By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Columnist

The University of Hawai'i football team returned to practice this week for the Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl and, of all the positions, you have to figure the competition to be the starting quarterback should be especially spirited.

If you are a quarterback, this is the game to start. Even in what has become an endless 14-game season, this is one to look forward to.

Not just because it is a bowl game in front of an ESPN national cable audience, but because it is against the University of Houston defense in front of a national cable audience.

Let's put it this way: The two most prolific total offense outputs in NCAA Division I-A this year both came against the Cougars.

Coincidence? The numbers suggest otherwise.

Louisville hung 779 yards on Houston in a 66-45 victory in November and Texas Christian rang up 782 yards in a 62-55 win in October. By comparison, Michigan had an off-day with just 536 yards in a 50-3 triumph in September.

Throw in Houston's ranking of 101st (among 117 teams) in points (35 per game) surrendered this year and this can be a Christmas wish come true for whoever the fortunate Warriors' starter turns out to be.

We are told the announcement of Hawai'i's choice of a starting quarterback will be a game-day one. Not that it should much matter, of course.

Either Tim Chang or Jason Whieldon, who have each started games, are capable of finding the Hawai'i Bowl opportunity easily their best present of the day. Especially after the torment of the last one against Boise State.

The Cougars perhaps had an inkling they could be in for trouble when they returned just five defensive starters for this season and were looking for a lot of young faces to step in even while they changed from a 4-2-5 to a 4-3 scheme.

It got worse when their top pass rusher, defensive end Farouk Adelekan, was lost early to a season-ending leg injury and defensive tackle Matthew Bentley missed four weeks. So far, four freshmen have started on defense.

But what has been a struggle for the Cougars has made for a postseason blessing for the game they now play in. Throw in Houston's own propensity to put up points — an average of 33.3 per game — and this one has the potential of a four-quarter score-a-thon.

Last one with the ball wins? "That's what everybody's telling me," said, Kevin Kolb, the Cougar quarterback.

Small wonder one on-line sports service ranked the game as the second "best opportunity for a shootout" among the 28-bowl game field.

Which, if you are a Warrior quarterback, should be promise enough to take the edge off having to practice up to Christmas.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.