Rainbow Warriors get early start on preparation for 2026 season

MANOA — Early bird gets the worm.

The University of Hawai’i Rainbow Warriors football team started spring practice on Feb. 3, making the program one of the first across the nation to start its preparation for the 2026 season.

Timmy Chang, now in his fifth year as head coach at his alma mater, has no problem with the short turnaround time after his team last played on Christmas Eve in the Sheraton Hawai’i Bowl.

“It first our schedule, it fits what we want to do,” said Chang. “We got a bunch of new guys in there. It allows us to continue to develop. There’s no perfect plan. It’s just a plan that we believe will help develop our guys and get our guys going.”

Timmy Chang embarks on his fifth season as the head coach of his alma mater. | Photo: Michael Lasquero

Hawai’i is coming off a season when it went 9-4 and reached its first bowl game under Chang. The primary offensive scheme that the Rainbow Warriors utilize is the run-and-shoot, which is an intricate offense that has receivers adjust their routes on the fly based on the defensive coverage.

“I think we benefit the most off of getting reps as fast as we can, and then being able to pour into our guys and getting them to understand and have a better understanding of what we need them to do, what we want them to do, what football looks like here at the university of Hawai’i,” said Chang.

One of the newcomers to the team is receiver Audric Harris, a 6-foot-1, 190-pound junior transfer from Washington. Harris is thankful for the opportunity to get into the playbook faster after arriving to the islands a few weeks ago.

“This early start kind of helps,” he said. “Coming in three weeks ago, being able to learn the plays real quick, being able to go out there and execute the plays as soon as possible, that helps me get a grasp of the offense faster.”

Washington transfer Audric Harris runs after the catch in a positional drill. | Photo: Michael Lasquero

The main important thing that Chang wants his team to accomplish during the 15 allowed practices in the spring is development.

“It wasn’t perfect, but the intention is what was there and their want to was there,” said Chang. “It’s just about cleaning everything up. Go make new mistakes, we know they’re going to make mistakes and they know that. They’re not going to know everything to do out there, but as long as the intent to want to get better is there, it’ll be good.”

Safeties Makana Meyers (21) and Matagi Thompson (25) take part in a ball security drill. | Photo: Michael Lasquero