In the Zoom call to reporters following Friday night’s road loss to Wyoming, Hawaii head coach Todd Graham bared his no-excuse approach.

“Traveling and all that, I don’t make any excuses for any of that stuff,” Graham said. “Obviously, it’s a unique challenge, and that’s what we live in right now.”

The season-opening, two-game road trip that covered 7,553 miles — 6,957 by air, 596 by bus?

“I actually enjoyed it, getting to spend time with (the players),” Graham said.

The breath-taking thin air of Laramie, Wyo., where a Memorial Stadium sign notes: “Welcome to 7,220 feet”?

“We gotta be able to play in rain, sleet or snow,” Graham said. “We just didn’t play well in that regard.”

But the Warriors pushed through with a split in the first quarter of the Mountain West’s eight-week regular season. Four of the next six games will be at Aloha Stadium. Here are the lessons from UH’s first two football weekends:

>> Next man up: The Warriors benefited from an expanded travel roster of 74 players, up by eight from last season. That helped maintain the competition in practices. The Warriors also showed their reserve power. After Kohl Levao suffered an injury, Michael Eletise stepped in to start at left guard against Fresno State and Wyoming. Because Kai Kaneshiro was ineligible for the first half against Wyoming because of a targeting penalty the previous week, Donovan Dalton trained to open at free safety. When co-captain Eugene Ford was injured early, Dalton moved to Ford’s spot at bandit, a hybrid position. Sterlin Ortiz, who was not on the two-deep chart two weeks ago, entered at free safety. Dalton finished with nine tackles, Ortiz had seven.

>> Passing game: In the opener, the Warriors shifted to a running attack when Fresno State overloaded the passing lanes. The Warriors ran for 323 yards. On Friday, the Warriors could not find a rhythm on the ground or air because of self-inflicted mistakes and the Cowboys’ physical and active defense. Chevan Cordeiro was 11 of 26 for 110 yards — 47 of them coming on a completion to Zion Bowens. He was sacked five times. The receivers could not secure three catchable passes, and a ricochet led to an interception.

>> Penalties: From the first team meeting, Graham has emphasized cutting down on penalties. But the Warriors committed seven against Wyoming. In a first-quarter sequence, the Warriors were called for delay of game between a touchback and the first snap of the drive. The offense’s three other penalties occurred on third down. A Wyoming drive was extended when the Warriors were penalized for pass interference on a third-and-9 play. “We just made too many penalties, shot ourselves in the foot, too many negative plays,” Graham said.

>> The road: The Warriors had about three weeks to cobble travel plans that would accommodate preparation needs and meet health and safety guidelines for a 10-day road trip. The Warriors were administered COVID-19 tests in Fresno and Denver, where they trained ahead of the Wyoming game. They also adhered by safety standards in meetings and on the sideline. And when a snowstorm in Denver forced the Warriors to change practice plans, they used a hotel ballroom for walk-throughs and an 80-yard indoor field. UH is serving as a travel model for its next opponent, New Mexico. The Lobos, who lost a road game to San Jose State on Saturday, return to Albuquerque, then head to Las Vegas to train in advance of Saturday’s game against the Warriors at Aloha Stadium.