RAINBOW WARRIORS OFFENSE

WO—1 Jonah Panoke 6-1 200 Sr.

SB—23 Koali Nishigaya 5-7 165 Sr.

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—0 Alex Perry. 6-5 195 So.

QB—13 Brayden Schager 6-3 225 Sr.

RB—30 Landon Sims 6-1 210 Jr.

It has been a series of Whac-A-Mole challenges for the Warriors. In the past two games, four drives started inside the 20 following kickoffs. Penalties have put the Warriors in down-and-distance holes or sabotaged drives. Of nine offensive penalties last week, four were on first down and two on fourth down, including two in the red zone. Facing opponents with dominant pass rushers —San Diego State’s Trey White and Boise State’s Ahmed Hassanein — Brayden Schager has been sacked 13 times in two Mountain West games. Even when avoiding sacks this season, Schager has absorbed seven late hits resulting in three roughing-the-passer penalties and four personal fouls. “He’s a tough kid,” quarterbacks coach Dan Morrison said. Schager has completed 60.2% of his passes. His “Schager Bombs” — throws of at least 20 yards from the line of scrimmage — are down (5.0 per game this year from 6.6 last season) — with the absence of key outside sprinters. Steven McBride and Chuuky Hines are not on the active roster, and Dekel Crowdus was a DNP last week because of an injury. With leading receiver Pofele Ashlock on the mend after a false-crack hit last week, the Warriors might give reps to Carlito Capanang and Tama Uiliata. Both were in the lineup for UH’s final possession last week. Uiliata played quarterback, running back and receiver as a Waipahu High senior in 2022. While grayshirting last year, he worked at Eggs ’N Things in Ko Olina and trained under Waipahu coach Bryson Carvalho. Uiliata joined the Warriors in January and impressed in spring practices. He is on track to redshirt this season if he does not play in more than four games. But with the injuries, he said, “one man goes down, the next guy has to be ready. It’s always ‘next man.’ That was me.”

RAINBOW WARRIORS DEFENSE

DE—5 Tariq Jones. 6-2 250 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—54 Jamih Otis 5-11 215 So.

WLB—3 Jalen Smith 6-0 215 Jr.

NB—9 Elijah Palmer 5-9 175 So.

CB—4 Cam Stone 5-10 200 Sr.

S—7 Meki Pei 5-11 185 Sr.

S—6 Justin Sinclair 5-10 185 Sr.

CB—26 Deliyon Freeman 5-10 170 Fr.

Among the many reasons for the defense’s success — league leader in fewest points (20.5 per game) and yards allowed (332.8 a contest) — is lowering its sights. Borrowing a technique from recent Hall of Fame inductee Patrick Willis, the linebackers lower their stance to get a better view of the backfield. “I’m able to look between the linemen around their lower body,” will linebacker Jalen Smith said. “While a lot of ’backers will lose (opposing backs) in all the mesh, I’m able to see where they’re going.” Mike linebacker Jamih Otis, who used that method at Bishop Gorman High, leads the Warriors with 28 tackles. Under defensive coordinator Dennis Thurman, the Warriors also use the NFL-style approach of defending an opponent’s personnel, with different counterpunches depending on whether an offense uses a tight end or four-receiver set. “We have an adjustment for just about everything,” Smith said. “I think that comes from being prepared.” Against Boise State last week, the Warriors activated contingency plans. To defend running back Ashton Jeanty, Justin Sinclair, an in-the-box safety, made his third career start. When safety Peter Manuma exited with an injury, Meki Pei, fully recovered from ankle issues, moved into the lineup. D-tackle Ezra Evaimalo’s ejection for targeting gave more reps to Nevada transfer Dion Washington. “He does everything,” associate head coach Chris Brown said of Washington. “He’s a freak of nature. He has really quick movements, quick feet. He’s very explosive. He’s a wrestler. Once he grabs you, you’re going down.”

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.

S—35 Hunter Higham 6-3 230 Fr.

KR/PR—2 Tylan Hines 5-7 175 So.

Tylan Hines’ work does not end when the Warriors gather at the end of each practice. Hines remains on the field to catch footballs or go through his steps. Hines’ punt-return average of 17.1 yards would rank fifth nationally if he had one more attempt. But he recently was added to the Jet Award Midseason Watch List. Named after 1972 Heisman winner Johnny “The Jet” Rodgers. the award honors punt and kickoff returners. Hines is sixth nationally in combined punt and kickoff returns with 344 yards.

COUGARS OFFENSE

X—2 Kyle Williams 6-0 186 Sr.

LT—76 Esa Pole 6-7 319 Sr.

LG—57 Rod Tialavea 6-5 321 Jr.

C—70 Devin Kylany 6-5 303 Jr.

RG—65 Brock Dieu 6-3 288 Jr.

RT—79 Fa‘alili Fa‘amoe 6-5 314 Jr.

TE—24 Cooper Matthers 6-2 230 Sr.

Y—18 Josh Meredith 6-0 176 Jr.

Z—3 Tre Shackelford 6-1 187 Jr.

QB—10 John Mateer 6-1 219 So.

RB—15 Djouvensky Schlenbacker 6-0 216 So.

The remnants of schemes from Mike Leach’s Air Raid and Craig Stutzmann’s spread-and-shred/run-and-shoot hybrid have formed into offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle’s 39-points-a-game attack. The Cougars can spread wide with four receivers, but also use up to two tight ends. The Cougars also can mix run-pass options out of 50-yard-wide formations. “It’s a little bit of Air Raid, but we’ve got tight ends,” center Devin Kylany said. “We’re a little thicker. We call it the ‘Cougar Express.’ Hop on the train.” Running backs coach Mark Atuaia, a former record-setting rusher for Kahuku High, noted quarterback John Mateer’s elusiveness fits into the deceptiveness of RPOs, when Mateer can hand off, keep or unleash play-action throws. “It’s just pick up and go,” Atuaia said. “We use tempo a lot to create a competitive advantage.” Speedy wideout Kyle Williams is the deep option if defenses cram the tackle box. As a UNLV receiver two years ago, Williams caught eight passes for 184 yards against UH. The Cougars did not panic a skosh when QB Cam Ward entered the transfer portal last year, then declared for the 2024 NFL Draft but did not hire an agent, then took his Heisman candidacy to Miami. Mateer, whose only Division I offer came from WSU, won the job with his dual skills. Mateer averages 266.8 passing yards per game and 8.2 yards per non-sack scramble or keeper. He has been compared to (the college version of) Johnny Manziel. The offense begins with Kylany, who thrives on vocal leadership making calls and the “nitty and gritty” of playing center. Kylany is a chess enthusiast who sees a similar approach in football. “I like center because I’m setting up the plan with all the pieces aligned,” Kylany said. “When we have that explosive run, that explosive play, it really makes me happy. It’s better than a pancake. Well, almost.”

COUGARS DEFENSE

Edge—45 Raam Stevenson 6-4 242 Jr.

DT—60 David Gusta 6-3 302 Jr.

DT—92 Ansel Din-Mbuh 6-3 291 So.

Edge—3 Syrus Webster 6-4 254 Sr.

MLB—0 Buddah Al-Uqdah 6-0 232 Sr.

WLB—52 Kyle Thornton 6-1 233 Sr.

NB—4 Kapena Gushiken 6-0 184 Sr.

CB—1 Stephen Hall 6-0 199 Jr.

FS—5 Tyson Durant 5-10 178 Sr.

SS—2 Jackson Lataimua 5-11 197 Jr.

CB—24 Ethan O’Connor 6-1 172 Fr.

The Cougars’ schemes can be traced to Gus Bradley. Before becoming the Indianapolis Colts’ DC and the architect of the Seattle Seahawks’ “Legion of Boom,” Bradley was brainstorming at North Dakota State. After learning from Bradley, Craig Bohl became head coach at NDSU, then leader at Wyoming. Jake Dickert, Bohl’s DC at Wyoming, is now the Cougars’ head coach. While the Cougars prefer a one-high look — Bradley’s Seahawks were noted for their cover-3 — Dickert has maintained an even front (4-2-5) with aggressive blitz packages, particularly on third down, and multiple shifts and loops. “We love to provide a bunch of different pictures for offenses, really makes it hard on protections,” linebacker Kyle Thornton said. “As many different pictures you can give the decision-makers on offense, the harder it is for them to actually figure out what’s going on, and that leads to good things happening on the defensive side of the ball.” A key defender is nickelback Kapena Gushiken, who was 5-8, 160 pounds and without a Division I scholarship offer as a Kamehameha-Maui senior. He went to Saddleback College, grew to 6 feet and 184 pounds, and became a shutdown corner. At WSU, he made the move inside to nickel. Thornton, WSU’s leading tackler, sets up in the middle, on the edge, and when the D-tackles are split wide, as a stand-up nose. Thornton also played tight end in high school, but his passion is playing linebacker. “I fell in love with running around and tackling people,” Thornton said.

COUGARS SPECIALISTS

PK/P—49 Dean Janikowski 6-1 226 Sr.

H—38 Nick Haberer 6-5 218 Sr.

LS—99 Durham Harris 5-9 193 Jr.

KR—10 Leyton Smithson 6-1 181 Jr.

PR—0 Tony Freeman 5-8 162 So.

Dean Janikowski (no relation to former All-Pro kicker Sebastian Janikowski) is a tri-athlete handling point-scoring kicks, kickoffs and punts. Janikowski also is busy off the field. In 2021, he started a pledge, “More Than A Kick,” where donations were made for each of his successful kicks. He later started a foundation honoring his mother, who died of cancer, with proceeds going to a children’s hospital.

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>> Kickoff: 9:30 a.m. Saturday

>> TV: CW

>> RADIO: 1420-AM / 92.7-FM

>> LINE: Washington State by 181⁄2