In the wake of allegations of sexual abuse of minors at Penn State, the University of Hawaii said it plans to put policies in place to assure that participants in sports camps on campus will not be left alone with a staff member.

UH oversees the operation of more than a dozen sports camps a year by its coaches, involving "about 1,000" youngsters, according to officials.

Under questioning by Board of Regents member Dennis Hirota on Monday, athletic director Jim Donovan told a regents committee, "we’re looking at what other schools are doing and will contact some local child care centers to be sure none of our staff will ever be with a student participant alone."

Donovan said he expected the policy to be in place before the summer, when the majority of camps are held.

Dexter Irvin, UH-Hilo athletic director, said he was also looking into a similar policy for Vulcans camps.

Warriors not thinking about coaching questions

For the Hawaii football team, there is no time to worry about external rumblings, such as the public debate about the coaches’ future.

"We don’t read the papers, unless there’s an article about ourselves," safety Richard Torres said. "We don’t look so much into those other things. That’s not our business. We can only control what we do on the field.

"We’re going to try to focus on taking care of Tulane."

The Warriors (5-6) need to beat Tulane on Saturday and Brigham Young on Dec. 3 to finish with a winning regular season and earn the accompanying berth in the Dec. 24 Hawaii Bowl.

But the future of the coaches has been the hot topic on talk shows and message boards.

Defensive end Paipai Falemalu said the subject is not discussed among the players.

"We’re not fighting for other people’s jobs," Falemalu said. "We’re playing for each other."

Head coach Greg McMackin, whose five-year contract runs through the 2012 season, said he does not involve players in off-field concerns.

"No, we don’t talk about that," McMackin said. "That’s not a factor in our situation."

Tuipulotu, Falemalu expect to play Saturday

Defensive tackle Kaniela Tuipulotu ended the suspense.

"I’m playing," he said. "That’s it."

Tuipulotu suffered a possible shoulder injury against Fresno State. McMackin said Tuipulotu was schedule for an MRI on Monday afternoon.

Tuipulotu attended Monday’s meetings.

"He’s strong," defensive line coach Tony Tuioti said. "I don’t see him missing any games."

Tuipulotu said: "I’m not missing any games."

Neither is Falemalu, who was wearing a sling Monday. Falemalu said it was a precaution, and that he, too, will start against Tulane.

"If you’re not banged up, you’re not playing hard enough," Falemalu said. "I’m sure everyone on the team has some aches and pains."

UH running back John Lister and safety Kenny Estes both suffered mild concussions while playing special teams against Fresno State.

They are both expected to be cleared to practice this week.