HONOLULU — The University of Hawaii will represent the Mountain West in the 2018 Hawaii Bowl against Louisiana Tech of Conference USA on Dec. 22. Kickoff is 5:30 p.m. at Aloha Stadium.
Head coach Nick Rolovich led the Rainbow Warriors (8-5) to a five-win improvement from last season. Hawaii, which finished as runners-up in the MW’s West Division, will make its eighth all-time Hawaii Bowl appearance and second in the last three seasons. UH defeated Middle Tennessee, 52-35, in Rolovich’s inaugural campaign.
UH appeared in the Hawaii Bowl in 2002-04, 2006, 2008, 2010 and 2016. Hawaii will also make their 12th all-time bowl appearance, sporting a 6-5 mark.
“The University of Hawaii is honored to be participating in the 2018 Hawaii Bowl,” said UH Athletics Director David A.K. Matlin. “This is a special holiday tradition and an amazing experience for our student-athletes who continue to inspire our state. This game gives us one last chance to thank our fans for all the support they’ve given us throughout the season and a great send-off for our senior class.”
Louisiana Tech finished as runners-up in C-USA’s West Division, however ended the year with back-to-back losses. Coached by Skip Holtz, the Bulldogs will make their fifth straight bowl appearance and will seek their fifth straight bowl win.
“We’re extremely proud to represent our University in the Hawaii Bowl,” Rolovich said. “We’re also very excited to rekindle some old WAC battles against a very talented Louisiana Tech team on Dec. 22. It could very well be one of the more exciting games of the bowl season.”
UH and Louisiana Tech were once members of the Western Athletic Conference where they met every year from 2003-11. Hawaii leads the all-time series 8-2 including a 44-26 victory in the teams’ last meeting in Ruston, La., in 2011.
Hawaii appeared in six of the Hawaii Bowl’s first nine games. UH has faced a C-USA team in the Hawaii Bowl five times with a 3-2 record with wins over Houston (2003), UAB (2004) and Middle Tennessee (2016) and losses to Tulane (2002) and Tulsa (2010).
Hawaii’s Ursua named
All-Mountain West
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — University of Hawaii junior slot receiver John Ursua was named to the All-Mountain West first team as selected by a panel of media and head coaches.
Junior defensive lineman Kaimana Padello was picked to the second team while five others received honorable mention – senior defensive lineman Zeno Choi, junior cornerback Rojesterman Farris II, sophomore quarterback Cole McDonald, senior linebacker Jahlani Tavai and freshman offensive lineman Solo Vaipulu.
Tavai was the lone repeat honoree having been selected to the first team in 2016 and second team in 2017. The senior from Inglewood, Calif., had his season cut short due to injury, missing the final four games but still finished among the team leaders in tackles (82). He was the team’s defensive MVP for the second straight year.
Ursua was a semifinalist for the Biletnikoff Award and midseason second-team All-American by the Associated Press and USA Today. The All-American candidate is the FBS leader in receiving touchdowns (16) and ranks fifth nationally in receiving yards (1,343). Over the weekend, he received the Alec Waterhouse Most Valuable Player award at the Na Koa football banquet.
The Kailua-Kona native is the first UH offensive skill position player selected to the MW first team and just the second offensive player joining Dejon Allen (2017). Ursua is also just the sixth Rainbow Warrior to receive first-team honors since UH joined the league in 2012.
Padello leads the Warriors in sacks (7.5) and tackles-for-loss (11.5). The Mililani native also recorded 22 tackles with one forced fumble and was the recipient of the team’s Ben Yee Most Inspirational Player award.
McDonald, the team’s offensive MVP, has thrown for 3,790 yards and 35 touchdowns on the year and ranks among the nation’s Top 10 in six categories. Choi, a senior from Honolulu and the team’s Defensive Captain recipient, has 34 tackles on the year including 5.0 for loss and two sacks. Farris, a junior from Coral Springs, Fla., ranks fourth in the MW in passes defended (0.92/game) while Vaipulu, a freshman from Riverside, Calif., is one of four true freshman nationally to start every game of the season.
If you’re heading to the Hawai’i Bowl, note also that the Warriors finished 3rd in the MWC division tied with San Diego State. Fresno State will play Boise State for the MWC title. Fresno state may play in the Las Vegas bowl. Las Vegas at x-mas time and vacation time is a fun time too for anyone. Las Vegas Bowl has become a popular bowl. Hawai’i is competing with the Las Vegas bowl for ticket sales.