UH SPORTS
Hurricane faces uphill battle
By Stephen Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer
During Thursday's University of Hawai'i football practice, Garrett Dearing, who was portraying Tulsa's tight end in a drill to help the UH defense prepare for tonight's game, crumpled on the wet grass. The early diagnosis was Dearing had suffered a sprained right knee.
And, so, it had come to this for Tulsa: Even people pretending to be Hurricane players cannot escape misfortune.
Tulsa has not won since the 2001 opener against Division I-AA Indiana State, a span of 16 games, the longest current losing streak in Division I-A football.
Tulsa is 0-6 this season, including 0-2 in the Western Athletic Conference. It has lost 10 consecutive WAC games.
Three of the four projected starting defensive linemen have missed time because of injuries, and tight end Brad Hawkins, one of 11 seniors, has yet to play this season because of a knee injury. Defensive back C.J. Scott, a key player in the Hurricane's nickel defense, suffered a knee injury Tuesday and did not make the trip.
While UH revealed last week that turf burns led to three players suffering bacterial infections, Tulsa has a grislier medical story. Two years ago, Tulsa backup defensive tackle Wil Goff underwent a painful recovery from the so-called "flesh-eating bacteria."
When asked how his team has endured this season on the blink, third-year coach Keith Burns said, "It takes a lot of character."
Burns has remained upbeat, although he admittedly fell off the sugar wagon. "I'm hitting the hard stuff again," he said, noting his thirst for Dr Pepper, although he still is down from the 10 to 12 cans he drank daily two years ago. Sometimes he will mix in Diet Dr Pepper.
The sweet-and-low season has been somewhat of a surprise considering Tulsa has aggressively expanded its recruiting reach in recent years. Running back Eric Richardson, wideout Montiese Culton and cornerback Sherman Steptoe were members of the Duncanville High (Texas) team that won a state championship. Wideout Jerome Janet, the only Parade All-American from Oklahoma in the past 10 years, is eligible this season after transferring from Kansas State last year. Quarterback Tyler Gooch's progress led to Josh Blankenship's decision to transfer from Tulsa last year.
But Burns said Tulsa has suffered through growing pains. Of the 11 seniors, only five are on the two-deep chart, including backup kicker Ricky Tallant.
In analyzing the downfall, the Tulsa World newspaper theorized Tulsa's problems could be traced partly to 1991, its last winning season. That was the year the school dropped the Health, Physical Education and Recreation program as a bachelor's degree. The Tulsa World found 40 percent of football and basketball players were HPER majors. The HPER curriculum, widely used in the junior colleges, made it difficult for the school to accept transfers.
The outlook is brighter for next season, when the Hurricane might have up to 26 seniors. Burns, whose original five-year contract runs through 2004, appears to have the security to build the program.
Meanwhile, Burns has tried to develop unity by watching ESPN games with the players on Thursday, and setting up weekly team trips to the movies. He allows the seniors to choose the movie.
Burns also is following the lead of his mentor, Nevada-Las Vegas coach John Robinson, who was successful at Southern California and with the Los Angeles Rams. Most of the Hurricane's home practices are open to the public.
"John Robinson was the best at it," Burns said. "He never closed a practice. He wanted the team to get used to the people and exposure. We've got some regulars, people who hear the sound of pads popping and they run on down. We're building this thing. As long as we walk off the field knowing we're improving, we're making progress."
