Hawaii Wayfinders 2048

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The Wayfinders will return to the islands for their early bye week following a solid victory over Morgantown. Only three games into the season and Hawai'i is one win away from matching last season's total output. But not everything is sunshine and rainbows for our intrepid Voyagers. There is still plenty of room for improvement with this squad if they want to be competitive in January. Here are the notes from the Wayfinders-Marauders game!

THEGOOD: Aside from the obvious step forwards toward a culture of winning, Hawai'i also got a monster game out of RB Shawn Middleton (178 yards on 31 carries) and their most complete defensive effort to date this season, holding the Marauders offense to only 233 yards of total offense (87 rushing, 146 passing). It was a real team effort on defense; there weren't any players who really stood out from the pack. It was just a solid game all around. The pass rush was alive for the first time all year.

THEBAD: QB Heath Morton really needs to work on his short-yardage chemistry with his receivers. Morton did a ton of damage in the intermediate area, completing 10 of 16 passes for the lion's share of his yardage, but was only 7-15 for 68 yards on passes under 9 yards. Those numbers will have to improve in future games to keep the Wayfinders offense clicking.

THEUGLY: Special teams. It hurts to put these guys here, because overall this year their play has been much improved from last year, but standout PR Carson Little was absolutely shut down today with his only return going for a five-yard loss. Hawaii's own punt coverage wasn't great either, as the Marauders were able to find some seams that gave them solid field position throughout the game. To top it off, the Wayfinders also botched an extra point and had a routine field goal (which would have iced the game in the fourth quarter) blocked. The coaches were definitely not pleased about that phase of the game, so expect to see some extra hours put into specials during the off week.

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ALOHA OHANA!

The HAWAI'I WAYFINDERS conclude their epic first quarter of the season with a week five trip to St. Paul, where they will take on the undefeated Bandits, who are also coming off their bye. It's been a long road for these Wayfinders, who have yet to play in front of their home crowd. Tonight they have an opportunity to match their win total from last year before they've even played a home game! Win or lose, the Wayfinders will have half of their road games out of the way early on, which will be a relief when the odyssey is finally over.

A win tonight would go a long way towards proving the legitimacy of this Hawai'i team. The Bandits have been playing some good football and have a variety of offensive weapons at their disposal. The Wayfinders will need to do a good job of maintaining possession by taking care of the ball, avoiding turnovers and grinding out those key first downs. TEs Glenn Wright and Connor Preston will be important pieces in the passing game to keep the chains moving. Defensively, the Wayfinders have a big task in front of them; DT Jimmy Gordon and LB Marshall Simmons will be the key figures in slowing down the Bandits' powerful rushing attack.

With the early bye behind them, it's time for Hawai'i to start building that playoff resume. The Wayfinders played well against Ohio River a few weeks ago, but a loss is a loss. If they want to be taken seriously, they'll need to start piling up more signature wins. Beating 3-0 St. Paul in Minnesota in the last of four road games in a row? It won't be easy--but it would be a big step forward for this team.

GO WAYFINDERS!!!