1998 vs 2013

[madeinhawaii]

I"m still not sold on his recruiting. Has he recruited 'successfully' for our most pressing needs?

The tough thing with regard to local recruiting efforts this year is......that the local Class of 2014 HS prospects just doesn't have any many quality prospects available......compared with last year (Tulimaseali'i, Wa'a, Wily, Pagano, Savaiianaea, Koehler, Correa, Goeas, Failauga, etc.).....and with the upcoming local Class of 2015 prospects ((Uluave, Kaumatule, Noa, Tafua, Fehoko, Ulu-Perry, Manu, etc.). Makes recruiting efforts more difficult since local prospects still comprise the core of the UH team.

Last year was a good class and that's why I'm not sold on Chow's recruiting efforts. I think the local blue chips that stayed to play at home were a product of having many available and having a few chips fall our way. Outside of that, I'm seeing the usual 1-3 star type players that we've always recruited.

[kapakahi]

I"m still not sold on his recruiting. Has he recruited 'successfully' for our most pressing needs?

The tough thing with regard to local recruiting efforts this year is......that the local Class of 2014 HS prospects just doesn't have any many quality prospects available......compared with last year (Tulimaseali'i, Wa'a, Wily, Pagano, Savaiianaea, Koehler, Correa, Goeas, Failauga, etc.).....and with the upcoming local Class of 2015 prospects ((Uluave, Kaumatule, Noa, Tafua, Fehoko, Ulu-Perry, Manu, etc.). Makes recruiting efforts more difficult since local prospects still comprise the core of the UH team.

Last year was a good class and that's why I'm not sold on Chow's recruiting efforts. I think the local blue chips that stayed to play at home were a product of having many available and having a few chips fall our way. Outside of that, I'm seeing the usual 1-3 star type players that we've always recruited.

Missed my point.......which is that recruiting efforts are more difficult this year......since will need to recruit effectively on the mainland to address their most pressing need......which is perimeter defensive speed......which is usually rare any how any year among local HS prospects.

Coaches apparently have only just a few open offers out to local HS prospects......all the rest have already committed to UH or elsewhere. Been hearing that UH coaches mostly looking at HS prospects in Florida, Texas, Utah, and Cali......as well as Cali JC transfers at DL, LB, and CB.

[FASBOY'90]

Really don't see any difference with the '98 team. They had a tougher schedule, compared to this years team.

'98
Arizona
Utah
BYU
Northwestern
Michigan
They also had Fresno St, San Jose St, and San Diego St.

2013

USC
Oregon St.
and what, Navy and Army?

As far as recruiting goes, we will never get any top recruits with an 0-11 record. If just so happened that last years team won the first three games of the season and lost the rest, It would be at 20 and Chow would have snapped Von Appens record which was an 18 game losing streak. So in my personal opinion, I don't think the players are the problem, they can all play. It's the coaches that set them up for failure, they coach, teach, and make the final call. The coaches and there system is a complete total failure. It ain't gonna get any better next season as well. The program the way it stands is a total loss. Better salvage what we can now before the you know what hits the fan, just being real, just saying......

[madeinhawaii]

The tough thing with regard to local recruiting efforts this year is......that the local Class of 2014 HS prospects just doesn't have any many quality prospects available......compared with last year (Tulimaseali'i, Wa'a, Wily, Pagano, Savaiianaea, Koehler, Correa, Goeas, Failauga, etc.).....and with the upcoming local Class of 2015 prospects ((Uluave, Kaumatule, Noa, Tafua, Fehoko, Ulu-Perry, Manu, etc.). Makes recruiting efforts more difficult since local prospects still comprise the core of the UH team.

Last year was a good class and that's why I'm not sold on Chow's recruiting efforts. I think the local blue chips that stayed to play at home were a product of having many available and having a few chips fall our way. Outside of that, I'm seeing the usual 1-3 star type players that we've always recruited.

Missed my point.......which is that recruiting efforts are more difficult this year......since will need to recruit effectively on the mainland to address their most pressing need......which is perimeter defensive speed......which is usually rare any how any year among local HS prospects.

Coaches apparently have only just a few open offers out to local HS prospects......all the rest have already committed to UH or elsewhere. Been hearing that UH coaches mostly looking at HS prospects in Florida, Texas, Utah, and Cali......as well as Cali JC transfers at DL, LB, and CB.

I didn't miss your point. I'm saying, the blue chippers, if any, will probably come from within the State, the rest, will be those 1 to 3 star players, like they have always been. But since this is a lean year, it's going to be tough. The past year was a good year and we got Kennedy as a result. Thank goodness he qualified academically, too! And you are right, we don't have many of the type of players that Chow needs to be successful and that means going out of State and that means having to develop "athletes." But Chow has never been known to be a recruiter, so he will need to lean on his assistants to find the kind of players he needs.

[bow89]

I generally judge the talent of our teams by how many of our athletes get drafted or are able to make an opening day roster via free agency. How many of our current seniors do you think will get drafted? How many got drafted last year? Before you blame this year's staff, how many were drafted in 2011? I am not saying that we need athletes in the first 2 rounds, but any team that does not have at least some athletes drafted in the lower rounds does not have that much talent.

The easiest thing that we can do is blame the coaching staff. We always want to say that June was able to win with the facilities we had, so any coach should be able to win. This is no different from the administration's position following the Holiday Bowl in 1992. What people don't realize is while we continue to stay stagnant other schools are pouring money into facilities. If you compare our facilities with other school's we are competing with there is no comparison. Utah State made tremendous improvement to their facilities and has seen continuous growth. The same thing happened at Boise. Schools like New Mexico State and Idaho have not spent the money, and are consistent bottom feeders. However, this isn't just about athletics. If you compare U.H. with other mainland universities, it is shocking how our facilities are maintained.

We can bring in new coaches every year, but until we decide as a state that we want to invest in a top notch University, we will never consistently be a winning program.

[kapakahi]

I'm saying, the blue chippers, if any, will probably come from within the State, the rest, will be those 1 to 3 star players, like they have always been. But since this is a lean year, it's going to be tough. The past year was a good year and we got Kennedy as a result. Thank goodness he qualified academically, too! And you are right, we don't have many of the type of players that Chow needs to be successful and that means going out of State and that means having to develop "athletes." But Chow has never been known to be a recruiter, so he will need to lean on his assistants to find the kind of players he needs.

Sorry that I originally missed your point.

Unfortunately not really any true local blue-chippers (with multiple BCS offers) this year......unlike last year.....and unlike next year.

In most cases, the so-called blue-chippers that end up coming to UH will be the BCS school bouncebacks (Castro from UCLA, Pedroza from Utah).......while most of the mainland recruits will be those that were mis-evaluated, undervalued, and therefore not recruited by BCS schools......i.e., Kirkwood, Kemp, DSJ, JGW, etc. I'm aware of at least 1 such BCS school bounceback (that played substantially his true frosh season) that UH is now pursuing from the Cali JC ranks.

[vailima]

you guys are all funny...different set of circumstances, better conference, all the teams recruit better (even us, but we're slightly behind). Things HAD to be blown up, you guys forgot the Sugar Bowl already? I enjoyed the r-n-s era, always will, but it's clear it's not the future, look at JJ at SMU, he's getting good recruits there but they're not really winning important games.

The losses suck, I hate it like everyone else, but here's the reason I'm still sticking with the current staff: recruiting, recruiting, recruiting. We're not going to get the types of recruits we're getting with the r-n-s in place, these recruits are coming because of Chow and staff. I like how Chow is trying to build the culture around what vibes with the community...been on this board a while, I still remember a lot of you fuams complaining about JJ going overboard with conduct issues, changing the logo, yeah, whatever...

The losses: early in the season most posters said USC and Oregon St were wuda, cuda, shudas, and I agree. We went down to the wire with Fresno St and San Diego St, the better teams in our division, we had more of the wuda cudas like Navy, UNLV...so we really aren't that far off. I followed a bit of the coverage when Hawaii stayed in Salt Lake City and saw the U of Utah facilities and what they put into their program. Utah's not having a great season, and, they're also NOT talking about firing their coach because they're more strategic in their thinking as opposed to rainbow fans I guess.

If next year tanks like this year, I might move a little closer to where the rest of you are, but until then, I'm still with the current regime.

Norm Chow isn't the only human on earth who can recruit, and there are other people who are able to do it and not go winless. I've said it before: Any rebuilding plan that involves being the worst team in the nation is a terrible plan. Any rebuilding plan that involves the kind of budget shortfall we are expected to see this year is a terrible rebuilding plan. it's a terrible plan and it isn't the right plan for Hawaii. Do you want us to have the #1 recruit class in all of FCS? because that's what's going to happen if we have more years like this one.

Other than recruiting, has Chow shown anything that makes you believe that this is only temporary? The only thing that would get me remotely on board for next season is if he replaced almost all of his staff.

well, we're not winless yet, but like who? I've always preferred Gilbride when Mack got canned but I really don't know whether we could have afforded him. Chow came cheap and we are what we are, which is, we want big things but we don't want to put in the money, so Chow it is.

Yes, TG developin fully, Zwahlen coming in, other young players in the wings, his getting more of his players this and next year, I think everyone overlooks the late start on recruiting when they first came in, so last year was really the first full recruiting push by this staff, for all intensive purposes you could almost discount the first year he came in, he was approached by both SS and TG I mean, he didn't go looking for them.

[poidog]

if he played better than woolsey, that's like saying dog poop smell better than cat poop. they're both still unabashedly awful.

Higgins moved the ball down to the 10 yd line on his next possession and had a TD pass that was nullified, all in 2-minute drill mode, and against mostly 1st-string defenders (unlike SS's near-comeback against Fresno's backups). The knock on the QB's is the lack of "grasp of the offense", yet one QB shows at least some grasp and then we never ever see him again. They didn't shelve him after the 18-yard sack, they shelved him after his best series since last season! My point is not that Higgins is the savior - My point is that Chow will throw whatever poop at the wall to see what sticks, as long as it is "his" poop and not poop he inherited.

he still doesnt look better than schroeder. and he didnt last year when chow "blew it up". last year, Higgins looked so much worse. putting up 160 yards as an OFFENSE against a service academy is all kinds of embarassing.

Be prepared for the debate to begin once again!

The sleeper is Jeremy Higgins, who has made one start since transferring from Utah State in 2011. Ikaika Woolsey and Taylor Graham have better arm strength, but Higgins "moves the chains," Chow said. "He'll have the same opportunity as everybody else. He understands this style as well as any of those other quarterbacks."

C'mon, Norm... that's what I've been saying all last season!

[madeinhawaii]

If we have a winless season again, it will just prove that UH doesn't know how to learn from past mistakes. And, for an institute of higher learning, that's a real embarrassment.

[TheDuke]

trash this post.

Everyone is positive and we have to deal with this dribble.

Let's go Warriors.

[xer 21]

Be prepared for the debate to begin once again!

The sleeper is Jeremy Higgins, who has made one start since transferring from Utah State in 2011. Ikaika Woolsey and Taylor Graham have better arm strength, but Higgins "moves the chains," Chow said. "He'll have the same opportunity as everybody else. He understands this style as well as any of those other quarterbacks."

C'mon, Norm... that's what I've been saying all last season!

well, its less of a debate currently because woolsey has no accuracy and TG looked lost when he played. im not saying he's worse, just that we're probably screwed if he's the best we got. he's still got the weakest arm and isnt really mobile enough to make up for it.