Tony Tuioti talked about UH’s 1-point loss to Notre Dame in 1997

About how he tried to block Notre Dame’s FG attempt at the end of the 1997 game against Notre Dame, Tony Tuioti said:
“I didn’t even need to look. I was thinking if I hear the fans scream then I know he didn’t make it. If it’s quiet, then I know what happened. The next thing you know we see all those guys running on the field.” (HSB)

HSB Note: “Cengia’s kick sailed through with 5 seconds left, lifting the Fighting Irish to a 23-22 comeback win over the then-Rainbow Warriors at Aloha Stadium.”

Tuioti said that the impact of playing Notre Dame didn’t really hit:
“until you start hearing that fight song. You see the gold domes run out and then the fight song kicks in right before you’re ready to run out of the tunnel and it feels like you’re getting ready for a big-time game.” (HSB)

HSB Note: “Both of Hawaii’s meetings with Notre Dame were decided in the final minutes, with the Fighting Irish escaping with a 48-42 win in 1991 and again six years later.”

About their loss in 1997 to Notre Dame, Tuioti said:
“It was emotional — it went up and down for us. It felt something like the Cincinnati game. It was a game you knew you should have won, but it just slipped out of your hands and got away from you.” (HSB)

About Notre Dame’s comeback, Tuioti said:
“Being a defensive guy you kind of kick yourself a little bit because your mind-set is always to finish the game and we didn’t make the plays at the end.” (HSB)

About how they lost 19 straight until JJ and Mac turned UH around in 1999, Tuioti’s senior season, Tuioti said:
“Coach Mack and Coach Jones came in and completely changed the culture of the program. Coach Mack is continuing that success this year. The culture and the attitude is still here and our kids are excited for this game.” (HSB)

Warrior practice report

About how he wants them to remain focused on Notre Dame and not get caught up with the Bowl festivities, Mac said:
“There are activities to go to and I want them to have fun, but they know what they have to get done. They’re smart, intelligent student-athletes and they know what’s at stake in this game.” (HSB)

About the 10-yard TD pass he threw to Ryan Henry on the final play of a scrimmage for redshirts and rarely used players, Jake Santos said:
“That was fun. That was a 75-yard drive. We had to convert, like, three (fourth) downs.” (HA)

“It was a lot of fun. It was probably the last drive I’ll have.” (HSB)

Note: Santos is a senior and will probably not get practice reps starting today since they are beginning their game preparation, so this might have been his last play for the Warriors.

About the big hit he put on Dustin Blount, senior safety Ryan Perry said:
“It was great concentration by him. After I hit him, he somehow managed to regain it. It was a great catch.” (HA)

About how they will start their game preparation today, Mac said:
“It’s time to go to work on Notre Dame.” (HA)

HA Note: “The Warriors spent the past three days working on techniques and fundamentals. But they already have studied videos of the Fighting Irish, and crafted a game plan. Because of the extra days afforded for bowl preparation, McMackin used the final hour of yesterday’s practice “to have some fun and get some looks” at developing players.”

About the scrimmage for the redshirts and reserves, Mac said:
“It was really competitive. They were going back and forth. It was fun. You’ve got to have some fun when you’re playing this game, especially deep into the season as we are.” (HA)

HA Note: “For Santos, the only regret was not joining the Warriors after his first season at San Diego Mesa Junior College. At the time, the Warriors were recruiting Colt Brennan. Santos was told he was fourth on the Warriors’ wish list at quarterback. At the urging of a coach, he turned down an offer to join UH as a non-scholarship player.”

About how he should have walked on to UH earlier, Santos said:
“I still should have come out here. That’s the only thing I regret.” (HA)

HA Note: “Instead, he played another season at San Diego Mesa, then transferred to Missouri Southern, a Division II school. He did not play in any games there because of an injury. He transferred to UH last year. But in accordance with NCAA transfer rules, he was allowed to practice but not play in games in 2007.”

Appreciating his short Warrior career, Santos said:
“I’m thankful for the opportunity to be here. We went to the Sugar Bowl. And now we get to go to another Hawai’i Bowl. It’s been fun.” (HA)

About working as a clerk in a convenience store and a bouncer in Waikiki when he joined UH as a walk-on after his discharge from the Marines, Alonzo Chopp said:
“It’s something you have to do to survive. It’s not cheap to live out here.” (HA)

About his Warrior career coming to an end, Chopp said:
“It’s my last week here, last week in school, just trying to have fun before I leave. It’s just one more week to be with my brothers. I’m going to miss them when I leave, but it’s time to move on to something else.” (HSB)

HA Note: “Chopp will participate in Saturday’s UH graduation ceremony. After the bowl game, he plans to enlist in the Air Force. He said he aspires to be an officer. Perry received a football scholarship in August, but continues to work as a camera operator and floor director at PBS Hawai’i. He is a camera operator for the “Leahey and Leahey” show.”

About how he nearly died during birth because the umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck, Ryan Perry said:
“The doctor had to pull me out by (right) shoulder.” (HA)

HA Note: “That led to Perry suffering from Erb’s Palsy, a paralysis of the arm. He underwent corrective surgery on his right arm when he was 8. But calcium deposits left him with a right arm that is bent at a 90-degree angle.”

Perry said that being pulled by his shoulder during the birth:
“caused (his condition), but in reality, it saved my life at the time. It was a fair tradeoff. I’ll take that.” (HA)

About playing football despite his condition, Perry said:
“I’ve never really thought of it as an obstacle, even though I know other people think of it that way. To me, it’s just normal. It’s been a blessing.” (HA)

About going back to the scout team starting today, Ryan Henry said:
“That’s my role on the team this year and I take pride in it.” (HSB)

Samson isn’t worried about playing in the snow on Sunday

About the cold weather expected during their game in KC on Sunday, Samson said:
”This game is much bigger than the weather. It’s not about being cold. It’s about winning. And actually, I like playing in the cold. I keep the AC at 60 at night when I sleep.” (Miami Herald)

Feature story on Davone Bess from the Dolphins’ website

MD = MiamiDolphins.com, the official website for the Miami Dolphins.

Asked how unreal it is for him to be starting for an NFL team as a rookie free agent, Bess said:
“I wouldn’t say unreal because I believe hard work pays off and everything happens for a reason. I would say I’m very fulfilled right now, but at the same time I’m kind of surprised it came this early. That was my goal, to eventually become a starter and eventually try to be a key guy and a key part of the offense. I would say I was kind of surprised but happy at the same time it came so early. It’s too bad that it had to happen the way it did because Camarillo helped me out a lot.” (MD)

Asked what was his mind-set coming into training camp, Bess said:
“First and foremost it was to make the team. I told myself I wanted to come in and work as hard as possible and become, I wouldn’t say No. 1, 2 or 3, but I wanted to be one of the main guys in the rotation and be able to be a playmaker for the Dolphins.” (MD)

Asked at what point did he realize that he was likely going to make the team, Bess said:
“I think I felt a little more at ease probably in the New Orleans Saints preseason game (the last preseason game) because I had some pretty good returns. I just felt like my whole performance and everything I’d done and everything I had learned through our whole training camp all came together around that time.” (MD)

Asked how big of an advantage he got by playing at Hawaii, which threw the ball so often, and how much help it was having Colt as his QB, Bess said:
“It helped me so much. A lot of people say that’s one of the main reasons why I didn’t get drafted because of the system I was in, but I think that system helped me more than anything. It taught me how to read coverages. It taught me how to find open, soft zones and get in and out of my breaks real quick. It taught me everything that you need to know to be a receiver on this level. And having Colt helped a lot, especially knowing how in sync we were and how accurate he was.” (MD)

Asked how fortunate he feels that he got a second chance at Hawaii and made the most of it, Bess said:
“I’m very fortunate. First and foremost, I’m a true believer that everything happens for a reason and God has been so good to me and I just feel like without me being a believer, and then Hawaii and just the state itself and Coach (June) Jones and the whole coaching staff at Hawaii giving me a second chance, none of this would be possible. So I’m a true believer that all of those steps happened for a reason – for me to go through that, for me to need Coach Jones, for me to go to Hawaii and then for me not to get drafted and then to end up here, I just feel like it all happened for a reason. Everybody deserves a second chance. Sometimes people are put in situations where they just have to deal with the consequences, just like myself, so I would say perseverance is the perfect word to describe it.” (MD)

Asked how he views his potential as a role model for teenagers who get themselves in trouble, Bess said:
“Every time I go back to Hawaii or even back to my hometown in California I always go to local juvenile detention facilities or juvenile halls, whatever the case may be, and talk to the kids. I go up to them and just let them know that, “Look at me. I’m a physical example of hope and if I can do it, anybody can do it, especially with what I’ve been through. Just don’t take life for granted. It can be gone so quick.” Me, I thought I was on top of the world. I graduated from high school and was going to college and, bam, it ended in 2.3 seconds. Wrong place, wrong time.” (MD)

Asked about his work ethic, as he used to show up before the break of dawn at Hawaii to catch balls, from the ball machine, Bess said:
“After I got out of my situation and right after I graduated from high school I told myself if I were to get another opportunity I’m going to make the most of it. I felt like that was a way of solidifying myself a spot on the Hawaii team and just making myself better as a player because not only did I get better from it, other people got better from it from coming out with me. Even though I’m here, they’re doing the same thing right now, so it’s something I kind of left behind and something I’m kind of happy about.” (MD)

Asked what he thinks has allowed him to succeed despite his lack of great size or speed, Bess said:
“My work ethic. All the things that run against me I’m pretty much using to my advantage and that’s my size and quickness and hands. I’ve got to have every other intangible to make up for the size and speed. In any game, size and speed isn’t everything. Obviously it helps, but at the same time it’s not everything.” (MD)

Asked what was the biggest adjustment he’s had to make going from college to the pros, Bess said:
“I would say probably the preparation and how intense it is getting ready for another team. In college it wasn’t this much into detail, and how much you study.” (MD)

Asked what is the one thing he wants people to say about him when they watch him play, Bess said:
“He plays every down like it’s his last. He doesn’t take a play for granted.” (MD)