Hawaii

[Petro-Sooner]

Granted they have the Iland thing going but traveling thousands of miles to play a game, wouldnt it get old after a while? I wonder how hard it is to recruit there. However, if you go to a bowl you will most likely play at home. :twinkies:

Discuss.

[Scott D]

There are a lot of limitations imposed on their recruiting because a trip there can be viewed in some regard as giving a potential recruit a free vacation. When I lived there they were heavy on local born players along with those coming back from Mormon missions, and jucos.

[douxpaysan]

Granted they have the Iland thing going but traveling thousands of miles to play a game, wouldnt it get old after a while? I wonder how hard it is to recruit there. However, if you go to a bowl you will most likely play at home. :twinkies:

Discuss.Island...hillbilly. You loosed me for a minute.

[Petro-Sooner]

I always wondered what it would be like for a player to have to travel to a place like Rutgers or Maine. Not that it would ever happen but man that wouldnt be a happy plane ride.

[Scott D]

This is how the current Head Coach is trying to get around the restrictions


Hawaii hopes to try a unique recruiting strategy
Warriors might have 2 of 10 assistants live on mainland year-round

By Mike Farrell
Updated: 9:32 p.m. ET Oct 18, 2006

The University of Hawaii isn't going to simply let the players come to the island. They're thinking about bringing the island to the players, so to speak.

Let's play a little Jeopardy here for a second. The answer is "roughly 2,600 miles". The question? "How far is the Hawaii football program from the nearest big city for football recruiting." Well, at least I think San Diego is the closest main city on the mainland to Hawaii, but you get the point. The biggest recruiting disadvantage in college football does not belong to Temple despite their 9-3 loss to Buffalo earlier this year in the battle of the two worst teams in D-1A football and their 18-game losing streak.

Nope, that honor belongs to June Jones and Hawaii.

How'd you like a local recruiting trip to consist of travel akin to a flight from Boston to Los Angeles? That's how it is for Hawaii, whose coaches need to take a seven-hour flight to recruit San Diego and most likely an overnight trip to reach anyplace on the east coast if needed. Take a look at any map of the United States. That's Hawaii in the little box to the bottom left. It's too far from the mainland to fit on maps without the benefit of an inset.

So Jones has proposed an interesting idea. He's thinking about having two of his allotted 10 assistant coaches live on the mainland year-round. Think recruiting isn't important? Jones would rather have a coach in California and another in Texas not coaching at all but simply recruiting for the Warriors.

The Hawaii recruiting budget is only $65,000 and the program can't send any coaches out on Thursdays and Fridays to recruit prospects during the season unless those coaches are already in the United States. Florida State? They can roll anywhere at anytime. Southern California? Miami? Michigan? Same deal.

So you might now be saying aloud that Hawaii doesn't recruit the same level of prospect that the aforementioned teams do. OK, but they do recruit against Boise State, Fresno State, New Mexico State and others. And when more than half of your roster comes from off the island, you had better be getting the right players.

Jones' plan hasn't been instituted yet, but I think it's a terrific idea for the only DI-A program in the country surrounded on all sides by water. June Jones always has been an innovator as a coach and he's thinking outside the box for his Hawaii team. Or shall I say outside the island.
© 2007 The Sporting News

[Leroy Lizard]

I'm ready to apply for one of those recruiting positions! Hell, I'll work for barely next to nothing! I'll pack tomorrow!

Oh, they have to live on the mainland.


Seriously, I am sure that Hawaii gets a lot of recruits wanting to take the visit, but probably not serious about signing on. That has to be a huge problem. How do you filter out the nonserious?

[Crucifax Autumn]

Recruiting is easy...bring a few hula skirt wearing island babes to the visit.

[Sonner magic923]

so wtfu with the Thursday and Fri. rule

[Crucifax Autumn]

Is it the higher cost of plane tickets on weekends? Just a guess.

I do think it's funny how they have recruiting troubles while almost every college team has at least one big-*** Hawaian on the roster.

[Scott D]

so wtfu with the Thursday and Fri. rule

When I lived out there, the cost difference in buying a round trip ticket for either one of those days was roughly $150-200 more than on Tues-Wed. Of course now your thinking why not fly out on Wed. The answer is that the extra saved on flying will end up being tagged on in travel expenses.


I do think it's funny how they have recruiting troubles while almost every college team has at least one big-*** Hawaian on the roster.

60% of the Polynesian kids that are playing for most major programs are from California or Utah. There have begun being more and more Hawai'i kids getting D-1 scholarships to places other than Utah, and BYU because they're finally getting more recognition.

A few of the more prominent schools on Oahu have a lot of military kids, and most of them if they have a chance to play college ball don't want to play @ Hawai'i. Ashley Lelie was the last one who actually stayed there to play D-1. Before him, my friend Adrian Murrell went to West Virginia instead of Hawai'i because it stood a better chance of helping him get to the NFL.

[OUHOMER]

i would love to see a home and home series with them say in 2010 and 2011. i would enjoy that road trip. It would take me long to save enough money to go:mad:

[Scott D]

There's a little stipulation involving them for non conference games. Generally they don't do home and home, and if you manage to get a road game @ Hawaii it tends to be the last week of the 'regular season'. Also, the minimum time between games you schedule with them is 5 years, but the waiting list tends to be a bit longer than that.

[Position Limit]

i have nothing but respect for june jones and the boys. they always seem to field a good team and come to play. remember when mack brown and the stooges were scared to play them? backed out of the whole deal? lol. they always have a qb who passes for 10k yards a season. what's not to like? if i were some stud athlete out of high school, i'd play there. play being the key word.

[Scott D]

i have nothing but respect for june jones and the boys. they always seem to field a good team and come to play. remember when mack brown and the stooges were scared to play them? backed out of the whole deal? lol. they always have a qb who passes for 10k yards a season. what's not to like? if i were some stud athlete out of high school, i'd play there. play being the key word.

Well here's the thing.

1. The WAC isn't very good outside of a team or two.
2. He's running the run and shoot, and in the case of Hawai'i it really don't emphasize the run part of it at all.
3. Teams eventually stopped Houston when they ran this offense, plus Hawai'i doesn't play very good outside of the state.

[royalfan5]

There's a little stipulation involving them for non conference games. Generally they don't do home and home, and if you manage to get a road game @ Hawaii it tends to be the last week of the 'regular season'. Also, the minimum time between games you schedule with them is 5 years, but the waiting list tends to be a bit longer than that.
Doesn't everybody get an extra game if they play at Hawaii to offset the costs?

[sooneron]

Well here's the thing.


3. Teams eventually stopped Houston when they ran this offense, plus Hawai'i doesn't play very good outside of the state.
How could they? Their kickoffs could be at 9AM-10AM Island time!

[Scott D]

Doesn't everybody get an extra game if they play at Hawaii to offset the costs?

They used to, however I don't think that's going to be likely with everyone now on set 12 game schedules. You also used to get an extra game if you were one of the two teams that played in the Kickoff Classic.

[Scott D]

How could they? Their kickoffs could be at 9AM-10AM Island time!

you don't know pain until you know being up for a 6am kickoff on television. I think I dozed a time or two during Wide Right I and II.

[royalfan5]

They used to, however I don't think that's going to be likely with everyone now on set 12 game schedules. You also used to get an extra game if you were one of the two teams that played in the Kickoff Classic.
It may be OOC only now, because Washington has 13 games scheduled this year.

[Scott D]

*shrug* it could be. NCAA might be fine with it since it's only 1 team a year that does it.

[Scott D]

also listening to friends from out there, they might try to make a push soon to get into the Pac-10.

[royalfan5]

also listening to friends from out there, they might try to make a push soon to get into the Pac-10.
Other than travel, it wouldn't be a terrible fit. Hawaii has some other pretty solid programs, and AFAIK are pretty solid academically. However, it seems that the PAC-10 is pretty happy with 10 teams.

[Scott D]

Other than travel, it wouldn't be a terrible fit. Hawaii has some other pretty solid programs, and AFAIK are pretty solid academically. However, it seems that the PAC-10 is pretty happy with 10 teams.

actually travel isn't that bad of a fit now if they were in the Pac-10. It's certainly better than having to go all the way out to Louisiana every other year to play La. Tech like they do now. They play at least 1 Pac-10 team every year now it seems. They've got a home and home with Wazzu in 08/09, USC in 2010, both Washington and Washington St. in 2011. And what is interesting is they appear to start playing Colorado annually in 2010.

Irony right now would be the Pac-10 going to 12 teams by 2012, and Texas being left out in the cold for Hawaii and Colorado.

[royalfan5]

actually travel isn't that bad of a fit now if they were in the Pac-10. It's certainly better than having to go all the way out to Louisiana every other year to play La. Tech like they do now. They play at least 1 Pac-10 team every year now it seems. They've got a home and home with Wazzu in 08/09, USC in 2010, both Washington and Washington St. in 2011. And what is interesting is they appear to start playing Colorado annually in 2010.

Irony right now would be the Pac-10 going to 12 teams by 2012, and Texas being left out in the cold for Hawaii and Colorado.
I think UC-Davis should be mentioned as a Dark Horse candidate. They have the money and the resources to do it. It would be a huge jump, but I wouldn't be shocked if their name comes. The WAC and the MWC should realign with the better endowed programs in one, and the scuffling ones in the other, as well.

[Scott D]

Too much bad blood between the WAC and the MWC for that to happen.

[royalfan5]

Too much bad blood between the WAC and the MWC for that to happen.
Which is too bad because if you added Hawaii, Boise, and Fresno to the MWC, you would have a pretty solid league from top to bottom if you bounced some of the weak links.

[Scott D]

Pretty sure most of the power players in the MWC used to be in the WAC at one time or another.

[Soonermagik]

Imagine trying to be a fan in the islands (remember all the other college games would start four hours earlier) Hence, a rooster kick off at 11:00 our time would be 7:00 am, now that is a rooster game.

Honestly, if I were talented enough an athlete I would go to Hawaii. You wouldn't have much competition and would get lots of media pub i.e. look at Colt Brenan he is on the front page of SI. Plus, I am a huge fan of the tropics and I wouldn't think twice about the distance. You only live once and I would jump on that deal real quick.

[Position Limit]

Well here's the thing.

1. The WAC isn't very good outside of a team or two.
2. He's running the run and shoot, and in the case of Hawai'i it really don't emphasize the run part of it at all.
3. Teams eventually stopped Houston when they ran this offense, plus Hawai'i doesn't play very good outside of the state.


1. the big 12 isn't very good outside a team or two. what's your point?
2. texas tech runs an offense that trows the ball alot. what's your point?
3. nobody's stop mike leach from scoring large amout of points. what does the price of tea in china have anything to do with houston?

[royalfan5]

Pretty sure most of the power players in the MWC used to be in the WAC at one time or another.
True, and then they ****ed it up when the SWC ended with that horrible 16 team quadrant idea. A ten team league with the 10 best programs in regards to resources could be pretty formidable. The remainder could be the Western version of the Sun Belt.

[Scott D]

1. the big 12 isn't very good outside a team or two. what's your point?
2. texas tech runs an offense that trows the ball alot. what's your point?
3. nobody's stop mike leach from scoring large amout of points. what does the price of tea in china have anything to do with houston?

There's no real reason for a highly sought after recruit to play for Hawaii. They can't recruit you real hard, then can't give out many visits. You won't get much exposure at all. Most of your home games are on at midnight Eastern, which doesn't lend itself to getting much TV time. Now to answer your retorts.

1. There's a reason that even the BEST of the WAC gets 'second rate/second chancers' (Brennan wasn't originally a Hawaii recruit, his problems at Colorado that got him kicked out of school is why he ended up there.). In fact, outside of Colt Brennan, the players who played @ Hawai'i with the most success played high school ball locally (Ashley Lelie, Al Noga), hell Jason Elam is the most successful former 'Bow who didn't play high school ball there.

2. The Run and Shoot is a gimmick offense, other than the AFL, and Houston in the 80s, tell me where it's been played with any sustained level of success. At least with Leach's version of the spread, it's an offense that is played a bit more widely, since there are so many variations of it.

3. Houston was the last time to have any significant offensive numbers with the Run and Shoot offense, hell it's how Jones learned the offense. Therefore it's far more significant to this discussion than Mike Leach.

[Scott D]

True, and then they ****ed it up when the SWC ended with that horrible 16 team quadrant idea. A ten team league with the 10 best programs in regards to resources could be pretty formidable. The remainder could be the Western version of the Sun Belt.

yeah, but every conference wants to be basically 3 tiered. top level programs, programs that go between being being good or average, and bottom feeders to inflate the rest of the programs.

[royalfan5]

yeah, but every conference wants to be basically 3 tiered. top level programs, programs that go between being being good or average, and bottom feeders to inflate the rest of the programs.
It would eventually shake out that way because some programs wouldn't keep pace. It would pay off with better exposure and competition over the long run.

[Scott D]

you know it's been 5 years since Hawai'i and BYU have played each other.

[royalfan5]

you know it's been 5 years since Hawai'i and BYU have played each other.
That was the year BYU was unbeaten and got shredded on the Island wasn't it.

[Scott D]

it was more based on the fact that BYU had left the WAC for MWC in 1999, so the game had become less important to both schools.