Bah, humbug! Warriors lose
By Stephen Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer
 |
| Justin Colbert scores on a 31-yard pass in the fourth quarter, momentarily giving Hawai'i fans hope of a comeback.
Photos by Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser |
 |
| Tulane players celebrate their conquest in the inaugural ConAgra Foods Hawai'i Bowl. |
 |
| Warrior reserve running back Josh Galeai takes an uncluttered path to the end zone for a 2-yard score in the second quarter. |
|
UH STAR OF THE GAME  |
| Justin Colbert had nine catches for 158 yards and two touchdowns. |
The Warriors, who entered as 12-point favorites, could not escape Tulane's quarterback-hungry pass rush nor catch punt returner Lynaris Elpheage in losing to Tulane, 36-28, in yesterday's nationally televised ConAgra Foods Hawai'i Bowl at Aloha Stadium.
The Warriors greeted the Green Wave with an animated Tongan dance during pre-game introductions. But 4 hours and 10 minutes later, the last dance was saved for the Green Wave.
"It's like Mardi Gras," defensive tackle Marlon Tickles said of the Green Wave's on-field celebration. "We knew we had a long flight back (to New Orleans), and we didn't want to be all somber on the plane, talking about 'woulda, shoulda, coulda.' We wanted to come out here to prove a point. ... Hey, we're not Grinches. We're not trying to steal anybody's Christmas. If we stole Christmas, man, I'm very sorry for the land of Hawai'i. We just wanted to have a happy Christmas for ourselves."
Tulane (8-5), representing Conference USA, did so with a defense that produced eight sacks, forced five fumbles, intercepted a pass and iced the victory with a safety.
The Green Wave took advantage of UH quarterback Tim Chang's absence and the Warriors' patch-work offensive line, of which guards Shayne Kajioka and Vince Manuwai were the only starting blockers playing their usual positions.
Early in the second quarter, Chang aggravated a thumb injury on his throwing hand. Chang, trying to scramble away from a manhunt, banged his right hand on a Green Wave defender while releasing a pass.
"It was kind of a freak, stupid accident," said Chang, noting X-rays did not show any serious injury.
Chang said there was immediate swelling, and he could not grip a football the rest of the game. "We thought about alternatives, but the best one was to rest and sit out this one," he said.
Chang departed, for good, with the Warriors leading 14-3. It was 14-6 at the intermission, when Tulane coach Chris Scelfo implored each player to make a difference.
"Coach said we had to do something to get our team lifted," Elpheage said. "We kind of came out flat."
Elpheage seized control. He fielded Mat McBriar's bouncing 42-yard punt at the Tulane 40, raced along the right sideline and kept going, completing a 60-yard return for a touchdown with 10:44 left in the third quarter.
"That was one of the turning points of the game," he said.
The second came on UH's next punt, which Elpheage parlayed into a 56-yard return, giving the Tulane possession at the UH 17.
"The guys blocked and all I did was run for daylight," Elpheage said. "As I was running, (the Warriors) were dropping like flies. I thanked my team for getting me an open spot."
Six plays later, quarterback J.P. Losman scored on a 1-yard sneak with 6:17 left in the third quarter. His ensuing two-point conversion run gave Tulane a 20-14 lead it would not relinquish.
"It's been a long week, dealing with the papers and stuff," Losman said. "I kind of got labeled as a guy who talks. But, you know, it wasn't anything like that. Really, I've got nothing but respect for the Hawai'i team. Man, they played great. They were such good sportsmen. But our guys just wanted it, man. We didn't come all of this way to lose. We knew in our hearts we would win, and luckily enough, we did."
Most of the credit went to Tulane defensive coordinator Eric Schumann, who decided to attack UH's run-and-shoot offense at the source — the quarterback. Schumann dropped as many as seven defenders in pass coverage, then turned "The Funk" — Tulane's defensive line — loose on Chang and then his replacement, Shawn Withy-Allen.
Schumann knew the Warriors had pieced together an offensive line in the last few days. Center Lui Fuata missed the last game because of a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee, and left tackle Wayne Hunter was unavailable because of back pain. Right tackle Uriah Moenoa moved to left tackle, third-year sophomore Ryan Santos made his first collegiate start at right tackle, and second-year freshman Derek Faavi started his third consecutive game.
"With Chang going out, that naturally hurt them," Schumann said. "And they had a couple of offensive linemen going out. ... We were able to get some pressure and some hits on the quarterback."
Defensive tackle Roxie Shelvin said Tulane's defensive strategy was to "play hard, play smart and play fast. We wanted to get to the quarterback as quick as possible and make him make bad throws."
Losman said he felt empathy for UH's quarterbacks.
"Oh, yeah, our defensive linemen disrupt me quite a few times in practice," said Losman, noting they often ignore the practice rule that prohibits hitting anyone wearing a red jersey. "They get me rattled up. They don't care if I've got the red jersey. They're right in my face, talking to me. They don't care."
"Hey," Tickles said, "that's just The Funk. We're The Funk. We bring The Funk."
Schumann said he deviated from his game plan twice. Once, he said, he called for an all-out blitz, which backfired when UH wideout Justin Colbert caught a hitch pass and raced 57 yards for a touchdown, closing UH to 26-21 with 13:26 left.
Later, on another blitz, Colbert made another catch-and-sprint touchdown, cutting the Warriors' deficit to 34-28 with 5:12 left.
"It was a dumb call on my part," Schumann said.
But UH would not threaten again, and Colbert summarized, "We just ran out of time. That's all. The guys fought hard, and I'm proud of all of my teammates."
The Warriors (10-4) failed in their attempt to tie the school record, set in 1992, of an 11-victory season.
"It's disappointing," Withy-Allen said.
• • •
2002 HAWAI'I SCHEDULE
GAME 1:
- Hawai'i 61, E. Illinois 36
- Aug. 31
- Aloha Stadium
- Series information: Second meeting
- Overall record: 2-0-0
- in Honolulu: 2-0-0
- Previous meeting: Sept. 11, 1999 (UH 31, EIU 27)
GAME 2:
- BYU 35, Hawai'i 32
- Sept. 6
- LaVell Edwards Stadium, Provo, Utah
- Series information: 27th meeting
- Overall record: 8-19-0
- in Honolulu: 8-11-0
- in Provo: 0-8-0
- First meeting: Dec. 10, 1930 (UH 49, BYU 13)
- Previous meeting: Dec. 8, 2001 (UH 72, BYU 45)
GAME 3:
- Hawai'i 31, UTEP 6
- Sept. 21
- Sun Bowl
- El Paso, Texas
- Series information: 29th meeting
- Overall record: 17-12-0
- in Honolulu: 11-5-0
- in El Paso: 6-7-0
- First meeting: Dec. 14, 1948 (UTEP 49, UH 6)
- Previous meeting: Oct. 13, 2001 (UH 66, UTEP 7)
GAME 4:
- Hawai'i 42, SMU 10
- Sept. 28
- Aloha Stadium
- Series information: Fifth meeting
- Overall record: 4-1-0
- in Honolulu: 2-1-0
- in Dallas: 2-0-0
- First meeting: Oct. 3, 1998 (SMU 28, UH 0)
- Previous meeting: Oct. 6, 2001 (UH 38, SMU 31, OT)
GAME 5:
- Boise State 58, Hawai'i 31
- Oct. 5
- Bronco Stadium
- Boise, Idaho
- Series
- information: Fifth meeting
- Overall record: 2-3-0
- in Honolulu: 2-2-0
- in Boise: 0-1-0
- First meeting: Sept 21, 1996 (UH 20, BSU 14)
- Previous meeting: Nov. 10, 2001 (BSU 28, UH 21)
GAME 6:
- Hawai'i 59, Nevada 34
- Oct. 12
- Aloha Stadium
- Series information: Seventh meeting
- Overall record: 3-4-0
- in Honolulu: 3-3-0
- in Reno: 0-1-0
- First meeting: Dec. 15, 1920 (UN 14, UH 0)
- Previous meeting: Sept. 22, 2001 (UN 28, UH 20)
GAME 7:
- Hawai'i 37, Tulsa 14
- Oct. 19
- Aloha Stadium
- Series information: Sixth meeting
- Overall record: 4-2-0
- in Honolulu: 2-1-0
- in Tulsa: 2-1-0
- First meeting: Sept. 22, 1951 (TU 58, UH 0)
- Previous meeting: Oct. 20, 2001 (UH 36, UT 15)
GAME 8:
- Hawai'i 31, Fresno State 21
- Oct. 25
- Bulldog Stadium
- Fresno, Calif.
- Series information: 35th meeting
- Overall Record: 16-18-1
- in Honolulu: 12-8-0
- in Fresno: 4-10-1
- First meeting: Nov. 18, 1938 (FSU 15, UH 13)
- Previous meeting: Oct. 26, 2001 (UH 38, FSU 34)
GAME 9:
- Hawai'i 40, San Jose State 31
- Nov. 2
- Aloha Stadium
- Series Information: 26th meeting
- Overall Record: 10-15-1
- in Honolulu: 8-10-0
- in San Jose: 2-5-1
- First meeting: Dec 11, 1936 (SJSU 13, UH 8)
- Previous meeting: Nov. 3, 2001 (UH 34, SJSU 10)
GAME 10:
- Hawai'i 33, Rice 28
- Nov. 16
- Rice Stadium
- Houston, Texas
- Series Information: Fourth meeting
- Overall Record: 1-3-0
- in Honolulu: 0-2-0;
- in Houston: 1-1-0
- First meeting: Oct. 10, 1999 (RU 38, UH 19)
- Previous meeting: Sept. 29, 2001 (RU 29, UH 24)
GAME 11:
- Hawai'i 20, Cincinnati 19
- Nov. 23
- Aloha Stadium
- Series information: Second meeting
- Overall record: 1-1-0
- in Honolulu: 1-1-0
- in Cincinnati: 0-0-0
- Previous meeting: Oct. 6, 1951 (UC 34, UH 0)
GAME 12
- Alabama 21, Hawai'i 16
- Nov. 30
- Aloha Stadium
- First Meeting
- Overall record: 0-1-0
- in Honolulu: 0-1-0
GAME 13:
- Hawai'i 41, San Diego State 40
- Dec. 7
- Aloha Stadium
- Series Information: 25th meeting
- Overall record: 8-15-2
- in Honolulu: 5-8-2;
- in San Diego: 3-7-0
- First meeting: Nov. 15, 1939 (UH 13, SDSU 0).
- Previous meeting: Oct. 9, 1998 (SDSU 35, UH 13)
GAME 14:
- Tulane 36, Hawai'i 28
- ConAgra Hawai'i Bowl
- Dec. 25
- Aloha Stadium
- Series Information: Third meeting
- Overall record: 2-1-0
- in Honolulu: 2-1-0
- Previous meeting: Dec. 4, 1993 (UH 56, Tulane 17)
• • •
How they scored
At Aloha Stadium
HAWAI'I 7 7 0 14 — 28
TULANE 0 6 20 10 — 36
FIRST QUARTER (Time UH TU)
- UH—Thero Mitchell 1 run (Justin Ayat kick) 10:34 7 0
SECOND QUARTER
- UH—Josh Galeai 2 run (Ayat kick) 8:35 14 0
- TU—FG Seth Marler 23 5:01 14 3
- TU—FG Marler 37 2:28 14 6
THIRD QUARTER
- TU—Lynaris Elpheage 60 punt return (pass failed) 10:44 14 12
- TU—J.P. Losman 1 run (Losman run) 6:17 14 20
- TU—Mewelde Moore 25 run (pass failed) 2:16 14 26
FOURTH QUARTER
- UH—Justin Colbert 57 pass from Shawn Withy-Allen (Ayat kick) 13:26 21 26
- TU—Losman 3 run (Damarcus Davis pass from Losman) 8:54 21 34
- UH—Colbert 31 pass from Withy-Allen (Ayat kick) 5:12 28 34
- TU—Team safety 3:02 28 36 Attendance—35,513 (tickets distributed), 25,000 (estimate).
• • •
Scoring drives
FIRST QUARTER
- HAWAI'I — 7 plays, 64 yards, 2:05 elapsed time. Thero Mitchell 1 run. Justin Ayat kick. Big plays: Timmy Chang 14 pass to Jeremiah Cockheran, Chang 39 pass to Justin Colbert to Tulane 15, Chang 15 pass to John West to Tulane 1. Time: 10:34. Score: Hawai'i 7, Tulane 0.
SECOND QUARTER
- HAWAI'I — 8 plays, 65 yards, 2:21 elapsed time. Josh Galeai 2 run. Ayat kick. Big plays: Chang 11 pass to Colbert, Chang 13 run, Chang 25 pass to Britton Komine to Tulane 16, Tulane called for pass interference in end zone puts ball on 2. Time: 8:35. Score: Hawai'i 14, Tulane 0.
- TULANE — 11 plays, 74 yards, 3:34 elapsed time. Seth Marler 22 field goal. Big plays: Mewelde Moore runs of 11, 7 and 8 yards, Losman 11 pass to Chris Bush to UH 9. Time: 5:01. Score: Hawai'i 14, Tulane 3.
- TULANE — 9 plays, 57 yards, 1:46 elapsed time. Marler 37 field goal. Big play: Losman 11 pass to Nick Narcisse, Losman 14 pass to Moore, pass interference puts ball on UH 38, Losman 20 pass to Bobby Hoover to UH 18. Time: 2:28. Score: Hawai'i 14, Tulane 6.
THIRD QUARTER
- TULANE — Lynaris Elpheage 60 punt return. Pass failed. Time: 10:44. Score: Hawai'i 14, Tulane 12.
- TULANE — 6 plays, 17 yards, 1:53 elapsed time. Losman 1 run. Losman run. Big plays: Elpheage 56 punt return to UH 17, Losman 5 pass to Narcisse, Losman 8 pass to Carl Davis to UH 4. Time: 6:17. Score: Tulane 20, Hawai'i 14.
- TULANE — 2 plays, 40 yards, 21 seconds elapsed time. Moore 25 run. Pass failed. Big plays: Tulane's Terrence Tarver recovers Withy-Allen fumble at Tulane 44 and returned to UH 40, Moore 15 run to UH 25. Time: 2:16. Score: Tulane 26, Hawai'i 14.
FOURTH QUARTER
- HAWAI'I — 6 plays, 86 yards, 2:39 elapsed time. Withy-Allen 57 pass to Colbert. Ayat kick. Big play: Withy-Allen 12 run. Time: 13:26. Score: Tulane 26, Hawai'i 21.
- TULANE — 10 plays, 80 yards, 4:32 elapsed time. Losman 3 run. Losman pass to Damarcus Davis. Big plays: Losman 11 run, Losman 15 pass to Moore on 3rd-and-3, Losman 12 run to UH 29, Losman 28 pass to Moore on 3rd-and-12 to UH 3. Time: 8:54. Score: Tulane 34, Hawai'i 21.
- HAWAI'I — 8 plays, 74 yards, 3:42 elapsed time. Withy-Allen 31 pass to Colbert. Ayat kick. Big plays: Withy-Allen 29 run, Withy-Allen 16 pass to Cockheran to Tulane 31. Time: 5:12. Score: Tulane 34, Hawai'i 28.
- TULANE — Team safety. Withy-Allen tackled in end zone by Roxie Shelvin, ball fumbled out of bounds. Time: 3:02. Score: Tulane 36, Hawai'i 28.
