The Hawaii franchise was one of the few that did not enter 1975 overburdened with debt from 1974. This is not to state or imply that they like the others did not lose a lot of money in the World Football League’s inaugural season but the deep pockets of young owners Sam Battistone and Chris Hemmeter insured that the bills were paid. Battistone and his father were the founders and owners of Sambo’s Restaurant chain and for a younger generation that won’t recall the distinctive and politically incorrect logo and inference of the name, they were to be found in 1200 locales across the United States. Co-owner Chris Hemmeter, one of the Islands’ foremost real estate developers had enough resources and was so imbedded in Hawaii’s business community that the two probably could have kept their own team going for a number of years. Hemmeter of course sold his share of ownership in order to run the entire league in an attempt to resurrect its credibility and financial stability. Battistone’s restaurant empire had been founded in Santa Barbara, California and was centered there so an arrangement was made for the two of them to sell the Hawaii franchise and for Battistone to then purchase the Southern California Sun. The latter action was a necessity in part because the Sun’s initial owner Larry Hatfield was in the midst of a federally driven case of bank fraud. The Hawaiians were sold to new owner Edward Sultan, Jr. an Islands’ based jewelry manufacturer and one of the original minor investors in the 1974 Hawaiians franchise. David Stringer, an architect and another of the original limited partners was named team president.

Mike Giddings, the former Dick Nolan trained 49er assistant returned as head coach. In 1974 the Hawaiians inexperience at some key positions and a rash of injuries early in the season led to a 9-11 record but the nine wins came in the final fourteen games so they finished the year with a lot of momentum. Giddings led them to victory in the first round of the playoffs, a 32-14 decision against the Southern California Sun. A trip to Birmingham in the next round found them on the short end of a close 22-19 loss. Most of the Hawaiian coaching staff returned and it was an experienced and highly respected group. Former All Pro and eventual Hall Of Fame receiver Billy Wilson, ex-USC linebacker Damon Bane, and Marv Marinovich were holdovers from ‘74. Adrian Young, a Dublin, Ireland born linebacker who had been an All California star at powerhouse Bishop Amat High School in La Puenta and one of the All American leaders of USC’s famed “Wild Bunch” defense of the mid-sixties had entered the NFL known as much for being Tim Rossovich’s teammate and running buddy. They both were high draft choices of the Eagles in 1968 (Rossivich in round 1, Young in round 3) and mainstays of the defense until 1972 when both were traded. Young went to the Lions and finished 1973 with the Bears. He came to the Hawaiians mid-way into the 1974 season and assumed a position of leadership and served as a de facto coach. For 1975, he was officially named as a player/coach. Giddings tapped into the experience he had on the roster, also naming nine-year NFL veteran guard John Wilbur as a player/coach for the offensive line. Wilbur had played on both sides of the Redskins vs. Cowboys feud and was an old school tough player. Chuck Detwiler had a four-year NFL career with the Chargers and Cardinals and had hooked on to the Hawaiians part way through the 1974 season and he too was expected to wear two hats as player/coach.

The Hawaiians were another team that had contracted to bring in known NFL talent and their “name” players for 1975 were Ted Kwalick and Calvin Hill. In order to maintain competitive balance, Kwalick was assigned to the Philadelphia Bell, a move that also brought him closer to his hometown in Western Pennsylvania. Hill signed a “futures contract” with Hawaii in 1974 after establishing himself as a mainstay in the Cowboys’ attack since being named NFL Rookie Of The Year in 1969. This Yale graduate was twice named All Pro and played in four Pro Bowls in his six year NFL career and he was seeking greater compensation than the Cowboys were willing to offer. It was expected that he would be Hawaii’s “main man” and that the remainder of the offense would be built around him. Another powerful back was former UCONN great Vince Clements. With experience gained as a versatile performer for the Vikings and Giants Clements was seen as a “do it all” back who would take some of the pressure off of Hill. He had joined the team in the midst of the 1974 season and was a proven commodity. The return of WFL leading receiver Tim Delaney guaranteed a continuation of the passing attack the team had displayed so well in 1974. Delaney’s eighty-nine receptions were twenty-three more than his nearest league rival and he led the Hawaiians in scoring with fifty-nine points. To those in the know, Delaney’s performance was not a surprise. Playing for Don Coryell at San Diego State, his collegiate statistics were every bit as good as his more famous teammates Gary Garrison and Haven Moses. Quarterbacks Rick “Rico” Cassata and Sonny Sixkiller were more than adequate. Cassata had starred on the same Syracuse teams as Larry Csonka and then had a very productive career in the CFL where he led Ottawa to the 1973 Grey Cup Championship. Sixkiller had been a star at the University Of Washington and had spent part of 1974 backing up Jim “King” Corcoran with the Philadelphia Bell. On defense the big name was Karl Lorch, the former USC defensive end who had grown up in Hawaii. The WFL provided a homecoming for him. He had played football at Kamehameha High School, attended Arizona Western JC, and matriculated to USC where he eventually became a ninth round draft choice of the Dolphins in 1973. He didn’t make it there but was a real find for the 1974 Hawaiians and played well in every game. Lorch was another WFL player who matured and gained experience that later allowed him to have a successful NFL career, playing with the Redskins from 1976-1981. He and local hero Levi Stanley, a former Hawaiian schoolboy star, University Of Hawaii great, and ’74 Hawaii standout were expected to anchor the defensive line.          

Two footnotes to the Hawaiians mediocre 4-7 finish were Duane Thomas and Jim Fassel. Thomas of course was one of the most infamous players of his day. The Cowboys’ first draft choice in 1970, this 6’1”, 220-pound steamroller out of West Texas State College had shared the backfield duties with Eugene “Mercury” Morris until the latter graduated. When it was his turn to be the team’s workhorse he proved to be an unstoppable force. With Dallas he stepped into a starting role and distinguished himself as a brutal blocker and dependable ball carrier, putting the topper on his emerging talent with a Super Bowl performance following the 1971 season that remains among the most inspiring of all time. Wanting to renegotiate his contract, Thomas refused to talk to his teammates or the press the entire season until his well-known short and almost humorous discourse with television commentator Tom Brookshire in the locker room following that Super Bowl game. In 1972 Thomas was traded to the Patriots but refused to report to them. He was then unconditionally traded to the Chargers but they could get him onto the field for no more than a few pre-game stretches during the exhibition season and he was lost for the season. He spent 1973 and ’74 with George Allen’s Redskins but he had, with a vegetarian diet and devotion to yoga, lost much of the muscle tissue that had made him such an explosive, slashing runner. He was released after the 1974 season and received a phone call from his former Cowboy backfield mate Calvin Hill while Hill was recovering from knee surgery. Hill convinced Thomas to come to the Hawaiians, enjoy the Islands, and play football. Thomas had been considered a singular talent with potential to be the very best of all time thus the Hawaiians were more than happy to take a chance that he could still find the magic that had made him a feared runner in 1971. Team legal counsel Wallace Fujiyama gave him $25,000.00 as a signing bonus and $5000.00 a game. Thomas pulled a hamstring muscle during his second game and in total appeared in five games, carrying the ball thirty-four times for a total of ninety-two yards. Thomas would receive physical therapy treatment and bolt from the facility. As General Manager George Najarian said, “I don’t know about Duane. I thought I was getting a great player who wouldn’t talk. Now he talks a lot but doesn’t play.” Head Coach Mike Giddings later became an NFL scouting consultant and he summed the Thomas situation up by stating “When he came to practice, he’d already had a full day’s workout under his belt. He’d have run eight miles. Maybe he realized he’d lost his burst so he became a long distance runner type. He had moves and he could catch a pass, but he’d lost his power burst. He weighed less than 200 pounds, too.” The fans loved him although he went around the Islands not in traditional Island dress or casual wear, but in a business suit. “That’s all he wore,” said Calvin Hill, “and you know how the people dress on the islands.”

Jim Fassel was one of the quarterbacks who tried out and was rostered part time for the 1974 Hawaiian team. Fassel had started his college career at USC but transferred to and finished at Long Beach State. He stuck with the Hawaiians long enough in 1974 to complete 15 of 36 pass attempts. After the season he returned to the mainland to try his hand at selling air conditioners. Prior to what turned out to be their final game in franchise history, the Hawaiian players had a meeting. They had not been paid and voted to boycott the game. Quarterbacks Sixkiller and Cassata roomed together and for some reason did not get word that a subsequent meeting had been held and the team reversed their decision. Giddings, missing his two quarterbacks and now in need of one to play in the October 19^th game against the Sun, put in an emergency call to Fassel who was more than happy to suit up again. Completing one pass in three attempts Jim Fassel who later became the head coach for the N.Y. Giants and who is currently the offensive coordinator for the Baltimore Ravens, has the distinction of throwing the final pass in World Football League history.