ESPN Feature: UH plans on continuing success, not rebuilding from scratch

About how they are going to continue their success, not rebuild, Mack said:
"We're the defending WAC champions, and that's how we're going to play. We lost some good players, but we have some good players in our program, and we have some good recruits to complement the guys that we lost. I'm really excited about this football team. We just have to build our personality." (ESPN)

ESPN Note: "McMackin, who spent two stints as Jones' defensive coordinator at Hawaii, has no plans to uproot what his predecessor put in place. The offensive and defensive systems won't change dramatically. Both the haka, a New Zealand Maori war chant, and the ha'a, a version chanted in Hawaiian, will continue to be performed at games, and McMackin wants to get fans, band members and cheerleaders more involved."

About how they have much more intense practices under Mack, Tyler said:
"In my four years with coach Jones here, we went full pads about three times, maybe. Every day [this spring] we were out there in full pads, pants, everything, and we were going full-go. We've got our helmets on during stretching. [McMackin] doesn't put up with much b.s. It's just a whole other level of intensity." (ESPN)

Adam Leonard said that the change reflects Mack, as it is:
"just the defensive side of him." (ESPN)

About how he will direct UH games from a defensive perspective, Mack said:
"I'm going to call the game, and I'm going to call it from a defensive standpoint. We're not going to go down and just try to outscore people." (ESPN)

About how defense will be their strength, Adam Leonard said:
"Defense is our strong point. We're going to be even stronger than we've been in the past." (ESPN)

ESPON said: "The secondary boasts playmaking cornerbacks in Ryan Mouton and Jameel Dowling, a transfer from Oregon who recorded six interceptions during spring scrimmages. Leonard passed up the NFL draft to rejoin fellow first-team All-WAC linebacker Solomon Elimimian and Blaze Soares, whom McMackin calls one of the best linebackers he's ever coached. Sacks leader David Veikune returns to flank tackle Fale Laeli."

Praising their DL and LBs, Mack said:
"Our front seven is one of the top in the country. We're a top 20 front seven." (ESPN)

ESPN Note: "Hawaii's athletic facilities are unlikely to ever crack the national rankings, but long-awaited upgrades may no longer be a pipe dream. The substandard facilities were in the national spotlight throughout the team's rise last year, as players and coaches refused to bite their tongues about the poor working conditions. Star quarterback Colt Brennan sounded off in May, complaining that players "can't even get soap in our locker room." Jones mentioned that the ratty carpet in his office hadn't changed since Dick Tomey last coached Hawaii in 1986. Despite a statewide campaign to retain Jones that involved Gov. Linda Lingle, the coach's growing frustration about the facilities helped push him to SMU. In comparing SMU's facilities with Hawaii's at his introductory news conference, Jones fired a parting shot: "You're talking about the NFL and a Pop Warner team." "

About how the negative publicity on their facilities was needed for them to get the resources to fix them, JD said:
"A lot of times it takes something negative to turn into a positive. Even though there was a lot of focus on the facilities and there was some negative publicity and stuff, it becomes the catalyst for the [state] legislature, the university, the donors, to step forward and make things much better than they were. We're seeing that starting to happen." (ESPN)

ESPN Note: "Hawaii is in the process of installing a new turf practice field -- "It's definitely getting done," Donovan said -- and wants to move the football offices to refurbished space. Donovan's long-term goals include improvements to the locker rooms, equipment rooms, training rooms and weight rooms. In February, the school signed an eight-year, $4.1 million agreement with Under Armour, thought to be the most lucrative apparel deal among WAC schools. McMackin said increased donations since the Sugar Bowl have led to more summer school scholarships and an upgraded video system for the coaches."

Happy with the direction their funding is going, Mack said:
"Things are being done. I really believe it's the right time to be at Hawaii." (ESPN)

About how JJ's leaving was a gift to UH because it forced people to help them improve their facilities, JD said:
"Even by leaving, it might have been his last gift to the university to get people to focus on the things that we needed to improve. It's starting to happen." (ESPN)

About how their offense was more complicated last year, John Estes said:
"Last year, we got really complicated with game planning every week and getting away from our base rules. This year, it's just more clear-cut. We're just going to go off our base rules." (ESPN)

ESPN Note: "Graunke, who rallied Hawaii to a win against Nevada last season after Brennan sustained a concussion, expected to enter the spring as the acknowledged starter. But he was suspended from the team Feb. 7 because of academic reasons and other unresolved missteps on his school record. Jones had told Graunke to take care of things before the semester ended, but McMackin moved up the deadline."

About his suspension, Tyler said:
"It was killing me. It was probably the most depressing month of my life." (ESPN)

ESPN Note: "Graunke and Funaki finished spring ball in a dead heat for the top job, but several players boosted their stock at Hawaii's iffiest position, wide receiver. McMackin praised the spring performances of outside receiver Greg Salas and slotbacks Aaron Bain and Kealoha Pilares, a converted running back. Graunke said senior Mike Washington has been on par with leading receiver Davone Bess the past few seasons and simply needed an opportunity."

About how their offense is expected to not be as good as last year, Adam Leonard said:
"It's a given that any time your starting quarterback and your starting four wide receivers leave, it's going to be some kind of slide. The new guys just need that playing experience, and then they're going to be just fine." (ESPN)

About how they are not going to call this a rebuilding year, Tyler said:
"A lot of people are going to think it's a rebuilding year, but that's exactly what it's not going to be. We don't like to hear that around here. We're not backing down to anybody. We're just going to keep rolling." (ESPN)