Akron replacement still being sought

By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Staff Writer

The University of Hawai'i is still seeking a Division I-A replacement for the impending loss of Akron as its season-opening football opponent, athletic director Herman Frazier said.

Akron, which has been scheduled to open UH's season on Aug. 30, is expected to opt out of the date and play Kent State on Aug. 28 on Fox Sports Ohio.

An announcement could come as soon as today, when the Mid-America Conference, of which Akron is a member, has said it will release its schedule.

An Akron spokesman said "nothing is official yet," but callers inquiring about the Hawai'i trip have been told the game is off.

Frazier said UH has been in contact with several possible replacements and as late as last week thought it had secured Indiana, "but that deal fell through." An IU spokesman confirmed negotiations had broken off and the Hoosiers had made other arrangements but said, "we'd like to come in the future."

Earlier, ESPN had approached UH about playing Iowa State in an Aug. 29 game at 3 p.m. at Aloha Stadium, but Frazier said he vetoed the switch because it would have inconvenienced fans. Iowa State has since filled in that weekend with Northern Iowa

Akron has sought to move out of the Aug. 30 date because it didn't want to travel the week before playing Wisconsin.

In the event a I-A team can't be lined up, Frazier said, "we can always pick up a I-AA team, but we haven't (resorted) to that yet."

UH has the option of leaving the Aug. 30 date empty and plugging in an opponent on either Sept. 6 or Dec. 6. UH had hoped to leave Sept. 6 as an open date before playing at Southern California and Nevada-Las Vegas. In addition, ESPN has asked UH to consider playing defending Western Athletic Conference champion Boise State on Dec. 6 as part of the network's "Championship Week."

One way or another, Frazier said he wants to have the schedule completed before the end of March so UH can begin sales of season ticket renewals.