Stephen Tsai: UH football has undertakings to complete before season

Jan. 9—The college football season ended Monday night, but the Hawaii football team has been chipping away at its 2024 to-do list for several weeks.

The college football season ended Monday night, but the Hawaii football team has been chipping away at its 2024 to-do list for several weeks.

Here are the priorities :

Complete the coaching staff Long-time coaches Dennis Thurman, Dan Morrison and Jeff Reinebold are the top candidates to join the Rainbow Warriors' staff. Last week, the Warriors did not renew the expiring contracts of offensive coordinator Ian Shoemaker, co-defensive coordinator Eti Ena, and cornerbacks coach Steve Irvine.

The thing is, the hiring process is thorough and time-consuming because of interviews, background checks and more interviews.

It appears the Warriors are open to an age-old plan that was effective in past regimes. Reinebold is 66, Thurman is 67, and Morrison is in his mid-70s.

In 2007, when the Warriors won all 12 regular-season games, the average age of their coaches was 50.1 years.

Rich Miano, who was UH's 45-year-old associate head coach at the time, remembered when the Warriors de-boarded a bus during a road trip. An opposing fan said : "That has to be the oldest coaching staff in the history of college football."

In 2011, 66-year-old head coach Greg McMackin's staff included Mouse Davis, 79, and Dick Tomey, 73.

Following a 3-9 season in 2017, head coach Nick Rolovich hired three assistant coaches—Mark Banker, Mark Weber and Andre Allen—each of whom had at least 27 years of college-coaching experience. The Warriors went 8-6 in 2018 and then won the Mountain West's West Division title in 2019.

Thurman, director of quality control for Colorado, was a two-time All-America safety at USC who played nine NFL seasons and served as defensive coordinator for the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills. Morrison, who was UH's quarterbacks coach for nine seasons through the 2008 Sugar Bowl, is proficient in teaching run-and-shoot concepts. Reinebold, who coached at UH in 2006 and 2007, has a reputation as a strong recruiter who also can coach multiple positions.

Complete the schedule Last week, according to UH officials, Oregon withdrew as the Warriors' season-opening opponent on Aug. 24. The move saves UH $500, 000 (Oregon's appearance fee ), but adds another puka to the schedule.

The Warriors benefit from two so-called Hawaii exemptions. They can play on Week Zero (a week ahead of the widespread start of the NCAA football season ) and have an additional game above the limit of 12 regular-season contests.

Oregon's withdrawal leaves the Warriors with 11 games set in stone, including a Sept. 21 game against FCS member Northern Iowa.

Needing at least a.500 record to be bowl eligible (although UH qualified twice with a losing regular season ), the Warriors can add an FBS opponent if they want to stick to a 12-game season.

If they choose to play 13 games, they can add two FBS schools or one FBS and one FCS. A team is allowed to count only one victory against an FCS team toward bowl eligibility.

A plan to play a road game against a Big Ten school already fell through. The clock is ticking.

Spring plans The first of the Warriors' 15 spring practices will be held Jan. 29 at the Ching Complex. The Warriors will practice on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.

Still to be decided is if a festival will accompany the final spring practice. The Warriors are eyeing Feb. 23 or 24 for a potential spring football festival. The UH baseball team plays host to North Carolina State on Feb. 23 and 24 ; the men's basketball team plays Long Beach State on Feb. 24.