UH football fans start party early
By Catherine E. Toth
Advertiser Staff Writer
The one-hour wait from the Halawa exit to Aloha Stadium yesterday didn't deter football fans, eager to watch the showdown between rivals University of Hawai'i and Brigham Young University.
Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser
By the time they found ample space to set up tents and hibachis, the thousands of spectators who flocked to Halawa forgot their traffic anxieties, and focused their attention on tailgating and football.
These fans weren't impressed with Brigham Young University's No. 9 ranking in The Associated Press football poll. UH pounded BYU, 72-45, yesterday in the schools' first matchup since BYU left the Western Athletic Conference.
The sellout crowd of 50,000 started celebrating the last home game of the Warriors' comeback season in the parking lot before the 11:05 a.m. kickoff — long before the Warriors upset the Cougars, 72-45, handing nationally ranked BYU its first loss of the season.
By 9 a.m. the parking lot was a sea of cars and sport utility vehicles, the lazy haze of smoke from hibachis and gas grills mingling with the distinct smell of burning charcoal and grilling hot dogs.
About 40 firefighters from all over O'ahu gathered at Section C3, their bright blue tarpaulin tents a landmark for late-arrivals.
Sitting in the back of a van, Todd Cabral knocked back a Heineken, laughing with his friends who had helped make fried rice, hash browns and scrambled eggs, the menu for a 9 a.m. tailgate.
They arrived at the stadium a little before 7:30 a.m., when the gates opened. After circling several times, they managed to find a spot and set up their tents, electric woks and grills for some serious tailgating.
"This is the closest to a bowl game UH will get," said Cabral, a 31-year-old firefighter from Mililani, wearing a gray T-shirt with the words "Positive Attitude."
"They had some bad breaks, but they put things together and learned from their mistakes."
UH finished with a 9-3 record after a 1-2 start.
The season featured a home opener on Maui, a game moved from its customary Saturday to Friday (Fresno State), and another moved back a week (BYU). Then came Sept. 11.
The nation saw a week of games postponed, and, when the games resumed, UH fans at Aloha Stadium were forced to deal with stringent new security guidelines that included no bags or umbrellas, only fanny packs.
The inconvenience didn't affect attendance, which averaged nearly 40,000 at Aloha Stadium. Three of the final four games drew more than 41,000.
On the field, a promising season took a downturn with losses to Nevada and Rice, compounded by the loss to star quarterback Tim Chang because of injury.
But the season was rescued by once-benched quarterback Nick Rolovich, who won eight of nine games as a starter and capped the season with three consecutive 500-yard passing games, including 543 yards and a record eight touchdown passes yesterday.
With Hawai'i finishing fourth in the Western Athletic Conference and out of a football bowl possibility, UH coach June Jones called the BYU game Hawai'i's bowl game.
And with BYU bringing a 12-0 record and No. 9 ranking by The Associated Press, the game was sold out by Thursday.
Homer Sheldon, a 66-year-old Kane'ohe resident and season-ticket holder for nearly 30 years, arrived at 9:30 a.m. with his family, bentos and faith in Hawai'i.
"I'm impressed (with the team)," he said, dressed in the green polo shirt he always wears to games. "Ever since (quarterback Nick) Rolovich took over, things turned around for them. They got more confidence. Everybody just rised up to the occasion and went on a roll, winning."
Mike Dahilig has been going to UH games since he was 9, his first the year when UH beat BYU, 56-14.
"I just remember screaming a lot," said the UH geology major from Mililani. "My father always taught me to be a proper kid. But not when we're playing BYU."
Agnes Cordeiro proves you can never be too old to start being a fan.
At 83, with seven children, 26 grandchildren, 30 great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandson, she bought her first season tickets eight years ago, soon after her husband passed away.
Married for 59 years, Cordeiro found comfort in attending UH games with her family.
"It was just so much fun," she said, adjusting her lauhala hat. "Win or lose, we still come."
