WARRIORS NOTEBOOK
Chang remains starter at QB
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By Stephen Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer
University of Hawai'i football coach June Jones yesterday reaffirmed his commitment to Tim Chang, declaring, "He's our quarterback. That's it."
In a 59-28 victory over Army Saturday, Chang, a fourth-year junior from Saint Louis School, was 25 of 43 for 356 yards and two touchdowns. In the process, he became the seventh player in NCAA history to amass 12,000 career passing yards.
Tim Chang will be the starting quarterback against Alabama.
But Chang threw three interceptions, including one that was returned 79 yards for a touchdown.
Backup quarterback Jason Whieldon, playing alongside several reserve players for one series in the second quarter and the entire fourth quarter, misfired on his first pass, then completed 16 in a row. He finished 16 of 17 for 178 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions.
But Jones told The Advertiser "there is no quarterback controversy," and that Chang would start against Alabama this week.
"I'm not into rotating quarterbacks or a quarterback controversy," Jones said. "The media is. I'm not."
When asked what he sees in Chang, Jones said: "I see that Timmy is our quarterback. That's what I see."
Jones added: "(Chang) throws the ball quicker. He throws deeper better. He can do a lot of things that go unnoticed."
Chang said: "He's the coach. He makes the call."
Jones said Nolan Miranda, a second-year freshman from Castle High, will be UH's placekicker against Alabama. In his collegiate debut against Army, Miranda converted a 32-yard field goal and all eight extra-point kicks. Miranda has replaced Justin Ayat, who led the Western Athletic Conference in field-goal percentage before enduring a recent slump. He has missed his past four field-goal attempts.
Jones said the kicking situation differs from the one at quarterback because the kicker's role is "an individual thing. That's a one-guy deal, not an 11-guy deal."
Jones said Ayat will be used on kickoffs, as he was against Army.
"I think Justin will get back to working himself out of whatever funk he's in," Jones said.
• Rivers gets into the flow: Jones has been pleased with the development of freshman receiver Jason Rivers, one of the keys to the 2003 recruiting class. The 6-foot-2 Rivers struggled early in the season, prompting a challenge to step up from Jones.
Rivers did not start against Army, but he came in and caught five passes for 117 yards and a touchdown. On the score, Rivers caught an inside screen, broke free from two defenders while maintaining his balance and sprinted the rest of the way to complete the 59-yard play.
"Repetition in practice makes me more sure of what I'm doing," Jason Rivers said.
"That showed my leg is good," said Rivers, who has fully recovered from a pulled hamstring.
Of his breakout performance, Rivers said, "Repetition in practice makes me more sure of what I'm doing."
Jones said: "We knew he was going to be a good player, and by the middle or late in the year he would be able to contribute. He's been able to do that, that's for sure. He's worked hard. When he first started out, he didn't know how to practice. He didn't know what was expected of him. He tries hard and he's getting better every day. He has the tools, so he has a chance to be pretty good."
Reach Stephen Tsai at stsai@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8051.
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