Make no mistake about it, the University of Hawai'i's current four-game losing streak greatly disturbs the Warriors' head coach, Greg McMackin, in all its facets.

You hear it in his plaintive voice and see it in his anguished body language after each loss in a 2-4 start.

But you get the distinct feeling that the most kick-in-the-gut painful part of the whole slide has been what has been taking place with the defense.

For all that the head coaching title confers, the 64-year-old McMackin is still, at his core, a defensive guy. It is the side of the ball where he has spent the preponderance of his 40 years of coaching and where he has achieved his greatest success. It is where, at day's end, he hangs his hat.

It is, from the way his eyes light up when talking about a resounding hit or game-turning defensive play, where his heart still resides. If you can sort veteran coaches — and some believe it is almost like blood typing — then McMackin is, especially in temperament , definitely type "D" as in defense.

Which is why, you suspect, the Warriors' struggles on defense — where UH is 99th in scoring defense (29.7 points per game), 101st in total defense (402.3 yards per game) and 109th in rushing defense (200.5 yards per game) among 120 major college teams — pain him the way they do.

We saw the same thing in reverse, of course, when June Jones was the head coach here. Losing bothered him but offensive impotence or, heaven forbid, going without a touchdown, as happened on a couple of occasions, really ate at him. It was in such times of crisis that we witnessed some of his most creative tinkering and greatest resolve to find a solution.

In McMackin's case, never mind that the Warriors have seen a wholesale transition in starters and suffered some debilitating injuries. Or that there are other coaches on the staff with extensive defensive credentials. The perception is that McMackin is taking what has happened on this side of the ball exceedingly personal.

In the manner of a master mechanic who likes to think he can diagnose and repair most anything, you get the feeling that McMackin is determined to see this through himself.

Which is why he has gone back to the drawing board like a man possessed. It is why, you suspect, he publicly makes no bones about being hellbent to put a speedier, even if smaller, lineup on the field for unbeaten Boise State come Saturday.

The WAC's top scoring offense (38.2 points per game) is coming to Aloha Stadium and McMackin has a sore point to salve.