RAINBOW WARRIORS OFFENSE
WO—1 Jonah Panoke 6-1 200 Sr.
SB—5 Pofele Ashlock 6-2 175 So.
LT—78 Ka‘ena Decambra 6-3 300 Jr.
LG—58 Zhen Sotelo 6-3 305 Jr.
C—66 Sergio Muasau 5-11 300 Sr.
RG—59 Kuao Peihopa 6-3 295 Jr.
RT—70 James Milovale 6-6 330 Jr.
SB—3 Nick Cenacle 6-2 195 Jr.
WO—6 Dekel Crowdus 5-11 170 Jr.
QB—13 Brayden Schager 6-3 220 Sr.
RB—30 Landon Sims 6-1 220 Jr.
As the Warriors added Air Raid elements to the run-and-shoot base, it was no coincidence running backs coach Anthony Arceneaux moved to the coaches booth to relay observations to head coach/play caller Timmy Chang on the sideline against Northern Iowa. Arceneaux and Chang — former Saint Louis School teammates — have experience with both schemes. “Having Anthony up there, a veteran, he sees it,” Chang said. The mashup offense maximizes the skills of running backs Landon Sims and Tylan Hines, who recently moved from wideout to the position he played as a freshman in 2022. With four-receiver sets, Sims, Hines, running back David Cordero and QB Brayden Schager are counted on as rushers to complement the passing attack. Sims and Hines also excel as backfield blockers. “They’re asked to do a lot in our protection,” Schager said of the backs taking on rush ends, linebackers and blitzers.“They can get in there and do the dirty work.” Sims is proficient with the hit-and-run in which he unleashes a block, releases and then breaks for daylight. He is 7-for-7 when targeted on screens and shovels. Hines plays stronger than his 5-7, 175-pound build. Hines uses his strength — 505-pound squat, benches 225 pounds 22 times — to pick off pass rushers. Associate head coach Chris Brown and conditioning coordinator Ryan Ishihara have helped with weight training; Arceneaux hones Hines’ blocking. During the last trip to Houston, Schager drew interest from NFL scouts impressed with his arm strength and aggressive running. Schager, who completed 81% of his passes against UNI, also arranged the backfield blocking.
RAINBOW WARRIORS DEFENSE
DE—12 Wynden Ho‘ohuli 6-3 240 Jr.
DT—52 Ezra Evaimalo 6-2 260 Sr.
DT—77 Jamar Sekona 6-2 295 Sr.
DE—0 Elijah Robinson 6-4 260 Gr.
MLB—16 Logan Taylor 6-0 200 Sr.
WLB—3 Jalen Smith 6-0 215 Jr.
NB—9 Elijah Palmer 5-8 175 So.
CB—4 Cam Stone 5-10 200 Sr.
S—1 Peter Manuma 6-0 195 Jr.
S—29 Nahe Mendiola-Jensen 6-1 170 Jr.
CB—13 Caleb Brown 6-1 170 Sr.
The previous two seasons, the Warriors ran a variation of UTEP’s defense (brought over by then safeties coach Josh Brown) and the 4-2-5 that former UH coordinator Corey Batoon utilized in 2018 and 2019. New DC Dennis Thurman, who called defenses for the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills, brought the pro version of the “personnel approach.” If an offense is in a 12 formation (one back, two tight ends) there is a counter coverage; for a 10 look (one back, four receivers), there’s another antidote. Cornerbacks are trained to play the receivers, not be transfixed by the play-action movements. D-linemen are exhorted to beat the blocks — and blockers. “This is an NFL defense,” co-captain Logan Taylor said. “It’s simple. It’s the reason NFL players can get traded one week and start right away. It’s been what we’ve been knowing since we were kids. It allows us to play fast, play downhill.” The Warriors have been able to create front-level pressure with the two rush ends bracketing the two interior linemen. When offenses bring in heavy packages involving two extra blockers, the Warriors have countered with nose tackle Daniel “Sauce” Williams and a linebacker entering to form a 5-3 alignment. At 5-8 and 175 pounds, Elijah Palmer is built like a nickel corner. But he often moves up to become a third linebacker when the Warriors go with an old-school 4-3. D-end Wynden Ho‘ohuli, tackles Ezra Evaimalo and Jamar Sekona, and corners Cam Stone and Caleb “C-Bo” Brown are having breakout seasons. Stone has missed only one tackle. Targeted receivers have caught 33% of passes when covered by Brown.
RAINBOW WARRIORS SPECIALISTS
KO—69 Ben Falck 6-6 225 Sr.
PK—17 Kansei Matsuzawa 6-2 205 Jr.
P/H—19 Lucas Borrow 5-11 180 Gr.
LS—44 Solomon Landrum 5-11 210 Sr.
SS—35 Hunter Higham 6-3 230 Fr.
KR/PR—2 Tylan Hines 5-7 175 So.
It takes a lot of practice to produce “spontaneous” plays. Special teams coordinator Thomas Sheffield admitted Lucas Borrow’s fake punt for a 19-yard gain was pre-planned if a return member had vacated an area. During the summer, Sheffield and analyst Jack Ray studied the unconventional swinging-gate formation on point-after plays. After UH scored a TD against UNI, short-snapper Hunter Higham was on the far left of a seven-man line. Higham snapped it to running back Landon Sims, who rolled right and then tossed to an open Higham for the conversion. “It’s been in the game plan for four weeks,” Sheffield said. “Then I finally had the cajones to call it.” There is more creativity in the works.
AZTECS OFFENSE
WR—83 Mekhi Shaw 5-11 185 Sr.
WR—3 Ja’Shaun Poke 5-10 185 Sr.
WR—4 Louis Brown IV 6-2 195 Jr.
TE—18 Jude Wolfe 6-6 245 Sr.
LT—70 Christian Jones 6-9 315 Jr.
LG—53 Myles Murao 6-3 305 Jr.
C—55 Brayden Bryant 6-2 305 Sr.
RG—63 Ross Ulugalu-Maseuli 6-4 315 Jr.
RT—74 Nate Williams 6-6 310 Sr.
QB—5 Danny O’Neil 6-0 195 Fr.
RB—15 Marquez Cooper 5-8 200 Sr.
As the MW’s tallest head coach, 6-7 Sean Lewis has big aspirations. Lewis has implemented a rat-a-tat spread attack with elements from his time at Baylor (Art Briles’ veer-and-shoot) and Syracuse (Dino Babers’ run-pass option). When Lewis was Kent State’s head coach, his offense featured read options, pre-snap motions and misdirections set at an average of 20.9 seconds between plays. The base of Lewis’ attack at SDSU is wide formations to create one-on-one routes and thin the tackle box for running back Marquez Cooper, speedy wideouts who can stretch the field, and multi-purpose tight ends, H-backs and fullbacks. The scheme is dubbed “AztecFast,” and Lewis’ X account has this quote: “Life is too short to huddle.” Cooper, a Ball State transfer who played for Lewis at Kent State, is the nation’s active leader in rushing yards (4,330) and all-purpose yards (4,970). Cooper is averaging 118.5 yards per game and, using a double grip, 5.7 yards per dive rush. Jude Wolfe, who sets up in the deep slot or on the line, often motions to become a lead blocker or curls into the flats as a check-down receiver. He caught two TD passes last week. Left tackle Christian Jones uses his 34 1/2-inch reach — same as All Pro Trent Williams’ — to mis-direct pass rushers. Danny O’Neil and Cooper have mastered the two-man game on RPOs (the freshman QB is averaging 5.9 yards on non-sack rushes). O’Neil has thrown 80 passes without an interception. Louis Brown IV, a Colorado State transfer, has been targeted a team-high seven times a game. On his four catches of 35-plus yards, Brown said: “When I was younger, my father would throw the ball up. If it was a low one, we’d call it a ‘pigeon.’ If it was medium, we’d call it a ‘bird.’ A super high one would be a ‘hawk.’ Ever since then, I’ve been high playing the ball. I’ve got good eye discipline in tracking the ball.”
AZTECS DEFENSE
Field—32 Marlem Louis 6-3 255 Sr.
NT—90 Sam Benjamin 6-5 285 Jr.
DT—40 Krishna Clay 6-2 280 So.
Rush—47 Trey White 6-2 245 So.
SLB—21 Tano Letuli 6-2 240 So.
WLB—5 Owen Chambliss 6-3 230 Fr.
Stud—17 Deshawn McCuin 6-0 200 Sr.
LCB—1 Chris Johnson 6-0 185 Jr.
FS—6 Eric Butler 6-2 190 Jr.
Rover—11 JD Coffey III 6-0 195 Sr.
RCB—0 Bryce Phillips 6-0 195 Sr.
For 13 years through 2023, the Aztecs operated former head coach Rocky Long’s 3-3-5 defense. But after Long’s successor Brady Hoke retired at the end of last season, new defensive coordinator Eric Schmidt decided to discontinue the Rocky sequels, installing a 4-2-5 scheme that can adjust to a 4-3 front. While the 3-3-5 was a faster unit, it was taxing on the interior linemen. “Double teams, sometimes triple teams, were the story of my life last year,” said Moanalua High alumnus Tupu Alualu, who plays nose and 3-tech tackle. “I was playing the 1 tech (opposite the center’s shoulder) at 270 pounds.” The interior linemen no longer are restricted to 4-point stances and precise footwork. “The new coaching staff gives us a little freedom here and there on certain plays,” Alualu said. “They give us more chances to make plays.” Now at 285 pounds, Alualu is part of a rotation resetting the line of scrimmage. He credits his technique to his older brother, Tyson, who played 14 NFL seasons. “He said to make sure my get-off always looked the same, just so (O-linemen) can keep guessing on which way I’m going,” Alualu said. Rush end Trey White, who is the hybrid up front, has eight tackles for loss, including six sacks. Linebacker Tano Letuli is the anchor, and Texas transfer JD Coffey is indeed a rover, aligning 15 yards off the line in one-high schemes or flanked to the side of a defensive end. The innovative Schmidt, who was Washington’s special teams coordinator and rush-end coach last year, has called a cover-5, with six on the line, no linebackers and five across 10 yards from the ball.
AZTECS SPECIALISTS
PK/KO—46 Gabriel Plasencia 6-0 230 Jr.
P/H—13 Tyler Pastula 6-3 220 Sr.
LS—50 Ryan Wintermeyer 6-1 220 Sr.
KR—3 Ja’Shaun Poke 5-10 185 Sr.
PR—19 Jordan Napier 6-2 200 Fr.
Gabriel Plasencia is expected to regain the kicker’s job after Nick Lopez missed attempts from 33 and 28 yards in last week’s 22-21 loss to Central Michigan. Tyler Pastula is averaging 45.7 yards per punt and has completed a 10-yard pass on a fake. During training camp, returner/running back Kenan Christon, who can spring 100 meters in 10.5 seconds, suffered an ankle injury that required surgery. Recovery was set between six and eight weeks. This weekend is the sixth week.
