EVEN money. ’Bows at Vegas: Battle
of the bottom-feedersYou can't ask for better odds than that when the University of Hawaii football Rainbows meet the University of Nevada-Las Vegas Rebels Saturday night in the City of Lost Wages.
After their 35-6 comeuppance against Wyoming, the Rainbows got an inkling of where they rank in college football's food chain. Definitely not in the upper echelon of the Western Athletic Conference, but at least among the lower third of the 112 schools that play Division I-A football.
But, you know, you can go along and survive in this business being a bottom feeder.
So the 'Bows will have to feed on UNLV this week if they want to fatten their 2-1 won-lost record. It won't be easy because they'll be playing the Rebels at their place. And we all know what Hawaii's like when it comes to playing away from the friendly confines of Aloha Stadium.
The last time the Rainbows won a football game on the road was against UNLV in 1995. But they're 0-16 in WAC games on the road because the Rebels weren't conference members then.
So if the 'Bows want to end that ignominious streak, this week is as good as any to do it. UNLV would be a good prey. For one thing, the Rebels won't be as physically imposing as Wyoming was.
The Cowboys simply controlled the line of scrimmage, offensively and defensively, against the Rainbows Saturday night at Aloha Stadium, much to the dismay of a great turnout of 40,429 fans -- the largest crowd in three years.
Never have so many seen so little. The UH offense was simply offensive.
TRUE, Wyoming had a lot to do with it, but the Rainbows' execution on offense was so poor that it reminded one of what former Tampa Bay coach John McKay once said when asked about how his Buccaneers were executing their plays:
"Their execution? I'm all for it."
In the formative first half, the 'Bows were minus-18 yards rushing, had only three first downs -- one by penalty -- and averaged only 1.2 yards a play. Not surprisingly, they were down, 21-0, at intermission.
Yet, except for several lapses that led to big Wyoming plays, the UH defense played relatively well. So what if Hawaii's Tropical Swarm was downgraded to a Tropical Depression. The defense kept it close, for a while.
Well, at least until it started making Wyoming's Mike Jenkins look like the second coming of Marshall Faulk.
Sure, it's one thing to say that losing 35-6 is better than getting beat 66-0 as the 'Bows got thumped a year ago in Laramie. But it was small comfort to this year's team, especially the fifth-year seniors who will never experience the thrill of victory against Wyoming.
WHAT was particularly maddening in the latest loss to Wyoming wasn't just the final outcome. But that the 'Bows had a shot at winning, albeit a slim one.
But they kept shooting themselves in the foot with missed assignments, silly illegal-procedure penalties and other infractions that put them constantly in long-yardage situations. They would have had a hard time against anyone, let alone a good Wyoming team.
The 'Bows were hit with 10 penalties for 67 yards and five others were declined by the Cowboys, who opted to take the loss of down instead.
"We didn't play well at all. We were tentative, we were labored, we were ugly," coach Fred vonAppen said. "We're capable of better play than that."
Again, Wyoming had a lot to do with Hawaii's ineptitude. But the good news is that UNLV is no Wyoming.
So here's hoping that the Rainbows can win this Saturday's battle of the WAC's bottom feeders.