Hawaii football begins fall camp Wednesday

Hawaii coach Timmy Chang walks on the field before the team’s NCAA college football game against San Jose State, Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia)

Kickoff is right around the corner for the University of Hawaii football team, which opens its season on Aug. 24.

The Rainbow Warriors will begin fall training camp on Wednesday at 7 am at the Clarence TC Ching Athletics Complex, one month before the ‘Bows begin their 2024 campaign at the same site against Delaware State.

Year 3 of the Timmy Chang era will begin on Aug. 24. Instead of opening against Vanderbilt, which the ‘Bows have done the last two years consecutive, the team will take on an FCS opponent to open the season for the first time in program history since 2009.

The ‘Bows will be without suspended receiver Steven McBride for an indefinite amount of time following his arrest on Saturday.

Hawaii returns quarterback Brayden Schager, who withdrew from the NCAA transfer portal following the 2023 season. He’ll enter his senior year at UH as the starter, his third year doing so on a full-time basis.

Also returning to the field is linebacker Logan Taylor, the spiritual and emotional leader of the team, who played in just three games in 2023 before suffering a season-ending ACL injury. Because he played under the four-game threshold, Taylor will return for his seventh season of college ball in 2024.

One of the main position competitions to watch is that of starting placekicker. Japan native Kansei Matsuzawa, Kai Kluth, Ben Falck and Kayde Mahuka are the four kickers currently listed on the UH roster looking to fill the void left by four-year starter Matthew Shipley, who is spending his last year of collegiate eligibility at Arkansas.