HONOLULU — Timmy Chang got a hero’s greeting from the sold-out crowd at the Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex.
Then visiting Vanderbilt provided its own welcome to FBS football for Hawaii’s first-time head coach – a 63-10 rout at the hands of an SEC team predicted on betting lines to win by only slightly more than a touchdown.
The Commodores stalled on their first drive and allowed a TD on the Rainbow Warriors’ first, to the delight of the green-clad group of more than 9,000 who came out to see the debut of Chang’s “Braddahhood” and completely filled UH makeshift home venue for the first time in the 2022 season opener.
But after that, Vandy outscored UH by 60 the rest of the way.
Fans departed in droves in the second half, particularly in a nightmare of a third quarter as the Commodores, who are perpetually an also-ran in their power conference, outscored UH 35-0.
The exclamation point was a 87-yard run by Vandy quarterback Mike Wright on a read option play in which he darted left, caught a couple of blocks and was gone, outracing the UH secondary toward the recently renovated Manoa Lower Campus parking structure with 5:39 to go in the third.
“You give a team like this confidence and energy and that’s what it kind of turns into, and then we start doing things that shouldn’t be done,” Chang said. “We’re going to get better and watch ourselves really hard.”
It was UH’s first meeting with an SEC team since a 56-10 loss at Florida to open the 2008 season, and first time hosting an SEC team since UH beat Alabama at Aloha Stadium in 2003.
Vandy, with Wright dissecting the defense as a dual threat, rolled up 601 yards of total offense – 404 rushing – to UH’s 358 total yards. It averaged 9.2 yards per rushing play.
According to the CBS Sports Network, which broadcast the game, it’s been a while since Vanderbilt had that kind of offensive day.
Meanwhile, Hawaii was at times out of sorts for the “Week 0” game played ahead of most of the rest of the college football world; on two occasions, it had only 10 men on the field.
UH has a lot of questions going into next week’s game against Western Kentucky, also at the Ching Complex.
“It’s a self-evaluation of us as coaches and knowing what we have and what we can do and not do, and continue to get better, because this next week’s coming up quick against Western Kentucky,” Chang said.
After a pregame ha‘a, Chang, the 40-year-old former UH quarterback, led his team out of the tunnel, gathering in the Ewa end zone then sprinting out to midfield.
Sophomore Brayden Schager, last season’s backup to the since-transferred Chevan Cordeiro, got the nod as the starter from a four-way quarterback competition in the fall.
On UH’s inaugural drive of the season, Schager led an eight-play, 75-yard effort capped with a 37-yard touchdown by senior running back Dedrick Parson.
But after that, all UH would manage was a 40-yard field goal by Matthew Shipley in the second quarter.
“That’s an ideal first drive, that’s how you draw it up,” Schager said. “After that, things started to tilt down in our direction and that falls back on myself. I just gotta continue to do what I can do and get better for this team.”
UH lost plenty of talent and roughly 73% of its statistical production on the roster in the rocky transition from Todd Graham, who resigned in January amid heavy criticism for his alleged mistreatment of players, and the hire of Chang one week later.
That left plenty of job opportunities for returnees and newcomers alike. Receiver Jonah Panoke was one of the beneficiaries; he had his most productive game as a ‘Bow with seven catches for 101 yards. One of UH’s top receivers, Zion Bowens, was knocked out of the game early on and will be evaluated, Chang said.
Few other ‘Bows were able to capitalize on their newfound playing time. Parson, one of the veterans of last year’s team who elected to return, led the running backs with 86 yards on 13 carries, but a pair of lost fumbles by the captain – one scooped up and one plucked right from the air – were returned for Vandy touchdowns by Anfernee Orji and CJ Taylor.
“The (first) fumble was the turning moment of the game,” Parson said. “I take that on the chin. I put that all on me. … That’s something I can’t do, especially being the leader of the team, trying to run offense through me.”
Schager was swapped out at halftime, when UH trailed only 21-10, in favor of Pitt transfer Joey Yellen. Schager, who reappeared in fourth-quarter garbage time, finished 18-for-35 for 161 yards and was sacked once. Yellen was 10-for-20 for 89 yards and was sacked twice. Yellen appeared to be intercepted once but it was overturned upon review.
Chang said it was a close battle in fall camp and that Yellen, who arrived over the summer, also deserved a chance to show what he could do in a live game.
“(Getting subbed out) is out of my control, but when I came back in I just told the O-line and all the receivers, let’s just go have fun,” Schager said. “I don’t give a crap about the score. Let’s go have fun and put something on film for the next week and get better.”
Vandy’s opening drive was plagued by penalties and stalled. After that, second-year coach Clark Lea’s team could do no wrong, starting with a Mike Wright 1-yard pass to a wide-open Will Sheppard in the right corner of the end zone.
On its next drive, Vandy caught a break going for it on fourth-and-6 from within the UH 8. Mike Wright’s pass went through the hands of his intended target and was caught by a heads-up Jayden McGowan for a first down at the 1. Wright then took it in on an option keeper for a 21-10 lead.
Ray Davis tore off a 39-yard option run on the first play of the second half, plus a UH foul for a horsecollar tackle.
It took just two more rushing plays for Vanderbilt’s Rocko Griffin to dive in from 10 yards to complete the 75-yard, 56-second drive for a 28-10 lead.
Yellen entered on UH’s drive of the second half. He completed his first pass to Jonah Panoke for 8 yards, then two plays later found Panoke across the middle for 17 yards.
The promising drive was suddenly stuffed, though, on fourth-and-1 in Commodore territory when Parson was stopped for no gain up the middle and UH turned it over on downs.
Vandy needed just five plays to go 62 yards and extend the lead to 35-10.
The woes continued as Parson was tackled from behind on a swing pass. The ball popped out and into the hands of Taylor, who returned it 14 yards for the score and a 42-10 lead.
After another UH fourth down conversion attempt came up short in Vandy territory (the ‘Bows were 0-for-4 on fourth down for the game), that’s when Wright took off, outracing everyone on a read option. The quarterback finished with 163 yards on the ground and 146 through the air, with four total touchdowns.
"That's our identity, that's what we want to be this year," Wright told the CBS Sports Network in the postgame. "We took a really great growing step today."
Said UH linebacker Isaiah Tufaga, “From what we’d seen on film, he’s a guy with good speed and he obviously showed that today. He made plays and we didn’t. We didn’t track him down. It sucks, but we know what we’ve got to get better at and move on from here.”
It was the teams’ first meeting ever. UH is to play a return game in Nashville, Tenn., to open next season.
Vanderbilt completed the trifecta of victories in Hawaii within a year for its three primary men’s sports of basketball, baseball and football. Vandy basketball beat UH in the Diamond Head Classic in December and its baseball team swept UH in a four-game series at Les Murakami Stadium in March.
Brian McInnis covers the state’s sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii.