Warriors need a few good men to step up

By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Columnist

Is there another Dwight Carter in the house?

Are there any more team leaders where Adrian Klemm, Quincy LeJay, Kaulana Noa, Dan Robinson, Tony Tuioti and Jeff Ulbrich came from?

As the University of Hawai'i football team begins full-scale practices tomorrow night, there are any number of positions in the starting lineup up for grabs this season.

Truth be told, however, some of the most important vacancies — the leadership positions — are going on two years old now.

They are the roles played by Carter, Noa, et al; players who were receivers, linemen, etc. They were known as "game-breakers" and "big-play performers," of course, but they also made their marks as leaders in the huddle, locker room and on the field.

By force of deed and inspiration they were the visible, steadfast pillars of the 1999 Western Athletic Conference Championship campaign. Not just as players who caught passes, threw them or made tackles, but the ones who did all those things when the Warriors most needed them. When it was third-and-long or late in the fourth quarter with the game on the line, that was when they stood out and inspired others to do the same, taking the team and its hopes on their shoulders.

"Klemm, Tuioti, Ulbrich . . . it seemed like we had one of those kind of guys at every position," said Mike Cavanaugh, the Warriors' offensive line coach. "Everywhere we had somebody who would step up and get it done. You're talking about coming together and guys fighting for each other.

"In the next few weeks we need some guys to step up and the leaders to emerge," Cavanaugh said. "And, I think they will."

Because there were so many leaders on the roster in '99 and they complemented one another so well, it was almost taken for granted there would be a new crop last season. It was easy to believe that when they went on to NFL camps or other pursuits more would somehow emerge to take their places. That there was automatic regeneration.

Only, for several reasons, it never quite turned out that way. At least not approaching those kinds of numbers or results. The thinness and youth in the ranks also carried over to potential leadership and it showed early on.

The hope is that the lack of leadership will change this time around. Ideally, they will come from the senior class. For that is a group that has seen it all. Many of them were on hand for the spectrum of results that has spanned their stay at UH. Through the misery of 0-12 and the triumph of the 9-4 O'ahu Bowl Championship, they have come to know the differences between the two.

The hope is there are enough of them who will be able to pass on the hard-learned lessons of that experience the way the class of '99 did.