To final 4: By plane, car and Subway

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Each day a University of Hawai'i men's volleyball player will chronicle his day for The Honolulu Advertiser as UH embarks on a quest for its first NCAA title.

By Dejan Miladinovic

I slept about four or five hours because I had to get up at 3:30 in the morning. Then, basically, I slept during the whole flight from Los Angeles to Chicago. Then I slept from Chicago to Harrisburgh, or whatever the place is called.

I was awake for most of the drive to State College. That's because Michelle Landis, our trainer, was driving. It was very smooth. We had a good soundtrack, good company. We were listening to some reggae and some of Delano Thomas' angry music. I don't particularly like angry music, but this time it was very relaxing. I don't get to choose the music, anyway.

On the drive, I was hungry. Food was on my mind, basically. We left Los Angeles too early, and I missed the free breakfast buffet. When we got to the hotel here, I found a Subway about 20 yards away. I went for the steak-and-cheese sandwich. It never tasted better in my life.

On the road, we always eat at Subway. I can never get tired from eating Subway's food. It doesn't cost that much. We're still waiting for an increase in our per diem. We were supposed to get more because we're in the NCAAs, but so far, we're getting the same.

I'm looking forward to playing on Thursday. I want to win the title. It's equally important to all of us, but it would be a great way to end my career at UH.

We don't make the final four every year. This is the first time in my five years, so it's very important. It's unknown territory for us. It will be intense. The NCAA is going to be a new dimension for us. The stakes are higher. I've been waiting for this since I arrived in Hawai'i in 1997. It's been a while.

We played Penn State here earlier in the preseason. It's definitely going to be different. I believe they'll have a big crowd, but I don't think it will be a factor. We proved we can play on the road.

If we win the title, I won't take a smile off my face for two weeks. People say I don't like to smile. Why do people say I don't like anything? I know when I don't have anything to smile about, I don't smile. On the court, I'm busy. I'm thinking about the game. I'm processing information. It's not joking time.

But I like to have fun. I went with Tony Ching to Magic Mountain. I went on the Viper. It was great. I felt like I was an F-16 jet fighter pilot. I was a little scared, I'll admit that. When we made the turn and we went sideways, I was scared. It was great. I had fun. I smiled.