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The University of Hawaii football team is prepared to open training camp on July 31, school officials have acknowledged.
The Rainbow Warriors’ participation still rests on approval and guidelines from government and school officials.
But the Warriors have taken steps to meet the NCAA-approved dates to start workouts, meetings and training camp.
All but a handful of players are on Oahu. Most of the first-year Warriors — recruits, transfers and walk-ons — were scheduled to be in town by June 20. A few remain on the mainland completing commitments, but are expected to arrive shortly. The out-of-state players have either completed the 14-day quarantine or are in quarantine. Because UH’s dormitories remain closed during this pandemic, players were quarantined in their off-campus housing, relatives’ and friends’ residences, or hotels.
The NCAA set a schedule for when schools would be allowed to offer team workouts and open training camps. Because UH is set to play a week-zero road game against Arizona on Aug. 29 — a week ahead of the official NCAA start to the football season — the Warriors are allowed to move up the timetable by a week.
That means, if approved, the Warriors can begin team workouts — weight training, conditioning and video reviews — on July 7. Beginning July 17, the Warriors will be allowed 20 hours a week for walk-through sessions and team meetings. Training camp could start on July 31.
The Warriors already have opened the weight room for by-appointment voluntary sessions. Players have had to pass physical examinations before being allowed to book weight-room sessions. Prior to the by-appointment sessions, the Warriors did not have any on-campus workouts since March, when classes moved to on-line instruction only because of the pandemic.