From January 2, 2008 Honolulu Star-Bulletin
NEW ORLEANS » The last time Hawaii came to Louisiana, the team was flagged for doing its ritual pregame dance and incited anger among a hostile crowd that responded to the Warriors’ arm-slapping moves with similar, more vulgar gestures of their own.
“I think they got mad,” Hawaii defensive lineman Michael Lafaele recalled of the team’s visit to Louisiana Tech. “That’s why they played us so hard.”
That game, played in Ruston, La., in September, went to overtime before the Warriors pulled out one of their closest victories in a 12-0 regular season.
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From January 2, 2008 Honolulu Star-Bulletin
NEW ORLEANS » In the end, the 12th Warrior couldn’t help get the job done.
Despite all the noise that University of Hawaii fans could muster in the Louisiana Superdome in yesterday’s 74th annual Sugar Bowl, it was the strains of “Glory, Glory to Old Georgia” that would ring in their ears.
By the beginning of the fourth quarter, with the Warriors down 38 points to the Bulldogs, the 15,000 faithful who traveled such a long distance were still in their seats, while many of the 50,000 Georgia fans had already left. And when quarterback Tyler Graunke threw a touchdown pass to Ryan Gryce-Mullen, Hawaii fans finally had something to cheer about.
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From January 2, 2008 Honolulu Star-Bulletin
NEW ORLEANS » Those who thought Hawaii belonged on the same field with Georgia quickly discovered otherwise in last night’s 41-10 Allstate Sugar Bowl shellacking before 74,383 boisterous fans packed into the Superdome.
The Bulldogs made a statement for not being invited to the national championship game and took it out on the Warriors in one of the more thorough whippings in the postseason.
Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan was lucky to get off the field with his head attached as Georgia’s front seven dominated the line of scrimmage, sacking him eight times, and leaving June Jones’ run-and-shoot in shambles.
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From January 1, 2008 Honolulu Star-Bulletin
NEW ORLEANS » The spy games may be over for Hawaii, at least when it comes to tracking the quarterback.
When Hawaii plays Georgia in the Sugar Bowl tonight in the Louisiana Superdome, the Warriors will take on a quarterback UH safety Jake Patek said can throw the ball 60 yards off his back foot.
But when it comes to using those feet for running, Matthew Stafford isn’t as much of a threat as Nevada’s Colin Kaepernick or Washington’s Jake Locker.
The Warriors used middle linebacker Solomon Elimimian as a “spy,” locked onto Kaepernick and Locker. And it worked, as Kaepernick (11 rushes for 23 yards) was kept under wraps and Locker (15-76) wasn’t allowed to dominate the game in UH’s 28-26 and 35-28 wins.
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From January 1, 2008 Honolulu Star-Bulletin
NEW ORLEANS » It’s a question June Jones hopes is still viable after tonight’s Sugar Bowl.
The Hawaii coach was asked if the Warriors should be voted No. 1 in the nation if they beat Georgia and complete an undefeated season.
“Ask me that after the game,” Jones said. “We’re here, we’re happy to be here and we’ll play hard.”
Jones, attired spiffily in a charcoal gray suit, seemed to not mind a bit being grilled one final time by reporters a day before the most significant sports event in Hawaii history. He was at ease and answered questions he’d been asked dozens of times before with patience.
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From January 1, 2008 Honolulu Star-Bulletin
You can always count on June Jones to throw out a hyperbole or two when describing the upcoming opponent, but this time he just might be right.
The Hawaii head football coach described Georgia running back Knowshon Moreno as Barry Sanders-like. Jones coached the All-Pro running back at one of his stints in Detroit. Sanders once described Jones as his favorite coach, but it’s hard to imagine anyone able to run in his shoes.
Moreno took the compliment in stride at a press conference on Friday, saying he was honored that anyone would think of him in that manner. The 5-foot-11, 207-pound freshman from New Jersey rushed for nearly 1,300 yards this season and 12 touchdowns, and he only started the last six games of the season.
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From January 1, 2008 Honolulu Star-Bulletin
NEW ORLEANS » It’s time for Colt Brennan to make a statement — and not just for himself.
The Hawaii quarterback is playing for his Warrior teammates, an entire state and every underdog in the world when he takes the field in tonight’s Sugar Bowl at the Louisiana Superdome.
He can prove tonight that perhaps he did deserve to win the Heisman Trophy (instead of finishing third in the voting) if he can lead UH over Georgia. The Bulldogs are favored by more than a touchdown to apply the only blemish on Hawaii’s record, which now stands at 12-0.
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From January 1, 2008 Honolulu Star-Bulletin
NEW ORLEANS » Colt Brennan may be old and gray before he fully appreciates what he has meant to the University of Hawaii.
From that infectious smile off the field to his passionate competitiveness on it, No. 15 has forever changed the landscape of the 50th state. Fans can’t get enough of the 24-year-old from Southern California, whether it be at autograph sessions during the week or Saturday nights at Aloha Stadium. This kid has embraced the islands like few before him.
As he prepares for his final game in a Warriors uniform, you have to wonder if he has enough in him to lift the underdog Hawaii football team past No. 4-ranked Georgia of the big, bad SEC in tonight’s Allstate Sugar Bowl at the Superdome in New Orleans.
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From January 1, 2008 Honolulu Star-Bulletin
NEW ORLEANS » At today’s Sugar Bowl game at the Louisiana Superdome, Mia Okinaga hopes to create “a chicken-skin moment” with the help of Hawaii fans and 2,000 green, black and white stadium cards.
Okinaga and a group of “section leaders” from Roy and Sonya Miyashiro’s Regal Travel tour group will be carrying boxes of color-coded cards to Sections 320 to 325, in the UH seating area behind an end zone.
There, the cards will be taped to the seats with instructions for two card stunts that will be performed during the first timeouts of the second and fourth quarters of the game.
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From January 1, 2008 Honolulu Star-Bulletin
A look at two free Sugar Bowl parties being held in Honolulu: Creations in Catering Sugar Bowl Party
When: 1:30 p.m.
Where: Dole Ballrooms at Dole Cannery
Cost: Free admission, $3 parking
Fare: Pupu platters, $20, and individual items, about $6 each
Extras: Door prizes, sales of official Sugar Bowl souvenir program and T-shirts
Reservations: 521-7101 (parties of nine or more)
Junior Ah You’s Shugah Bowl Community Tailgate Party
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