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Hawaii football will be sneaky sleeper in Mountain West for 2019

By John Mitchell

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 27: Hawai'i Rainbow Warrior players embrace before the College Football Sydney Cup match between University of California and University of Hawaii at ANZ Stadium on August 27, 2016 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Nolan/Getty Images)
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 27: Hawai'i Rainbow Warrior players embrace before the College Football Sydney Cup match between University of California and University of Hawaii at ANZ Stadium on August 27, 2016 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Nolan/Getty Images) /
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With a load of returning production and increased confidence, Nick Rolovich and Hawaii football could be a sneaky sleeper in the Mountain West in 2019.

It has been mostly tough sledding for Hawaii football since June Jones left his perch leading the program after delivering the Rainbow Warriors a Sugar Bowl appearance in 2007. Since then, Hawaii has finished above .500 just twice.

Nick Rolovich, entering his fourth season as the team’s head coach, seems to have the ball rolling in the right direction after leading Hawaii to an 8-6 mark in 2018, the program’s first winning season since 2010.

The Rainbow Warriors finished tied for second in the conference’s West division, and with significant turnover for defending champion Fresno State, Hawaii is eyeing a run at the divisional crown and a spot in the Mountain West title game.

Hawaii has never seriously competed for the Mountain West title, and it hasn’t won a conference championship in any league since their perfect regular season of 2007, but the Rainbow Warriors return more production from last season’s team than any other program in the Mountain West, and they rank 9th in all of the country.

The stars are aligning for Rolovich’s squad to make a run at the conference title, but the Mountain West remains a deep league full of potential contenders and stumbling blocks along the way. Along with Fresno State, Hawaii must navigate through a division that includes perennial contender San Diego State and rising Nevada. On the other side, either Boise State or Utah State will likely be awaiting Hawaii if they can make their way out of the division.

The conference looks as open as ever, but Hawaii still has plenty of question marks to answer if it is going to seriously compete for the title.

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