To end the Hawaii football team’s three-game slide, head coach Timmy Chang went to the proverbial drawing board.
Here are three changes that factored in the Rainbow Warriors’ 34-13 victory over Nevada at the Ching Complex this past Saturday:
>> The Warriors entered ranked 127th nationally (out of 133 FBS teams) with an average of 83.9 rushing yards per game. On Saturday, they unleashed Landon Sims on draws and dives instead of using him primarily as a blocking back and check-down receiver. Sims gained 82 yards, an average of 9.1 yards on his nine carries.
Chang shortened quarterback Brayden Schager’s progressions, giving the green light to take off if the top receiver targets were not open. Schager also changed the way he finished scrambles, diving instead of using a cleats-first slide. Excluding sacks, Schager gained 135 yards on 15 bootlegs, draws and scrambles. His four rushing touchdowns doubled his previous high in a backyard football game.
The Warriors gained 191 rushing yards — a total adjusted to 200 when excluding the four sacks for 15 yards.
>> The Warriors already would be without injured safeties — and prolific tacklers — Peter Manuma and Justin Sinclair, when associate head coach Chris Brown decided to go with a “gut feeling.” Brown opted to start co-captain Logan Taylor and Nalu Emerson at the two linebacker spots instead of leading tackler Jamih Otis and Jalen Smith.
“I wanted to start my seniors for homecoming,” Brown said. “I know they’ve been very patient, with Logan playing behind Jamih at times (at middle linebacker), and Nalu playing behind Jalen (at weak-side backer). I can see the work they’ve been putting in, how hungry they were. I had a talk with Jalen and Jamih and I said, ‘look, I’m going to start the two seniors.’ I wanted them to go lead this defense. If we’re going to win this game on homecoming, I’m going to put the captains out there. And, shoot, they played lights out. Those two got the game balls.”
Taylor had a team-high eight tackles, including a solo stop of receiver Cortez Braham Jr. for no gain on a third-and-5 play. Matthew Killam missed the ensuing 46-yard, field-goal attempt as UH preserved its 14-0 lead.
Emerson had five tackles, including a sack, and intercepted Chubba Purdy to terminate the Wolf Pack’s final possession. After Smith exited with an ailment, Emerson ended up playing 50 of the 68 defensive snaps.
>> During a three-game losing streak, the Warriors converted on 13 of 41 (31.7%) third-down snaps. In their first seven games, their conversion rate of 34.9% ranked 108th nationally. On Saturday, including an offsides penalty against Nevada, the Warriors either converted or scored on the ensuing play in seven of nine third-down snaps in the first half.
During the losing streak, the Warriors’ average yards-to-gain on third down was 8.8 yards. In the first half against Nevada, the average distance was 4.8 yards.
In the first seven games, the Warriors scored 12 touchdowns on 22 red-zone drives. On Saturday, Schager rushed for four touchdowns and Kansei Matsuzawa kicked two field goals as the Warriors went 6-for-6 in the red zone. A new wrinkle was 6-foot-5, 290-pound offensive lineman Dean Briski being added to the short-yardage lineup as a tight end.
