On the Wednesday of every game week, the Hawaii football team gathers at 5:55 a.m. to learn its upcoming mission.

Associate head coach Chris Brown’s 20-minute “Mission Mind-set” presentations draw guidance and inspiration from retired Col. Trey Johnson, who served in the 75th Ranger Regiment and now is a UH lecturer on leadership.

This week’s presentation focused on Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes, who after landing on what is now Mexico in the early 16th century, ordered his soldiers to “burn the boats.” It was a tactic, Brown told the UH players, to show “there was no retreat, there was only victory. There was only one option.” Cortes led the defeat of the Aztecs.

The Rainbow Warriors have embraced the lesson as they face college football’s Aztecs — first-place San Diego State — in

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