Exhausted from the anticipation, quarterback Colt Brennan said what many University of Hawai'i football supporters have felt: "Let's play some football!"

"I'm ready to get going," Brennan said of tonight's season opener against Division I-AA Northern Colorado. "I'm tired of waiting."

Indeed, it has been a long — and dramatic — offseason, starting with Brennan's decision to return to UH for his senior season, kept alive by the controversies of an incomplete schedule and the deteriorating conditions of the Manoa facilities, and finally, the antsy countdown to the most welcomed season in the program's history.

June Jones, who is entering the final season of his UH contract, said the number of practices from the start of training camp is exactly the same as last year's preseason preparation. Yet, he noted, "It really feels like we've been training for a long time. It seems like it's been forever."

Right slotback Ryan Grice-Mullins said the Warriors are ready to put aside the side shows of the offseason.

"The whole summer, the talk was about the schedule and all kinds of stuff," Grice-Mullins said. "All of that was out of our hands. What we do on the field is the only thing we can control. What we do in this game is in our hands."

There are significant and intriguing changes. The Warriors have a new defensive coordinator (Greg McMackin, who served the same role in 1999) and 4-3 defensive scheme; 12 new starters; a new pregame routine (a player-created Polynesian war chant will replace last year's Maori haka); and, even, a new media relations director (Derek Inouchi, who succeeds Lois Manin).

Still, the expectations are unprecedentedly great. The 23rd-ranked Warriors are in the preseason polls for the first time. Brennan, coming off the best statistical season by a quarterback in NCAA history, is being trumpeted as a Heisman Trophy candidate.

With the diluted schedule — 116th out of 119 schools, according to one power ranking — a 12-0 regular season is both a wish and a necessity.

"Our goal is to win the WAC championship," McMackin said. "That's what we're striving for."

The Warriors lost five defensive starters — two to NFL teams. But they were quick to adjust to McMackin, who was hired the second week of spring training.

"Losing players is devastating," McMackin said. "We've stayed pretty positive and gone on. This defense — and this whole team — will take on its own personality. Of course, it depends when the lights go on. But we've got a lot of expectations."

In last year's 3-4 defense, ends Melila Purcell III and Ikaika Alama-Francis were essentially defensive tackles. In McMackin's 4-3 schemes, the ends are pass rushers. Last year's defense mirrored the Pittsburgh Steelers'; this year's schemes are comparable to the Seattle Seahawks'.

"They picked it up pretty fast," McMackin said.

They also were rejuvenated with McMackin's fresh-start approach. McMackin wiped clean the depth chart in the spring. That opened the way for cornerback Keenan Jones, who was suspended and stripped of his scholarship after missing several mandatory meetings, to ascend the depth chart. It also allowed linebacker Blaze Soares to break into the lineup.

Against Oregon State, Soares played six downs. Four times, he hit the quarterback. "Blaze is a player," McMackin said.

Soares won't play tonight because of an injured left hamstring and stinger in his left shoulder. His replacement is Brad Kalilimoku, who was seldom used down the stretch last year.

The Warriors' offense might be even more productive than it was last season. C.J. Hawthorne, a converted cornerback, will start at right wideout. The incumbents are left wideout Jason Rivers, and slotbacks Grice-Mullins and Davone Bess.

"This is the fastest group of receivers we've ever had," Jones said. "When we started here (in 1999) we felt the offense would attract this type of skill."

The Warriors' top running backs last season, Nate Ilaoa and Reagan Mauia, completed their UH eligibility. The replacements, Kealoha Pilares and Leon Wright-Jackson, are potentially better.

As a Damien Memorial School senior in 2005, Pilares was the state's high school Offensive Player of the Year.

As a Pasco (Wash.) High senior in 2004, Wright-Jackson was named one of the nation's top 25 players. He played for Nebraska in 2005.

Jones believes both will live up to their billing.

"All of the pressure, I have to put it away and focus, and do what I have to do," Pilares said. "I can't wait to come out of that (inflatable) helmet, with all of the smoke, and playing in front of the more than 100 fans at Damien. It's going to be exciting."

The offensive line also has survived the shuffle. Center Samson Satele, and tackles Tala Esera and Dane Uperesa all departed. Keith AhSoon and Keoni Steinhoff replaced Esera and Uperesa, and John Estes moved from right guard to center. Larry Saufea is the right guard.

Offensive line coach Dennis McKnight declared Estes, a third-year sophomore, as the best offensive lineman in the country.

As for Brennan, he has remained upbeat despite the intensive media crush. He posed — twice — for Sports Illustrated. Three television networks, including ESPN, followed him around for a day. He contributes to a weekly online diary.

And he signs autographs, perhaps hundreds a week. T-shirts, helmets, models of himself, hands. If there's a flat surface, he will be asked to sign it.

The athletic department has assigned a manager to oversee Brennan's appointments.

"He's handling it well," Jones said.

Jones has coached Hall of Fame quarterbacks Warren Moon and Jim Kelly. He drafted Ryan Leaf as the No. 2 overall pick. Jones said Brennan measures up to those quarterbacks in skill and composure.

"Colt is a combination of all of the best things about all of those guys," Jones said. "He knows how to do all of those things."

Brennan said: "I just love to play. I'm glad the offseason is over. I just want to play."

EX-CAL WR JOINS UH

The son of Hall of Fame wide receiver James Lofton has joined the Warriors as a non-scholarship player.

Daniel Lofton, also a wide receiver, is enrolled at UH.

He redshirted as a freshman last season at the University of California.

Lofton requested — and received — a release from his Cal scholarship. His father and Artie Wilson, K5's basketball analyst and a real estate tycoon, are close friends. Wilson's best friend is Jones.

"I've known Daniel since he was a child," Wilson said.

Lofton, who is 6 feet 3 and 200 pounds, must redshirt this season. After that, he will have three years to play three seasons.

Visit Tsai's blog at www.hawaiiwarriorbeat.com.

Reach Stephen Tsai at stsai@honoluluadvertiser.com.