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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Wednesday, October 2, 2002

NOTEBOOK
Jones cool about weather forecast at Boise State

By Stephen Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer

As the joke goes, it will be so chilly in Boise, Idaho this week even Bronco Stadium's turf will be blue.

But Hawai'i coach June Jones, whose football team will play at Boise State Saturday, said neither Saturday's expected chilly weather nor Bronco Stadium's blue-colored artificial turf will be a factor.

The National Weather Service predicts Saturday's mercury will dip to lows of 18-33 degrees with highs of 47-62. There is a 50-percent chance of "snow showers" tomorrow, when the team arrives in Boise.

When asked about the weather forecast, Jones coolly said, "It won't be cold."

When asked if Bronco Stadium's custom-made blue turf will be a distraction, Jones said, 'No, I wouldn't think so."

For the first two road trips, the Warriors departed three nights before the game and practiced twice at area high schools. This time, the Warriors practice tomorrow morning at UH, then depart by charter flight that afternoon. They will have one pre-game practice in Boise.

Jones decided to schedule a later departure time because Boise "is a little closer" to Hawai'i. UH's previous two road games — in Provo, Utah, and El Paso, Texas — also were in the Mountain time zone.

Rhode trip?: Fourth-string quarterback Jeff Rhode will learn by tomorrow whether he is included on the Warriors' 60-player travel roster. Rhode's brother, B.J. Rhode, is Boise State's starting quarterback.

"It would be nice to make that trip," said Jeff Rhode, a second-year freshman from Eugene, Ore. "Just getting there would be unbelievable. I could see my brother, and all of my family is coming over. It would be an awesome experience."

The Rhode brothers spent time together at the family home this summer. "He used to give me some tips before," Jeff said. "But that was a long time ago. ... I made sure he never saw my (UH) playbook. I made sure I kept mine well hidden when he was home."

Oddly enough, Rhode was not used as the scout team's quarterback yesterday. The scout team simulates the opposing team's plays.

"I think I'm going to do it" today, he said. "I'm going to give (UH defenders) the real Rhode look, let them see what they're going to see on Saturday night."

How low can you go?: Opposing offensive linemen, according to UH coaches, are sinking to new lows to try to stop defensive tackles Lance Samuseva and Isaac Sopoaga.

"They're cutting us week after week because they can't move them," said Vantz Singletary, who coaches UH's defensive linemen.

In the season opener against Eastern Illinois, UH defensive tackle Lui Fuga suffered a season-ending injury when a lineman lunged at his left leg. That tactic was questionable because Fuga was being held by another player at the time. UH's last two opponents, Texas-El Paso and Southern Methodist, use the legal technique of blocking a defender's knees on one-on-one plays.

"I know it's got to be frustrating for the offenses to try to run (Samuseva and Sopoaga) off the line of scrimmage," Singletary said.

Singletary said he instructs his defensive tackles to "play low, defend at the knees," and to try and sense when a blocker will attack below the belt. He also motivates them to get "personally pissed off every snap. ... I'm looking for something to fire them up."

Samuseva and Sopoaga have been credited with sparking UH's defense. The Warriors lead the Western Athletic Conference in scoring defense. In UH's defensive scheme, the defensive tackles try to absorb as many blockers as possible, opening the way for the linebackers to swoop in for tackles.

"Without them, I would get destroyed out there," middle linebacker Chris Brown said. "Isaac can take on two guys, then we can float in."

Samuseva endured several injuries last season. Sopoaga, who was raised in American Samoa and attended junior college in California, did not play last year while trying to earn an associate degree.

"It took me a while to get back in it," Sopoaga said. "My first two games, I was a little bit slow."

Now, Singletary said, "any time you get two big bulls like Lance and Isaac, it makes it easy for the entire defense. The other nine guys should be buying them Rolex watches."