The University of Hawai'i football team may or may not be viewing Rocky II this weekend.

UNLV quarterback Rocky Hinds II said it will be a "game-day decision" as to his availability for Saturday's game against UH at Aloha Stadium.

In last Saturday's 16-10 road loss to Iowa State, Hinds left after three plays in the second quarter because of an injured right knee.

A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) Sunday did not show "tearing" of the anterior cruciate ligament or medial collateral ligament, school officials announced on the UNLV Web site yesterday.

UNLV head coach Mike Sanford said Hinds has a sprained knee and is questionable for the UH game, according to the site.

Hinds missed his senior season at California's St. Bernard High School because of an injured right knee.

Of the latest injury, Hinds told The Advertiser, "I didn't feel it was that bad. But it was a big relief to know for sure."

Hinds, a third-year sophomore, did not compete in contact drills yesterday afternoon.

Asked if he would play against UH, he said: "I'm not sure. I'm taking it day by day. I should know by Saturday."

The Warriors have had difficulty plotting schemes to slow Hinds, who is 6 feet 5, 220 pounds and can run 100 meters in 10.4 seconds. The Rebels use a variation of Florida's four-wide, spread-option offense, which was successful two years ago at Utah. Freshman Malcolm Lane, who is 6 feet 4, has portrayed Hinds during UH's defensive drills.

Hinds redshirted as a freshman at Southern California in 2004. At the time, he was poised to compete as the eventual successor to Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart. Instead, he transferred to UNLV.

"(UNLV) is a better fit," Hinds said.

If Hinds is unavailable to play, Shane Steichen, who started five games last season, will start at quarterback.

ILAOA, LAFAELE PRACTICE, PETERS, ELIMIMIAN DON'T

Two UH players who did not compete in contact drills last week — running back Nate Ilaoa and nose tackle Michael Lafaele — practiced yesterday.

"I feel fine," said Ilaoa, who suffered a concussion in the second quarter of the 25-17 loss to Alabama on Sept. 2. UH had a bye this past weekend. "I felt fine a long time ago."

Lafaele was used sparingly against Alabama because of a sore left heel. He wore a medical boot during last week's three practices.

"I'm not really 100 percent," Lafaele said. "We'll see how it is. Coming back for the first day, it feels pretty good. It feels better than I thought it would."

But two key defenders — free safety Leonard Peters (broken cartilage in rib cage) and buck linebacker Solomon Elimimian (sprained right knee) — were spectators.

Peters said he hopes to resume practicing today. Dane Porlas has worked out with the first-string defense.

Elimimian is not expected to try to run until tomorrow.

"Unless he gets out there on the field and starts to run, then you can more or less know what his future is like," said Cal Lee, who coaches the inside linebackers. "I think he's shooting for Wednesday. If he can run and feel good, that's all the better. But until we see him running, it's hard to tell how he's feeling."

Brad Kalilimoku, who moved from strong safety to outside linebacker to inside linebacker in a three-day period, is the likely replacement for Elimimian.

"He's at home," defensive coordinator Jerry Glanville said of Kalilimoku, who started all 12 games at inside linebacker last season. "He can play there every snap. He's the starting inside linebacker today, but today we're not playing. We've had three days off, and (Kalilimoku) didn't lose his spot."

Blaze Soares, a three-time All-State linebacker at Castle High School, also has practiced at inside linebacker. But Soares did not play last season to focus on academic issues. That gives Kalilimoku the edge.

"(Kalilimoku) started how many games last year?" Lee said. "Now he's back. He'll fit in nicely. It's like riding a bike. You saw him riding a bike. He can ride a bike. He has the experience, knowledge. But Blaze isn't that far behind."

Kalilimoku said: "I'm trying to get it back as quickly as I can. It's slowly coming back. But it is way more comfortable (at linebacker) than at safety. It shouldn't be a problem for me."