Warriors just completed theirs, and New Mexico State normally does its in the lockerroom.

* It looks like the Warriors can move up a spot or two in the BCS standings from No. 17 if they win tonight. But Georigia’s victory over Florida could hurt them since some voters will vote both SEC teams above Hawaii.

* Davone Bess needs two touchdowns tonight to tie Michael Carter and Chad Owens with 38 career touchdowns, topping the UH list.

* Stephanie Lum is in war paint and holding a spear with Vili the Warrior as they get ready to introduce the defensive starters.

* Spencer Smith and Ryan Grice-Mullins are game captains. UH won the toss and will receive. See you at halftime.

***

Things didn’t start very well for UH with Colt Brennan throwing an INT on the first play. But then he went 10 for 10 and the defense came up with several big plays and the Warriors lead 23-3 at halftime.

***

Brennan has 116 career TD passes with three in the first half. He is one behind Tim Chang for the UH record.

***

By Dave Reardon

Check out Dr. Dan’s latest column at warriorshaka.com; his analysis of UH’s place in the big picture of college football right now is spot on.

Here’s an excerpt.

The solution in my mind is simply for Hawaii to win out. That’s all that needs to be said.

In reality, however, the BCS has given a lot of teams a chance they wouldn’t have had in the past.

Here’s the link: >http://warriorshaka.com/