HOUSTON — From the Texas heat and humidity emerged this cold fact: Hawai'i quarterback Colt Brennan was the people's choice for the first week of the college football season.

In fan voting, Brennan was named the AT&T All-America National Player of the Week.

"I'm happy," Brennan said following last night's team dinner. "That's what's really cool when the fans vote for you. I got a lot of love from the fans last year. That's really cool, and I appreciate it."

Brennan received 45 percent of the votes, besting Appalachian State quarterback Armani Edwards (37 percent).

"Any honor is a nice honor," UH head coach June Jones said. "Let's hope they keep coming in."

Brennan completed 34 of 40 passes — two were dropped — for 416 yards and six touchdowns in a 63-6 rout of Division I-AA Northern Colorado.

"Right now, we played a Division I-AA," Brennan conceded. "For me, it's nothing to pride myself on or have bragging rights to. Let's move on. I'd rather win that award Thanksgiving weekend."

That is when the Warriors will face Boise State.

For now the Warriors are focusing on tomorrow's Western Athletic Conference opener against Louisiana Tech in Ruston, La.

The Warriors opted to train in Houston for two days before leaving for Monroe, La. — a one-hour drive from Ruston — this afternoon.

"You get more sleep if you do it this way," Jones said, noting the players rested from yesterday morning until 6 in the evening. They practiced last night from 7:30 to 10 at Rice Stadium, ate dinner, then attended meetings from 11 p.m. until 1 this morning.

The longest practice since training camp ended three weeks ago was held in muggy conditions. The humidity and temperature were both in the low 90s.

Players drank as much water as they poured over their heads.

"It wasn't easy," running back David Farmer said. "There wasn't a dry spot on my body."

Jones, who had two coaching stints in Houston, added: "It's definitely more humid here. You get used to it."

Jacob Patek, who grew up 90 minutes away in Victoria, Texas, said practicing in high humidity is part of football life in the Southwest.

"I love it," Patek said. "It's home to me. It's bearable. And sweat cools you down."

Myron Newberry, a fellow Texan, said: "It's going to be like this in Louisiana. And it's not as bad as having two-a-days here. This is going to get us ready for our game."

But Brennan noted that practicing in Houston is the second-best way to prepare for a game in Louisiana. "We could have practiced in Louisiana," Brennan said, smiling.

But practicing at Rice University allowed the Warriors to unveil several surprise schemes away from Louisiana Tech's spies. Rice also allowed the Warriors full use of the facilities and athletic-training staff.

"We got to do a lot of things, Jones said. "That's why we went a little long in practice."

Because the travel roster is limited to 64 — UH has 115 players on the overall roster — the first-string players doubled as scout-team members. That allowed the starting receivers to run routes against the starting cornerbacks.

The starters also took turns serving as coaches. Brennan spent about 10 minutes instructing right wideout C.J. Hawthorne, a converted cornerback, on the correct way to run a corner-fade route. Brennan pointed out that Hawthorne often turned too much, appearing to back-pedal, while tracking the lofting passes. Brennan even ran routes as part of his tutorial lesson.

"It's a blessing," Hawthorne said of Brennan's help. "That shows that Colt really cares. If Colt didn't care, he wouldn't say anything. He cares enough to want the best for me. He takes time, going through things over and over. I'm thankful."

Brennan said: "We're trying to make sure we get on the right page. The only difference between him and the other starters is that he doesn't really have the game experience. The more comfortable and confident we can get him to be, the better he will be as a player."

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