ANALYSIS
Broncos can run and shoot, too

By Stephen Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer

Boise State's balanced offense is more of a concern to the University of Hawai'i than game conditions.

BOISE, Idaho — According to University of Hawai'i football players, neither the chill (the mercury is expected to drop into the 40s by the fourth quarter) nor college football's only blue field will be an obstacle in tonight's game at Bronco Stadium.

"The biggest challenge," UH middle linebacker Chris Brown said, "is Boise State. That's a good football team."

Here's a look at tonight's Western Athletic Conference game:

BSU'S PASSING

• LWR—8 Billy Wingfield, 5-10, 176, Sr.
• LWR—87 Tim Gilligan, 5-9, 175, Jr.
• RWR/TE—1 Jay Swillie, 6-3, 221, Sr.
• RWR—84 Lou Fanucchi, 5-11, 195, Sr.
• TE—86 Rocky Atkinson, 6-3, 237, Sr.
• QB—11 B.J. Rhode, 6-5, 231, Sr.

Outlook: With Ryan Dinwiddie on the mend — he won't begin practicing until at least next week — Rhode, the older brother of UH reserve quarterback Jeff Rhode, steps in as the starter. Rhode entered the season with 60 passing attempts in three seasons, but has thrown 88 this season, including 28 against Utah State last week. Although he threw for 376 yards in that game, 13 of his 17 completions were in the first half. He has a strong arm and is tough to bring down.

Last year, the Broncos used tight end Jeb Putzier as a deep threat, clearing the underneath passing lanes for the speedy wideouts. When Putzier departed, so did that strategy. Last week, the Broncos tried the Band-aid approach of moving Swillie to tight end, allowing Fanucchi (4.49 seconds over 40 yards) to open at wideout. Fanucchi and Wingfield (4.47 seconds in the 40) are the Broncos' fastest tandem. Still, Rhode will look for Swillie, who has earned the nickname "First Down Swillie." During his career, 92 of his 119 catches have resulted in a first down or touchdown.

BSU'S RUSHING

• LT—73 Daryn Colledge, 6-5, 288, Fr.
• LG—58 Matt Navest, 6-4, 297, Sr.
• C—56 Scott Huff, 6-2, 300, Sr.
• RG—78 Rob Vian, 6-5, 316, Sr.
• RT—61 Rusty Colburn, 6-5, 313, So.
• FB—33 Matt Strohfus, 6-2, 233, Sr.
• TB—36 Brock Forsey, 6-0, 198, Sr.
• TB—3 David Mikell, 5-11, 204, Jr.

Outlook: Mikell is the Broncos' fastest player (4.4 seconds over 40 yards), but Forsey is the toughest runner. A diplomatic solution was starting both tailbacks in a split formation, although that arrangement deprives the Broncos of Strohfus' blocking. The Broncos' pet running play is the counter, with the backside guard and tackle pulling.

During the offseason, the line bulked up, gaining an average of 13.2 pounds per blocker.

BSU'S DEFENSIVE FRONT

• LE—92 Julius Roberts, 6-5, 234, So.
• LT—69 Dane Oldham, 6-3, 265, Jr.
• RT—98 Bobby Hammer, 6-2, 269, Sr.
• RE—99 Ryan Nelson, 6-1, 247, Sr.
• SLB—13 Travis Burgher, 6-1, 209, Jr.
• MLB—55 Chauncey Ako, 5-11, 234, Jr.
• WLB—40 Andy Avalos, 5-10, 213, Fr.

Outlook: Tony Altieri was the top interior lineman before suffering a season-ending neck injury in last year's fifth game. He's finally back, as a backup, in the Broncos' shifting schemes. The Broncos often attack by criss-crossing linebackers with, say, Ako taking on a guard and Avalos sneaking into the backfield. The inside power usually comes from the fittingly named Hammer, who has two sacks.

BSU'S SECONDARY

• LCB—16 Gabe Franklin, 5-10, 177, Jr.
• R—9 Quintin Mikell, 5-10, 205, Sr.
• FS—21 Wes Nurse, 5-10, 190, Jr.
• RCB—6 Julius Brown, 5-10, 176, Jr.

Outlook: Until rapid development of UH's Hyrum Peters, Mikell was widely regarded as the WAC's best defensive player. Mikell, a mixture of speed and power, is a fourth-year starter who often takes on the tight end. With UH not employing a tight end in the run-and-shoot offense, Mikell probably will be assigned to slotback Chad Owens, the Warriors' top receiver. This should be the game's key matchup. Brown, who is the best cover corner, will go against UH's Justin Colbert.

BSU'S SPECIALISTS

• PK—19 Nick Calaycay, 5-7, 169, So.
• P—37 Keith Shuttler, 5-11, 210, Sr.
• KR—3 David Mikell, 5-11, 204, Jr.
• PR—87 Tim Gilligan, 5-8, 164, So.

Outlook: Gilligan has rebounded after being sucker-tackled while waiting to catch punts in consecutive games against Tulsa and Fresno State last season. Gilligan rarely calls for fair catches.

Calaycay, who missed the first four games with a knee injury, is expected to play. He converted 15 of 16 field-goal attempts in 2000, but only 5 of 10 last season. That's better than his replacement, Tyler Jones, who missed 4 of 5 this season.

UH'S PASSING

• LWR—18 Justin Colbert, 5-8, 170, Sr.
• LSB—2 Chad Owens, 5-9, 177, So.
• RSB—4 Nate Ilaoa, 5-9, 204, Fr.
• RWR—88 Neal Gossett, 5-10, 177, Sr.
• QB—14 Tim Chang, 6-2, 191, So.

Outlook: Chang's broken right pinkie is completely healed, and now he can show if his road troubles also can be fixed. Chang is 5-5 in games at Aloha Stadium; 1-5 in Mainland games. He is expected to wear a long-sleeved thermo undershirt to offset the chilly weather.

In the first four games, opposing defenses have dropped safeties into zone coverage and pressed the cornerbacks near the line of scrimmage. For UH, the counter punch might be wideout Jeremiah Cockheran, who has zone-breaking speed. Cockheran nearly broke away for a long touchdown reception last week.

UH'S RUSHING

• LT—70 Wayne Hunter, 6-6, 299, Jr.
• LG—77 Shayne Kajioka, 6-3, 308, Jr.
• C—53 Lui Fuata, 6-2, 315, Sr.
• RG—65 Vince Manuwai, 6-2, 309, Sr.
• RT—69 Uriah Moenoa, 6-3, 327, So.
• RB—24 Thero Mitchell, 5-10, 210, Sr.
• RB—20 John West, 5-10, 180, Jr.

Outlook: Running back Mike Bass, who won't play because of a partially torn posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, will be missed. Bass is an improved blocker who has the first-step quickness to break free when defenses drop back into pass-prevent coverages. He also is a threat on screen plays. Mitchell is a good blocker, but he does not have Bass' quickness. West is as quick as Bass, but isn't as good a blocker.

UH'S DEFENSIVE FRONT

• LE—58 La'anui Correa, 6-5, 264, Sr.
• LE—11 Kevin Jackson, 6-5, 229, Jr.
• LT—97 Isaac Sopoaga, 6-3, 315, Jr.
• RT—92 Lance Samuseva, 5-11, 290, Jr.
• RE—93 Houston Ala, 6-1, 250, Jr.
• RE—1 Travis Laboy, 6-4, 249, Jr.
• SLB—44 Matt Wright, 6-1, 225, Sr.
• MLB—54 Chris Brown, 6-1, 255, Sr.
• WLB—10 Pisa Tinoisamoa, 6-0, 218, Sr.

Outlook: The Warriors' best blockers might be on the defensive side. In the last two games, Sopoaga and Samuseva have used power moves to collapse the pocket, opening the way for the linebackers and defensive ends to storm the backfield for tackles. Even at 315 pounds, Sopoaga has been too quick to block one-on-one. Samuseva, who attacks out of a low stance, also draws double teams.

UH'S SECONDARY

• LCB—24 Kenny Patton, 6-0, 170, Fr.
• SS—33 Hyrum Peters, 5-8, 188, Jr.
• FS—17 David Gilmore, 6-0, 197, Jr.
• FS—42 Leonard Peters, 6-1, 174, Fr.
• RCB—3 Kelvin Millhouse, 6-1, 205, Jr.

Outlook: Patton's debut as a starter went well last week, but he now faces an experienced offense that is two deep at receiver. The Warriors will miss the experience of cornerback Abraham Elimimian, who did not make the trip because of a pulled right hamstring.

UH'S SPECIALISTS

• PK—47 Justin Ayat, 5-11, 195, So.
• P—49 Mat McBriar, 6-0, 221, Sr.
• KR—6 Michael Brewster, 5-6, 176, So.
• PR—21 Clifton Herbert, 5-8, 157, Jr.

Outlook: Boise's slight elevation will be a boost for McBriar, who has been practicing his sky punts in short-kicking situations. While most punters would be happy placing punts inside an opponent's 20, McBriar has set a goal of dropping kicks inside the 10. He said the different form used on sky punts has not affected his distance on regular punts. McBriar's average of 43.9 yards would lead the WAC except he does not have the minimum of 3.6 attempts per game, due in large part to the success of the Warriors' offense.