Analysis
Warriors, Grizzlies will spread the field on offense

By Stephen Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer

WAILUKU, Maui — Tonight's football opponents, host Hawai'i and Montana, are packaged in separate classes.

As an NCAA Division I-A member, UH is allowed to offer up to 85 football scholarships; Montana, a Division I-AA school, is limited to 65.

June Jones rejected a multiyear contract from the San Diego Chargers to become the Warriors' head coach. Joe Glenn's previous coaching job was at Northern Colorado in Greeley, where the Denver Broncos train.

UH's sports teams have four nicknames (Warriors, Rainbow Warriors, Rainbows and Rainbow Wahine); Montana's teams have two (Grizzlies and Griz).

But look closer, at the label, and it becomes apparent Montana's program contains strong ingredients.

Division I-AA rules require members to offer at least 40 full scholarships; the value of the remaining 25 may be divided. The Grizzlies were able to split enough scholarships that at least 75 players are receiving some sort of aid, ranging from housing to tuition waivers.

The Grizzlies' recruiting reach extends from Alaska to Hawai'i, Florida to California.

Jones has said that if the Grizzlies were in UH's Western Athletic Conference, they would finish regularly in the top tier.

The Grizzlies, ranked No. 2 in Division I-AA, have qualified for the national playoffs in each of the past eight years, winning a national championship in 1995 and reaching the title game last year. Ten former Grizzlies are on NFL payrolls.

While Glenn has admittedly created an Aloha Friday atmosphere in the coaches' office, he is mortician-serious about this trip to paradise.

"I'm sure other people are looking at this trip as a hang-loose deal," Glenn said. "As coaches, we're trying to keep thing 'as business as usual.' I tell the kids, 'Someday, when you get married, you can go to Maui on your honeymoon.' This time, we're here to play a football game."

Here's a look at tonight's game:

When UH has the ball:

The run-and-shoot is a counter-punch offense, relying heavily on the ability to react to a defense's scheme. The Grizzlies' plan is to constantly move around players, blurring the Warriors' vision.

The Grizzlies will try to attack the A gaps (the area between the center and guards). Their most effective tactic is "cross dogging," in which two linebackers will criss-cross, then race into the A gaps.

On the perimeters, the Grizzlies like to "smash dog," a strategy in which a defensive end and linebacker will force the offensive tackle inside, allowing an outside linebacker or nickelback to storm the backfield.

Cornerbacks Calvin Coleman and Johnnie Peeples are quick enough to protect the defensive secondary, freeing a nickelback or safety to blitz. Every so often, Coleman and Peeples will blitz, and a safety or linebacker will rotate to cover the spot they vacated.

UH's offense is designed to operate within 3.5 seconds, from snap to pass release. Tim Chang's quick release — only one of his 469 passes was knocked down by a lineman last year — enables him to buy another half-second, if needed.

The best matchup is between Coleman and wideout Ashley Lelie, who has worked on breaking free from clinging defenders. Lelie, who can touch a marker 11 feet, 3 inches from a standing jump, is using his leaping ability to soar for passes.

When Montana has the ball:

The Grizzlies believe in the divide-and-conquer approach, spreading their offense with as many as four receivers, then picking apart defenses with an efficient passing game.

"We'll throw the ball just about anywhere," Glenn said.

The Grizzlies have an extensive collection of screen plays. On funnel screens, a wideout will curl toward the offensive formation for a pass. On swing screens, two or three receivers will be aligned on one side, and the inside receiver will race to the flats for a pass.

To keep defenses guessing, quarterback John Edwards will fake a handoff, run outside of the pocket and then throw deep.

The Warriors have several pass-defense packages. In one scheme, safety Robert Grant replaces a linebacker and Nate Jackson moves from safety to nickelback. In another scheme, Bronson Liana comes in as a coverage linebacker, and middle linebacker Chris Brown moves to defensive end, creating a three-man line with defensive ends Houston Ala and Kevin Jackson.

But while those schemes are effective, they can't be implemented unless the Warriors stop running back Yohance Humphery.

Humphery, who is used mostly on inside runs off zone blocks, is a powerful runner with strong legs. In theory, Humphery can be slowed with straight-on hits. Scouts say Humphery "bleeds forward," the vernacular for a runner who always fights for extra yards.