By Denny O'Brien
©2007 Bonesville.net
All Rights Reserved.

Distractions are a common thread with most postseason bowls. Regardless of the date or location, there is no shortage of festivities to entertain players during their week-long preparations for the game.

For the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl, the biggest attraction is the setting itself. East Carolina is stationed this week at picturesque Waikiki Beach, where the backdrop of sun, surf, and Diamond Head couldn’t be more alluring.

And while the primary goal this week is to leave Oahu a bowl champion, Holtz says the trip is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the Pirates. That’s why he’s seeking a good mix of football and fun during ECU’s week-long stay in Paradise.

“I think it’s a balance when you go to a bowl game, especially to some place like a Hawaii,” Holtz said. “You really want to have a time period where you can really focus on what you have to get done from a football standpoint.

“But at the same time, I think the Hawaii Bowl does a great job with their functions and the way they orchestrated this entire thing. …I know it will be a phenomenal experience for our players to have the opportunity to go through with many of these functions. They’ll be lifetime memories.”

Those memories will include a trip to Pearl Harbor and a tour of the USS Arizona Memorial. Many of ECU’s players have read about the attack that propelled the U.S. into World War II, but now they have the opportunity to visit the site that was ground zero in 1941.

Then there are luaus on the beach, bountiful buffets, and a shopping spree. There’s even a trip to Hawaiian Waters Adventure Park, where high-speed waterslides should provide countless thrills.

Bundle it all together and you can see how a coach might be concerned about his team’s mental approach to the game.

“As long as we handle this the right way, I think it can be a phenomenal trip,” Holtz said. “I think anytime you go to a bowl game, it always makes the bowl game more rewarding at the end of the trip when you get to get on that plane with a 'W' to come home.

“It always makes every event just a little bit more fun. You remember all the laughs. You remember all the positive things that happened during the week. When you lose, you have a tendency to come home with a little bit of a sour taste in your mouth because you didn’t win the game.”

Holtz says the bitter taste from last year’s loss to South Florida in the PapaJohns.com Bowl still lingers for the Pirates. He believes that memory will keep his players focused, especially the seniors who want to punctuate their careers with a memorable eight-win season.

And despite all the fun that has been woven into ECU’s schedule this week, there will be no shortage of football. The Pirates practice each morning from 9:30-11:30 at Aloha Stadium, and they will follow that with meetings and film study in the afternoon.

ECU will need every bit of that to prepare for 24th-ranked Boise State. The Broncos are 10-2 with losses to only Washington and 10th-ranked Hawaii, and boast one of the nation’s most dynamic offenses.

Boise State ranks 10th in total offense (476 yards per game) and 5th in scoring (43 ppg), which should prove a tremendous challenge for the ECU defense. That challenge, coupled with last year’s bowl experience, is what should keep the Pirates focused.

“This is a great opportunity for us as a program to play the program of the caliber of Boise State,” Holtz said. “It will be a heck of a challenge for us, but our think our players understand the challenges ahead of us, and I think they’re really excited about it.

“I see a different mindset right now, where I think a year ago we were excited to go to a bowl game. I think right now this team is really excited to have the opportunity to go over and play the bowl game. It’s not just about going to a bowl, but it’s having the opportunity to play a program like Boise State.”

Having that opportunity in a setting like Hawaii is just icing on the cake. And while football is the main course this week for Holtz and East Carolina, that will be complemented by a huge helping of fun.