UH-SJSU quotes from the papers Friday morning

About how the success by UH and BSU is important for the WAC's future TV deal, WAC commissioner Karl Benson said:
"We have to maintain the momentum that we have and demonstrate a valuable television product. I think that means entertaining, exciting games but it also means having teams ranked like Hawai'i and Boise State." (HA)


About how not all of their family will be supporting Colt this week, Colt's father Terry said:
"It is a divided family this week. There is a little strain in the family and that's part of the game, too." (HA)

HA Note: "This is the one game each season where the family's rooting interest divides along strict lines, Colt said. Colt's uncle, Steve, was a receiver for the Spartans in 1967 and Steve's son, Brent, is an assistant coach at SJSU. Another of Steve's sons, Brad, played for Spartans' coach Dick Tomey at Arizona."


About the split in their family, Terry Brennan said:
"We'll all get together before the game and afterward, but when the game starts we go our own separate ways, sit in our own areas during the game." (HA)


About his relationship with his cousin, Colt said:
"Brent and I talk a lot during the season. It is a friendly conversation where he talks about how they are doing and I talk about how we are doing. Obviously, we're both excited to come out. We talked last week but we don't talk about the game much and give anything away. There's no trash talking because we know we'll have to see each other after the season, too." (HA)


About having to miss the SJSU game, only his 2nd missed UH football road trip in about 30 years, Ben Yee (VP and founding member of Na Koa) said:
"I guess I'm getting old, but they tell me I'm OK." (HA)


About Ben Yee missing the trip, JJ said:
"It is a little strange not to see Ben around. He's always been with us." (HA)


About the haunted tales involving the Dolce Hayes Mansion that they are staying at, Josh Leonard said:
"We heard a lot of stories." (HA)


About the importance of the SJSU game, Colt said:
"This is a big game for us." (HA)


About playing in the SJSU game no matter what, Fale Laeli (sore right calf and tendinitis in his left knee) said:
"I'm running out of legs. But if I have to crawl on my hands to play, I'll do that." (HA)


About how he'll play despite his fractured right hand and strained right hamstring, Michael Lafaele said:
"Come on now. Nothing is going to keep me out of this game." (HA)


About how he watched a lot of film about Colt's shovel passes last year, Pilares said:
"Colt and Nate were doing some crazy stuff. I tried to learn from that. When I take my steps, I know Colt's going to get me the ball." (HA)


About how they sell the shovel pass by making it seem like they are a blocker, Pilares said:
"(Running back) coach (Wes) Suan pushes us to make it consistent." (HA)


About how he had a pancake block last week, Hawthorne said:
"I'm an OK blocker. I'm not as good as Jason or Davone." (HA)


About the importance of "gold" (their nickname for their DTs), DL coach Jeff Reinbold said:
"The key is they have great quickness and they play vertically into the offense. They use their hands extremely well. They have the toughness that it takes. There are not many gentle things that go on in there during the course of a game. They can handle it, and actually enjoy it." (HA)


About how Lafaele and Laeli try to draw multiple blockers to them, GM said:
"When they're double-teamed, that allows our linebackers to make plays." (HA)


Comparing Sol Elimimian to Ray Lewis (who he coached at Miami), GM said:
"He's got Ray Lewis' speed, his instincts. They're both vicious competitors. He's a sideline-to-sideline player like Ray was, not just a tackle-to-tackle guy." (HA)


About how they went to their no RB offense in some games, QB Tafralis said:
"We had to go to something that was going to work for us. It just hit us against Utah State. Why go away from a good thing?" (HA)


About how repetition is responsible for his accuracy, Tafralis said:
"All summer, all season, I mean, I do nothing but throw all year. I hope I have some accuracy." (HA)


About how he began his offseason training on December 26, Tafralis said:
"We went anywhere from four to seven days a week. A lot of the young guys didn't understand why I was making them go out every day, but it's paying off right now. That's all that matters to me." (HA)


About how he stayed around all summer in the Bay Area to work with his team, Tafralis said:
"It is very hard. I made sure I made myself available any time of the day they needed me. I told them, 'Call me, and I'm there.' That's how it went down this summer." (HA)



About how he grew up playing LB (since he was 8), Castelo said:
"I've played against good competition growing up. These coaches have been teaching me how to know the play before the ball is snapped. You kind of get a feel for the game." (HA)

HA Note: "The Spartans are tied for the WAC lead with 11 interceptions."


About the importance of the game vs. UH, Tafralis said:
"It's our first opportunity to go up against a team that is tied with us for No. 1 in the WAC. We'll treat this like a championship game, just like we're going to treat every game from here on out." (HA)


About how 1st place in the WAC is on the line in the game, Colt said:
"They're undefeated and we're undefeated, and there's a lot on the line. That's fine with us. Trust me, if there's one game we've been most excited about up until this point, it's this game. Friday night on ESPN is one thing. Not just that, but we've kind of played the easier part of our schedule, and now we're playing an opponent that's good enough for us to get excited for." (HA)


Expecting SJSU to give them a tough game, Colt said:
"It's going to be a challenge. No doubt, San Jose will come out and probably play one of the best games of their season." (HA)


About how the loser of this game will probably not have a chance to win the WAC, JJ said:
"Whoever comes out with a win (today), still has a chance to become WAC champion. You never know (if the loser will be eliminated), but I think it would be." (HA)


Asked if they were thinking about payback for UH blowing them out last year, Tafralis said:
"To an extent, maybe for a few of us. But most of the team, a lot of our guys on offense, didn't play last year." (HA)


About how 3 of their starting OL (all freshmen) and 4 of their WRs did not play last year vs. UH, Tafralis said:
"For us, we know what happened. You never forget. But we're not focused on that. We're looking to the future and what our team can do today, not what we were doing last year." (HA)


About how they won't play differently because they are on national TV, RGM said:
"We're going to go out there and do the same thing. We don't know we're on national TV when we're playing. It's not like we're watching the game on TV. We just go out there and play. There's no pressure if you take it as a regular game." (HA)


About their fan support on the road, Colt said:
"The support we've had on the road has been unparalleled. It's been awesome. When Hawai'i goes to California, it's a different atmosphere. It's almost like going home. I remember two years ago when we were in San Jose, there were more Hawai'i fans than San Jose fans. This year, considering how big the game is, the atmosphere is going to be dynamic. That's exciting for us. That helps us tremendously. Hopefully, when we show up and see the atmosphere and realize the magnitude of the game, we'll rise to the level and play our best game of the season." (HA)


About how the expectations of their team have changed, JJ said:
"Things have changed so much since when I first got here (in 1999). People talked to me before this season expecting us to go undefeated." (HSB)


About how they need to protect Colt especially well now that he's hurt, center John Estes said:
"We don't want him to get touched or hurt or anything, especially now. He's a tough guy and he'll stick it out, and play through the pain. But especially with guys tackling at the knees and below we have to take those hits away. I'm sure every defensive coach wants to knock out the quarterback, especially if he's as good as Colt." (HSB)


About how their kick coverage team has to be more consistent, J.P. Davis said:
"We've got to stay focused. It's not that hard, it's not rocket science. We have to play responsible, and also fast and hard. And you have to remember there's repercussions for everything that you do." (HSB)