Hawaii men’s volleyball, Tua’s future are topics to watch

We rarely dare to say the word D, but the possibilities are really there.

dynasty.

You’ll never hear coach Charlie Wade or his players say it, but they may have reached one threshold that will put the University of Hawaii men’s volleyball team into 2023. We focus on the most engaging local sports stories.

The Warriors defended their 2021 national championship last year with mostly new starters — they’re back this season. However, it should be remembered that there is plenty of elite competition to try to knock UH off its high ground, starting with Big West rival Long Beach State.The Hawaii team swept the championship, but UH had also broken two weeks ago.

There are many other teams that Hawaii sports fans will be rooting for next year, but stories impacting the state include health (Tua Tagovailoa’s concussion battle) and facilities (UH’s athletic facility renovations, and Josh If Governor Green can proceed with the construction of Aloha Stadium).

1. Three people?

The third time could be just as compelling as UH’s first two. The Warriors have as much brilliance in their history heading into 2023 as they have in the past two years.

Over the last 10 seasons, two consecutive national championships have become the sport’s norm. Starting with UC Irvine in 2012 and his 13th year, five schools have won Natty, and all five have successfully defended once.

Most recently at UH, they swept the finals against BYU in 2021 and won Long Beach State under Wade last year.

With everyone returning from the 2022 championship squad, the Warriors have the talent and experience to take their third consecutive title. The key to UH (he went 27-5 last year) is to stay hungry and healthy.

Returning starters Jakob Tele (Big West Player of the Year), Chaz Galloway, Spyros Chakas, Guilherme Vos, Dimitrios Mukhrias, Cole Hoglund and Brett Sheward. The same goes for the other three players who participated in last May’s championship game.

The Warriors will start the season on January 12th against Ball State at Simplify Arena at the Stan Sheriff Center.

>> Related: A Look Back at Hawaii’s Top Sports Stories for 2022

Boys’ collegiate volleyball is growing, with 10 new schools joining Divisions I and II last year (teams in both divisions qualify for the NCAA Tournament). The Merrimack and Missouri S&T will debut this year.

According to Volleyballmag.com, longtime brand-name rivals like UCLA and Long Beach State welcome two of the top three recruiting classes in the United States. I will be competing again at the national convention May 4-6 in Fairfax, Virginia.

UCLA is the only school to win two or more national crowns in a row. The Bruins won his three titles, the first in the sport, from 1970 to his 1972, and he from 1974 to 1976. UCLA won four consecutive championships from 1981 to ’84.

2. Tua

Will Tagovailoa play football again in 2023? This season or next season? Or until now?

NFL fans are divided on whether the Dolphins quarterback is overrated or underrated, but most agree the former St. Louis and Alabama star has had enough of a blow to the head this season. You seem to agree.

Tagovailoa was under concussion protocol last week after the Christmas Day loss to Green Bay and complained of concussion symptoms the next day. He will miss today’s game against New England. This is an important match for Miami as they compete for playoff berth.

On Saturday, the NFL and NFLPA said an investigation found that Tagovailoa did not show symptoms of a concussion during a Packers game.

This is the second high-profile situation involving Tagovailoa and concussion this season. In late September, he was cleared to re-enter the game against Buffalo after a head injury, and was knocked out with an apparent concussion from the next game against Cincinnati (just four days later).

A consultant assigned to a Buffalo game was charged with determining whether a player could return after being fired from the NFL due to a head injury.

With the risk of multiple concussions, especially in a short period of time, the debate over Tagovailoa has gone from where he ranks among NFL quarterbacks to when or if he should return to football. has changed.

3. Heap up the chin

Renovations to UH’s Clarence TC Chin Athletic Complex, which will boost football capacity to 16,909, are set to begin this month in time for the Warriors’ first home game against Stamford on Sept. 1.

UH has played its home games at its former on-campus practice ground since the 50,000-seat Aloha Stadium in Halawa closed two years ago. Ching’s production capacity in 2021 and 2022 was 9,350 units.

The $30 million UH project also includes construction of a new track and football facility, which is expected to break ground this spring and be completed by May 2024.

The state has approved $350 million to build a new Aloha Stadium on the site of the older facility with at least 25,000 seats (possibly expandable). However, a construction contract has not yet been signed and it is not known when the old stadium will be demolished.

4. UH Basketball

The UH men’s basketball team has already achieved something the Rainbows have never done before by winning the championship game at the Diamond Head Classic last week. It was the first time in his 13-year history of the tournament that “Bowes” had advanced to the winner’s bracket final.

Now the Warriors are starting conference play, their 11-3 record after Saturday’s victory over Cal Poly is the best start for the Rainbows, who went 12-2 in the 2016-17 campaign.

These ‘Bows aren’t as loaded as coach Eran Ganot’s first team, which won the school’s first NCAA Tournament six years ago, but they’re rightly endorsed to be the best team in the Big West. and will compete for bids on March Madness.

5. Wahine Volleyball

UH’s women’s volleyball team will also bring back nearly all players in 2023.

The Wahine (22-7 overall in 2022) went 19-1 to win the Big West Championship and qualify for their 40th NCAA Tournament.

But starting this year, dominating the conference’s regular season may not be enough to advance to the NCAA.The conference has added a tournament to determine the league champion. If Big West wins him one automatic berth, it will be awarded to the winner of the tournament.

Therefore, it is important for wahine to peak at the right time and be healthy.

In 2024, additional tournaments will be added for softball and baseball.