WAC countdown: Hawaii
With football camp just a few days away, it’s time to take a look at the Western Athletic Conference. Check back daily for a look at each team, starting at the bottom of the WAC preseason coaches poll.
Next up, the No. 5 Hawaii Warriors
Hawaii
2009 Record: 6-7 (3-5 WAC)
Returning starters: 12 (4 offense, 6 defense, punter, kicker)
Coach: Greg McMackin, third year
WAC Preseason Polls: 5th coaches, 7th media
It wasn’t that long ago that Hawaii was in a BCS bowl and its offense was striking fear in the hearts of defensive coordinators across the WAC.
Then June Jones left the Islands because he felt the school wasn’t totally committed to fielding a winner and has since been proven right.
The Warriors slipped to 6-7 last season with Greg McMackin at the helm and failed to qualify for a bowl for the first time in a long time. Now in the third year of the McMackin era, Hawaii will again have its hands full getting to a bowl game with only four offensive starters returning from a team that limped out to a 2-6 record before finishing fairly strong against the bottom third of the conference.
The good news is quarterback Bryant Moniz, who directed the third-leading passing game in the nation at 337 yards per game, is one of those four players. He also has two of his top receivers back and his left tackle.
After that, it could get tough for the Warriors who must break in four new linemen, a running back and a third receiver to get the run-n-shoot offense moving.
On defense, Hawaii has six starters back including virtually the entire secondary. Mana Silva and Spencer Smith are the top players at safety while Lametrius Davis and Jeramy Bryant hold down the corners.
Dave Aranda is the new defensive coordinator and must improve Hawaii’s woeful run-stopping after the Warriors gave up more than 200 yards per game.
The Warriors will again have a home-heavy schedule that will make qualifying for a bowl easy. Seven homes game, including a season-opener against USC, will give Hawaii a solid chance to get to the seven wins it will need to go bowling — a 6-7 record won’t be good enough.
Even a majority of the road games — at Army, Colorado, Utah State and New Mexico State — present opportunities for wins.
Still, perception of the Warriors has fallen to the point the WAC media predicted Hawaii to finish seventh while the coaches’ opinion was only a little better at 5th.
If there is a second straight season without a bowl — especially considering the Warriors are guaranteed a spot in the Hawaii Bowl if they simply become eligible — there may not be a fourth season for McMackin.
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