With pain comes progress, and for the University of Hawai’i football team, that’s the goal as the Rainbow Warriors aim to learn from a heartbreaking loss to a Power 4 opponent.
The Rainbow Warriors returned to the practice field Wednesday morning for the first time since surrendering a 10-0 third-quarter lead in a 16-13 loss to UCLA on Saturday.
Several players, including quarterback Brayden Schager, rested for precautionary reasons, though the expectation is that they will return in the coming days.
Now, the team’s focus is on embracing their mistakes, learning from inconsistencies, and addressing the 97 yards in penalties that plagued their performance.
Head coach Timmy Chang stressed the importance of correcting the details.
“Yeah, that’s, I mean, it’s everything to learn from the things that are problematic, maybe costing the game in situations,” Chang said. “There are plays, and every play matters. And you look back in retrospect, it’s three, four, five plays that are the difference between a win and a loss. So you just try to correct them, get the guys to understand what the corrections are, and then you go from there.”
Senior linebacker and captain Logan Taylor believes the loss will serve as a valuable lesson.
“I believe that loss will prove to be a greater lesson than a win would have been,” Taylor said. “What’s going to propel us through the rest of the season are the little things—discipline, details, plays that need to be made. And this team is going to make those plays, man. We’re going to come with a fire because we’re not going to feel that pain again.”
Taylor added, “That’s what we believe, and that’s what we’re going to do. It’s true actions. Faith without works is dead, so we’re going to come out here and work and work and work.”
The Rainbow Warriors have a bye this weekend before hitting the road to face Sam Houston in Texas on Sept. 14. The Bearkats, who defeated Rice in Week 1, will play UCF on Saturday.