BOISE, Idaho — Most visiting football teams are transfixed on Bronco Stadium's one-of-a-kind blue artificial surface.

Coupled with Boise State's identically colored blue home jerseys, the turf "is supposed to mesmerize you," Hawai'i free safety Leonard Peters said.

A greater concern should be what the Warriors, who play Boise State today, cannot see: Boise's thiner air and cooler temperatures.

The thin air creates less resistance on an airborne football, making passes and punts sail. The football also feels more solid.

"The key is make the adjustments to the football," said UH quarterback Colt Brennan, who learned to adapt to high altitude during his freshman year at the University of Colorado. "You have to let a little air out of the ball. Al (Ginoza, the equipment specialist) and Marissa (Bonilla, senior student manager) do a great job in adjusting the football. They make my job a lot easier."

UH coach June Jones is not concerned about the reputed effect thin air has on stamina.

"With what we do, our player are in excellent condition," Jones said. "Our receivers run the equivalent of 100 windsprints every day. We're going to rotate players, too, so none of that should be a problem."

As for an opponent wearing blue jerseys against a blue backdrop, Brennan said: "We're not worried about the blue field. We're worried about the guys in the blue jerseys."

Here's a look at today's game:

UH OFFENSE

HT. WT. YR.

LWO 88 Chad Mock 6-0 177 Sr.

LWO 84 Jason Rivers 6-2 192 Jr.

LSB 7 Davone Bess 5-10 195 So.

LT 70 Tala Esera 6-4 308 Sr.

LG 65 Hercules Satele 6-2 288 Jr.

C 64 Samson Satele 6-3 298 Sr.

RG 55 John Estes 6-2 290 Fr.

RT 72 Dane Uperesa 6-4 305 Sr.

RSB 1 Ryan Grice-Mullins 5-11 179 So.

RWO 82 Ross Dickerson 5-10 198 Sr.

RWO 3 Ian Sample 5-10 196 Sr.

QB1 5 Colt Brennan 6-3 196 Jr.

RB 4 Nate Ilaoa 5-9 250 Sr.

RB3 4 Reagan Mauia 6-0 285 Sr.

Outlook: Ilaoa, who is relatively healthy for the first time in his six-year UH career, provides several threats. In the past, defenses would counter the four-wide offense with multiple blitzes or dropping two extra defenders into the passing lanes. With Ilaoa in the mix, defenses no longer can set the terms.

Against aggressive pass-rushes, Ilaoa sneaks into the open for shovel passes or slip screens. When defenses drop back into pass coverage, Ilaoa is effective on draws and the Warriors' pet running play, "Tampa Right," in which Ilaoa follows pulling guard Hercules Satele to the right perimeter.

Ilaoa also is a tough second-effort guy. His yards-after-the-catch average is 13.6 yards. He breaks an average of 1.4 tackles per run.

In preparing for this game, the Broncos had difficulty casting a player to portray Ilaoa in practices. "We wanted to put a lineman in there, but the problem is no lineman can move like (Ilaoa)," Bronco defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox said: "You can't really simulate a guy like that. There aren't too many 250-pound guys who can run like him."

For last week's game, the Warriors were supposed to rotate the wideouts every other play. Those plans were scrapped at left wideout, when Rivers was benched for the first half after showing up late for a meeting. The plan will be revised for this game. Also, Grice-Mullins' groin injury might lead to more playing time for Aaron Bain and Patrick Olchovy.

UH DEFENSE

LE 98 Melila Purcell III 6-5 276 Sr.

NT 67 Michael Lafaele 6-0 302 Jr.

RE 91 Ikaika Alama-Francis 6-6 285 Sr.

LOLB 8 Tyson Kafentzis 6-1 230 So.

ILB 44 Adam Leonard 6-0 236 So.

ILB 43 Brad Kalilimoku 5-10 213 Jr.

ROLB 33 C.J. Allen-Jones 6-1 224 So.

LCB 24 Kenny Patton 6-0 188 Sr.

FS 42 Leonard Peters 6-1 217 Sr.

SS 31 Jake Patek 6-0 202 Jr.

RCB 34 A.J. Martinez 5-10 179 Jr.

Outlook: The UH coaches have implored their players to remain focused when defending the Broncos' multi-faceted offense. "The biggest thing with them is to separate the window dressing and the play," said Jeff Reinebold, who coaches the scout team that portrays the Broncos' offense in practices. "They do a great job of giving you multiple formations, multiple personnel groups, multiple motions and shifts. You need to have the concentration to understand it's the final formation that counts, not all of the movement before the snap. There's a rhyme and reason for everything they do."

For instance, the Broncos often motion two players to one side — a tactic used to determine whether the Warriors are in man or zone coverage. "When they align here or step there, those are things that have a definite clue for us as to what the final outcome will be," Reinebold said.

The Warriors' to-do list tops with stopping the run — the Broncos prefer to run between the tackles — and containing quarterback Jared Zabransky.

Solomon Elimimian, the UH inside linebacker who made the defensive calls, probably won't play because of a partially torn medial collateral ligament in his right knee. He has practiced once since suffering the injury Sept. 2, and yesterday he left the field with a thick ice pack on his right knee.

But Elimimian's understudy, Kalilimoku, might be a better fit against the Broncos. Kalilimoku, who can run 40 yards in 4.5 seconds, is quick enough to shut down the running lanes, serve as an inside blitzer and defend against screen passes.

"He might be considered short for what others do, but we don't do what others do," defensive coordinator Jerry Glanville said. "I need my linebackers to be quick, and Brad has a motor."

Patton and Martinez, who has a groin injury, are the starting cornerbacks. They are playing more for their tackling than their pass coverage.

"If you want to play for Jerry (Glanville), you'd better be able to hit," Jones said. "Those two can hit."

UH SPECIALISTS

PK 86 Daniel Kelly 6-3 202 So.

P/H 25 Kurt Milne 6-0 205 Sr.

LS 57 Jake Ingram 6-4 268 So.

KR 24 Kenny Patton 6-0 188 Sr.

KR 82 Ross Dickerson 5-10 198 Sr.

PR 19 C.J. Hawthorne 5-11 161 Jr.

PR 85 Aaron Bain 5-9 183 So.

PR 38 Myron Newberry 5-8 164 Jr.

Outlook: In last year's game, the Broncos parlayed a blocked field-goal attempt and PAT into nine points. The Warriors vow things are different this season. First, Kelly went back to the lab, developing a new technique in which his placekicks are launched with a higher arc. Second, Ingram has not had a bad snap since becoming the full-time long snapper at mid-season last year. Third, the Warriors have sealed the perimeter, using defensive ends Purcell and Alama-Francis as tackles on placekicks.

"We've never had a problem since Jake picked it up last year," Kelly said. "We've never had a problem with Kurt (Milne as a holder). I want it to be so automatic that when it's fourth down and 40 yards out, coach (Jones) can call for a field goal, and it will be just like calling a regular play."

BSU OFFENSE

WR 11 Drisan James 5-11 186 Sr.

LT 79 Ryan Clady 6-4 315 So.

LG 66 Tad Miller 6-4 304 Jr.

C 69 Jadon Dailey 5-11 285 Sr.

RG 64 Jeff Cavender 6-2 286 Jr.

RT 60 Andrew Woodruff 6-3 331 So.

TE 91 Derek Schouman 6-2 233 Sr.

WR 1 Jerard Rabb 6-2 199 Sr.

QB 5 Jared Zabransky 6-2 203 Sr.

FB 34 Brad Lau 5-11 242 Sr.

RB 41 Ian Johnson 5-11 194 So.

Outlook: The Broncos' playbook has gone from zero entries to more than 1,000 since the start of training camp six months ago. At the beginning of the year, the Broncos wipe clean their playbook. On the first day of spring practice, they will practice five plays over and over. The next day, they'll practice those five plays, then add another five. The plays that don't work are tossed. "There are so many different variations of each play we can run," said Johnson, who is second nationally in scoring (14.0 points per game) and fifth in rushing (149.3 yards per game). "We've got probably a thousand plays we can call."

The process doesn't stop once the season starts. The Broncos added more plays to this week's menu. "There are a lot of different ways to skin a cat," said Bryan Harsin, BSU's first-year offensive coordinator. "We try to generate creativity in our offense."

Harsin said some plays might appear to be "totally crazy." But he'll assign one player to practice that play over and over. "For that one guy, that's his job," Harsin said. "That's all he has to do. That's why he is so good at it."

The Broncos have several drive-you-dizzy plays, such as flea-flickers and fly runs (when an in-motion receiver takes a handoff). The Broncos also have picked up the NFL's latest trend of double-tight-end formations. The tight ends add extra blocking on running plays or they create mismatches when they go one-on-one against smaller defensive backs.

In football parlance, Johnson is a "grinder," a tough runner with 4.4 speed. Last year, he rotated with three others; this year, he is the lone running back.

Zabransky is an efficient passer and elusive scrambler. "The nice thing is the guy can run," Harsin said. "He can get us out of situations when the play's not there. He makes really good decisions."

BSU DEFENSE

LE 97 Nick Schlekeway 6-4 262 Jr.

LT 92 Dennis Ellis 6-3 270 Sr.

RT 57 Andrew Browning 6-0 278 Sr.

RE 96 Mike G. Williams 6-3 244 Sr.

or 93 Mike T. Williams 6-4 238 So.

SOLB 31 Colt Brooks 6-1 216 Sr.

MLB 25 Korey Hall 6-1 228 Sr.

WOLB 44 Kyle Gingg 5-11 215 So.

CB 8 Orlando Scandrick 5-11 187 So.

S 2 Gerald Alexander 6-0 204 Sr.

S 20 Marty Tadman 5-11 182 Jr.

CB 23 Quinton Jones 5-9 177 Sr.

Outlook: Defensive coordinator Wilcox said he has drawn ideas from Oregon defensive coordinator Nick Aliotti, California defensive coordinator Bob Gregory, and his father, Dave Wilcox, a Hall of Fame linebacker with the San Francisco 49ers. The common thread is those styles rely heavily on preparation.

"You've only got 11 guys," Wilcox said. "There are only certain ways you can play them. You've got to coach them up the best you can, get them out there, then turn them loose and let them play fast."

Scandrick and Jones are shut-down corners, Hall is the big hitter, and Schlekeway is developing into a fierce pass rusher.

BSU SPECIALISTS

PK 47 Anthony Montgomery 6-1 211 Sr.

P/H 42 Kyle Stringer 5-8 194 Sr.

LS 74 Mike Dominguez 6-2 255 Sr.

KR/PR 23 Quinton Jones 5-9 177 Sr.

KR 11 Drisan James 5-11 186 Sr.

Outlook: In preparing for the game, UH's Reinebold showed his players videotapes of every punt in this series between the teams. "I wanted to show how they attacked us; how they blocked one a touchdown in 2002; how they got close in 2003 and 2004," Reinebold said. "They're not just a great return team, they're good at blocking punts."

The Broncos like to send blockers into the gaps between the center and guards, and the guards and tackles. If the punting team tries to pinch in their block, the Broncos will attack from the edge.

Reach Stephen Tsai at stsai@honoluluadvertiser.com.