The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1473191
THE WOLVERINE 2022 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 123 BY CLAYTON SAYFIE Hawai'i ended last November on a high note, winning its last two games — over Colorado State and Wyoming — to earn its third consecutive bowl berth. Then, adversity hit the Rainbow Warriors fast. One week into December, a report sur- faced alleging that then-head coach Todd Graham was mistreating players and had fostered a troublesome environment dur- ing his two-year tenure. The team saw its Hawai'i Bowl matchup with Memphis can- celed less than 24 hours before kickoff on Christmas Eve due to COVID-19 concerns within the team. And to top it off, Graham stepped down in January. Looking to provide healing to an ailing program, Hawai'i attempted to bring back June Jones, the second-winningest head coach in Rainbow Warriors history. How- ever, negotiations — which included a two- year deal on the table and a succession plan — hit a snag, and he dropped out of the run- ning. Then he blasted the athletic department on Twitter. Two days later, former Hawai'i record-set- ting quarterback Tommy Chang was brought on as the program's 25th head man. While the Honolulu native is thrilled to have landed his first head-coaching job at his alma mater, he's not back under ideal circumstances. Twenty players left the team via the trans- fer portal, and only seven starters are back. Suddenly, Chang is tasked with a rebuilding job. The new head coach brings a spread of- fense with run-and-shoot principles, which fits the offensive players still left on the roster, considering the Rainbow Warriors attempted the 24th-most passes per game in the country a year ago (35.5). They recorded 262.2 yards per outing, good for 34th nation- ally and fourth in the Mountain West. The favorite to be the main thrower is sophomore Brayden Schager, who came out of spring ball on top of the competition, though there are other options at quarter- back. Sophomore Jake Farrell and junior Cammon Cooper, a Washington State trans- fer, also are in the mix. Schager started four contests and appeared in six last season, connecting on 65 of his 107 attempts (60.8 percent) for 615 yards and 2 touchdowns with 5 interceptions. He has an almost entirely new receiving corps around him, with the squad's three top receivers having departed. Senior run- ning back Dedrick Parson (28 catches, 279 yards, 1 touchdown) is Hawai'i's leading returning receiver and the offense's most established weapon. He also rushed a team- high 117 times for 618 yards and 8 scores. His 5.3 yards per carry ranked eighth in the Mountain West, and he busted 30 plays for 10-plus-yards from scrimmage. The offensive line had big issues last sea- son, allowing 7.3 tackles for loss (117th nationally) and 3 sacks (115th) per game, but two All-Mountain West honorable men- tion standouts return in senior left tackle Ilm Manning and senior left guard Micah Vanterpool. The defense struggled in 2021, allowing more than 30 points seven times and ranking 100th or worse in scoring defense (100th), total defense (112th) and passing defense (127th). The top seven leading tacklers from last season are all gone. Just two defensive players who started the majority of Hawai'i's games last sea- son return in 2022. Senior linebacker Penei Pavihi ranked eighth on the team with 47 total tackles last season, while adding 4.5 for loss and 1 sack. Meanwhile on the back end, senior cornerback Hugh Nelson II had 6 pass breakups and 2 interceptions a year ago, with the former Georgia walk-on primed to take another step forward after appearing in just one career game prior to 2021. Senior defensive tackle Blessman Ta'ala is looking to build off a strong end to last season, starting the final four contests and totaling 6 tackles for loss and 1 sack on the year. He's totaled 14.5 career stops behind the line of scrimmage, and he ranked third on the defense with a 75.3 Pro Football Fo- cus grade in 2021. Notes Sophomore Matthew Shipley handled place kicks and punts last season, making 18 of his 21 field goals and aver- aging 41.5 yards per punt … Despite rushing just 33.2 times per game last season, which slotted 109th in the country, the Rainbow Warriors were efficient with 4.3 yards per attempt (63rd nationally and third in the Mountain West) … This game will mark the 12th-ever home night game (8 p.m., Big Ten Network) for Michigan … The Wolverines are 9-2 under The Big House lights. ❑ Rainbow Warriors Paddle Through Murky Waters 2022 SCHEDULE Date Opponent 2021 Result Aug. 27 VANDERBILT — Sept. 3 WESTERN KENTUCKY — Sept. 10 at Michigan — Sept. 17 DUQUESNE — Sept. 24 at New Mexico State W, 41-21; W, 48-34* Oct. 8 at San Diego State L, 17-10 Oct. 15 NEVADA L, 34-17 Oct. 22 at Colorado State W, 50-45 Oct. 29 WYOMING W, 38-14 Nov. 5 at Fresno State W, 27-24 Nov. 12 UTAH STATE L, 51-31 Nov. 19 UNLV L, 27-13 Nov. 26 at San Jose State L, 17-13 *Hawai'i and New Mexico State met twice last season, Sept. 25 at NMU and Oct. 23 at Hawai'i. PLAYERS TO WATCH Offense: Dedrick Parson, Sr., RB The 5-8, 205-pounder was second on the team in all-purpose yards (941) and third in points scored (54) in 2021. Defense: Blessman Ta'ala, Sr., DT Before coming off the bench in nine of 13 games in 2021, the 6-1, 300-pounder started all nine contests in 2020, 11 of 15 in 2019 and all 14 in 2019. He was named All-Mountain West honorable mention in both 2019 and 2020. Hawai'i senior left tackle Ilm Manning has started 47 career games and was named sec- ond-team All-Mountain West in 2019. PHOTO COURTESY HAWAI'I ATHLETICS GAME 2 • HAWAI'I RAINBOW WARRIORS • SEPT. 10 • 8 P.M. (BTN) QUICK FACTS All-Time Series: Michigan leads 3-0 First Meeting: U-M 27, Hawai'i 10 (Dec. 6, 1986 at Honolulu) Last Meeting: U-M 63, Hawai'i 3 (Sept. 3, 2016 at Ann Arbor) Head Coach: Tommy Chang, 0-0 (1st year) at Hawai'i and overall 2021 In Review: 6-7, 3-5 Mountain West (5th West) Final 2021 Ranking: Unranked Returning Starters: 7 (4 offense, 2 defense, 1 special - ist) Last Bowl Appearance: 2021 (Hawai'i Bowl vs. Mem- phis, canceled) RETURNING LEADERS Passing: Brayden Schager (615 yards, 2 TDs) Rushing: Dedrick Parson (618 yards, 8 TDs) Receiving: Dedrick Parson (279 yards, 1 TDs) Tackles: Penei Pavihi (47) Sacks: Isaiah Tufaga (2) Interceptions: Hugh Nelson II (2)