Asked how Bryant Moniz picked up the offense in such a short period of time, Stephen Tsai said:
"He's actually done a good job. Moniz joined UH as a walk-on in January. He participated in spring practice, and exited as the No. 4 quarterback. In training camp, he beat out Shane Austin for the No. 3 job, then worked his way into a tie for No. 2 with Brent Rausch. When Rausch was injured, Moniz became the No. 2. In UH's practices, the No. 1 quarterback takes two-thirds of the reps; the No. 2 guy gets one-third. The others take "mental reps." Because UH throws hundreds of passes each practice, Moniz has had a lot of work with the receivers." (LT)
Asked if the injury situation and the last couple of losses have turned this year into a rebuilding year and if the depth chart moves from this week are looking towards the future or trying to shake things up for this season, ST said:
"I think it has been acknowledged that this is a rebuilding year. The Warriors entered the season with only one starter from the Sugar Bowl season (center John Estes). Wideout Malcolm Lane, the team's leading receiver last year, is redshirting this year to focus on academics. The defensive leader, middle linebacker Brashton Satele, suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in training camp. By sticking with some players — such as Moniz — it appears the Warriors are trying to give some of the youngsters more game experience." (LT)
Asked how he would rate UH's run defense last week against Fresno State's Ryan Mathews, since Idaho has a similarly physical back in DeMaundray Woolridge, ST said:
"The Warriors did a good job of being in position to make plays against Mathews, but they just didn't execute. Missed tackles — 41 against Louisiana Tech — have been the Warriors' problem, not planning." (LT)
Asked how much does the quality of UH's receivers soften the situation for Moniz, ST said:
"Greg Salas can help any quarterback. At 6-2 and 205 pounds, he's a big target. His yards-after-catch average is well over 10.0. Rodney Bradley, the left wideout, also is good at breaking off routes to help Moniz. What Moniz lacks is game experience." (LT)
Asked if the week after Greg Alexander's season-ending injury was one of shock for UH or if they seemed to rebound OK from that development, ST said:
"With so many injuries this year — Satele, defensive end Fetaliagogo Fonoti, right tackle Laupepa Letuli — there's been a mentality of: "here we go again." Teammates and coaches really like Moniz, so there was more of an anxiousness to see what he could do rather than
gloominess." (LT)
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