These days when Western Athletic Conference football teams play the University of Hawai'i, it isn't just the victory some are chasing.

Chances are it is also the Warriors' annual Christmas present, the Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl berth, they covet.

"Our No. 1 goal is to be in a bowl game and, unlike Hawai'i, we don't have our own bowl game to go to," said Matt Kubik, Louisiana Tech's quarterback. "If those guys aren't eligible, then that just opens up one for everybody else."

At 1-4 overall (1-2 WAC), the Warriors' plans of a record fourth consecutive postseason appearance are barely flickering now. UH would have to win six of its final seven games to reach the seven-win minimum to qualify for the Dec. 24 game at Aloha Stadium.

Maybe not impossible, as last year's 5-2 finish after a 2-3 start illustrated. "We were behind (the eight-ball) last year, too, when nobody but this team thought they could do it," said UH coach June Jones.

This time, though, the Warriors still have two road games plus home games against Fresno State and Wisconsin among the remaining schedule. That doesn't leave much room for error. Or, missed tackles.

After letting the Boise State game slip away and getting run over by Tech Saturday, the Warriors' shortcomings are piling up a bill that is becoming difficult to pay down.

A couple of those remaining teams, FSU (3-1, 1-0 WAC) and Nevada (3-2, 2-0 WAC), have, like Louisiana Tech (2-2, 2-0) and Boise State (3-2, 1-0), designs on a bowl game.

In the WAC, where only the top two finishers are guaranteed bowl berths, postseason rewards are at a dog-eat-dog premium. And given the choice of the MPC Computers Bowl in Boise or the Hawai'i Bowl, which do you think would top most Christmas wish lists?

"Without a doubt," Kubik said. "Christmas? Hawai'i? To go out there and play (on Christmas Eve), that would be unbelievable."

From the time the Hawai'i Bowl went into business, organizers knew there would come a day when UH wouldn't qualify to play in it. They might not have wanted to think about it too much, especially in light of the NCAA's requirement that bowls must average 25,000 in turnstile attendance over a three-year period to retain certification. That would be a difficult feat for the Hawai'i Bowl without a UH presence.

Now, the Warriors are closer to elimination at this point in a season than any time in the bowl's history.

That's hardly a comforting thought unless you are LaTech or one of the other conference teams hoping to take a trip to paradise at UH's expense.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.