MĀNOA — All eyes on Micah Alejado yet again.
For the second consecutive Tuesday, the University of Hawai‘i football team began a week of practice without its star quarterback.
After injuring his right ankle in the second half of the team's season-opening win over Stanford, Alejado was sidelined for the team's first practice in preparation for a road game at Arizona.
Alejado aggravated his ankle in an eventual 40-6 loss at Arizona, with backup Luke Weaver taking the snaps at quarterback the rest of the way. The Rainbow Warriors did not score a touchdown, their only points a pair of Kansei Matsauzawa field goals. Alejado completed 18 of his 31 passes for 157 yards with an interception, while Weaver went 8-for-16 with 66 yards and two interceptions.
As the Rainbow Warriors turned the page to their next opponent, Sam Houston, the 'Bows took the field for practice on Tuesday. This time, Alejado was seen with a walking boot on his right foot.
Following practice, Chang said Alejado will be a game-time decision this week. Saturday's contest against Sam Houston kicks off at the Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex at 6 p.m.
"He didn't practice today, and we're gonna see how it progresses," Chang said. "He did get (his ankle) stepped on during the (Arizona) game. Kid's a warrior, kid's a fighter. So, if he has an opportunity to play, he would love to."
Saturday's game will be the return game of a home-and-home between Hawai‘i and Sam Houston. On Sept. 14, 2024, UH traveled to Huntsville, Texas and suffered a deflating 31-13 loss to the Bearkats. Sam Houston, which only joined the FBS ranks in 2023, went 10-3 in 2024.
After the 2024 regular season, head coach K.C. Keeler accepted the job at Temple. The Bearkats lost over 30 players to the transfer portal but also gained over 30 under new head coach Phil Longo.
Sam Houston's 2025 team is currently 0-2 with losses to Western Kentucky and UNLV. With the amount of player and coach turnover, the Bearkats have a markedly different look as a team compared to their charmed 2024 season.
"There's a lot of new players, a little turnover as well as new coaches, as you'd expect," Chang said. "There's differences that we have to look at in their scheme and understand what they're trying to do. But then again, they're going to be athletic, they're going to be fast, they're going to be physical. So, we got to get ready to play a great team."
Revenge is not on the mind of returning Hawai‘i players who lost to Sam Houston in 2024. The bigger concern to current players on the roster is the attempt to prove they're not the same team that lost by 34 points to Arizona last week.
"No, not at all," linebacker Jamih Otis said when asked if Saturday is a revenge game. "I think it's just another game where we gotta work on our craft. I think the best thing is just as a defense, beating them to the point of attack. I wouldn't say revenge. Just another game where we got to work on the things that we did bad last week. (Sam Houston) is looking at what we did wrong, so our biggest thing is just working on our X's and O's, coming to the point of attack, beating them to the point of attack, just being an elite defense and maturing in the areas that we were kind of immature in last week."
With Alejado in a boot on Tuesday, Weaver again took the lion's share of first-team reps, with Dermaricus Davis rotating in as the backup.
"Just prepare like a starter and be ready at any moment. That's all it is," Weaver said following Tuesday's practice. "Luckily I can get some more reps in my system and just be ready if I need to be."
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Christian Shimabuku can be reached at christian@alohastatedaily.com.
