Central Arkansas Bears vs Hawaii Warriors

September 4th, 2009 kNuke Posted in NCAA Football | 1 Comment »

The Hawaii Warriors football season kicks off today against Central Arkansas.  The only problem is that today is Friday!  Since I have to go to work, I had to put together a makeshift tailgate.

Healthy huh?  On to the game…

The Hawaii Warriors defeated the Central Arkansas Bears 25-20 at Aloha Stadium.  The Warriors pulled ahead on an 8-yard TD pass from Greg Alexander to Rodney Bradley with 1:22 remaining in the game.  A controversial fumble on the Bears last drive sealed the ugly win for the Warriors.

Offense: Greg Alexander was 21-32 for 304 yards with 3 TDs and 1 INT.  I had high hopes for Alexander being able to change his style, but it looks like last year all over again; 1 read and run.  He lacks pocket presence and the ability to slide around while keeping his eyes upfield.  I don’t mind the running, but I’d rather he use that as a last resort and not his second option.

The offensive line looked bad, but that has become the norm the past few years. If those are the best players, I’m not sure what can be done. At least there were very few penalties; that’s a step in the right direction.

I liked what I saw from the WRs; Greg Salas (minus the alligator arms) and Rodney Bradley look like a formidable duo.  Kealoha Pilares looked like he had a little extra giddy up in his step.  If Royce Pollard and Javonte Taylor get more involved, Alexander will have a lot options.

Overall, the offense had too many turnovers and looked out of sync.  It was the first game and typically it takes a couple of games to get the offense oiled up, but this performance was not expected. I was expecting a slow first half, but at least 40 points by the end of the game.

Defense:  The defense played as expected; good enough to win.  There is absolutely no pass rush and better rushing teams will run straight to the second level before being touched.  The secondary looked slow and the overall tackling was mediocre.  The defense doesn’t look fast or strong.  The team lost a lot on the defensive side of the ball and it showed; like expected, it could be a long year for this defensive unit.

Special Teams: Scott Enos did make a FG, but he looked shaky in everything he did, especially kickoffs. Ryan Henry looked good returning punts, very natural.  Making most FGs inside the 40 and zero turnovers equals a job well done; anything above that is icing on the cake.

Coaching:  I did like the absence of penalties, but there is no excuse for not planning to go for the Two-point conversion after the go-ahead TD.  It’s the first game so I’m giving all the coaches a pass.

Final Word: A win is a win, even if it’s against a Division I-AA team.  This is the exact reason Hawaii should always schedule a weak opponent for the season opener.

Helmet Stickers:
Greg Salas – 180 yards, TD