Utah State

The Herald Journal of Utah has a preview of this Saturday's game.

“Hawaii is on quite a roll right now,” (Utah State coach Brent) Guy said. “It is amazing how many yards they are leading the country with right now.”

Yes, the Warriors are. They have won five straight by an average of 30 points. Their last loss came at No. 14 Boise State, 41-34.

“We have definitely got to be ready,” Aggie linebacker Paul Igboeli said. “Hawaii has an explosive offense to say the least. ... What have they been averaging, 48 or 50 a game? I know they scored 68.”

The Warriors did that at Fresno State back on Oct. 14, and again last Saturday at home in a 68-10 win over Idaho.

USU has allowed 48 points twice, including its last outing. The Bulldogs jumped out to a 17-0 lead after the first quarter and went on to win 48-35.

I hope the Warriors can quickly get used to the cold weather. The forecast for Logan, Utah on Saturday is a high of 54 degrees and a low of 35 with a chance of showers. Brrr!!! Luckily, the game is in the middle of the day, so it'll be more towards the high end.

Also, Rich Miano was the guest on The Warrior Beat today. I won't post my question because it was silly, but go here to read the whole thread.

D-Line

Stephen Tsai writes about the actions being taken to replace Renolds Fruean, Amani Purcell and Keala Watson along the defensive line.

Laupepa Letuli, a second-year freshman, was moved from offensive left guard to defensive end. Victor Clore, a freshman who was not enrolled in school last year, was told he would receive extended practice time.

...

Watson suffered a torn meniscus, an injury that might require arthroscopic surgery. He will miss at least four weeks.

Fruean suffered a high sprain in his right ankle. He incurred a similar injury last year. He said he will miss at least four weeks.

Amani Purcell has a partial ligament tear and a hyperextension in his right knee.

"I'll probably be out two weeks at least," Purcell said.

Hope they're back for the Purdue, OSU and Hawaii Bowl games. Speaking of which, the Hawaii Bowl is getting ready to invite the Warriors to itself. And it looks like UH won't play OSU twice on national TV.

Since UH closes its regular season with a Dec. 2 game against Oregon State, a Pac-10 spokesman said it is unlikely the Beavers would end up in the Hawai'i Bowl, even if eligible.

ESPN is expected to announce today that it will pick up the UH-Oregon State game on one of its networks. A WAC official said the network has been "leaning to Oregon State" and he would be "shocked" if ESPN chose UH's Nov. 25 game against Purdue instead. ESPN is supposed to decide between the two by tomorrow.

Dave Reardon has more about the changes to the defensive line.

Left end David Veikune (6-3, 258) will likely get more playing time, too. Undersized but scrappy Victor Clore (6-2, 230) is a project who needs to gain weight, but he might be needed.

The Warriors finished the game Saturday with nose tackles Rocky Savaiigaea and Lawrence Wilson at the ends and Kahai LaCount at nose.

"I think everybody in this group has the mentality they have to pull on the rope a little harder now," Reinebold said. "Other guys are going to have to step up. Young guys are going to have to mature faster than maybe we anticipated they were going to have to mature."

Ferd Lewis writes about the possibility of Colt passing for 4500 yards and Nate running for 1000 yards. Even if that happens, he's not voting for Hawaii to be in the top 25. I'm just kidding.

And finally Kalani Simpson writes a profile on rarely used punter Kurt Milne.

"I thought about going for it on that fourth down and we would have finished perfect for the game," June Jones said. "But I didn't think that was quite right."

(Whew!)

"It was nice to get A punt," Milne said. "I think that was only my 12th punt all year, in eight games."

(He was right. Of course he was. He's had so few he cherishes each one. Does he remember the last time he punted? "Yeah," he said quickly. "Fresno.")

Odds and Ends

Coach Rich Miano will be the guest live chatter on The Warrior Beat tomorrow (Tuesday) at 9:45am HST!

June Jones has some Monday quotes. Here's one:

On the consistency of the offense...
"I think I'm more critical now than before. I get on guys more during games now. I mean, our players are playing extremely well, but I guess it's part of demanding perfection. When you see them do things in practice, you want to see them do it in the game, and when they don't I get on them."

Irse has posted the June Jones Show online, which he does every week. Really really cool of him. That's actually a link to his Sportshawaii.com post rather than a direct link to the video. It may be his last post reminding people of it.

Irse also taped the haka before the Idaho game. Here's the direct link to that video, because I like to mix it up.

CFN's Pete Fiutak really likes Colt Brennan.

And I promise, you won’t have to endure any TV ad spots for this campaign …
Since the University of Hawaii isn’t promoting QB Colt Brennan, let me be the one to get the ball rolling: he’s really, really, really, really, really good. As the only mainland American who watches Hawaii football on a weekly basis, what Brennan is doing with the attack is scary. I know, the negative campaigns will complain that he’s averaging 367 passing yards per game with 33 touchdowns, five interceptions, with no picks in the last four games, while completing 74% of his throws because he plays in the WAC. It helps, but he also threw for 350 yards and two touchdown against Alabama. In his last six games he has thrown 5, 5, 4, 5, 5, and 5 touchdown passes.

Colt's also getting some recognition in ESPN's Heisman poll.

In the national polls, Hawaii is:

Ranked 34th in the BCS poll

Ranked 31st in CFN's own poll

Ranked 34th in the CBS Sportsline poll

Ranked 31st (17 votes) in the Harris Interactive Poll

Ranked 32nd (18 votes) in the USA Today Coaches Poll

Ranked 36th (2 votes) in the AP Poll

Injuries

Yikes, Stephen Tsai writes that Renolds Fruean, Keala Watson and Amani Purcell, who all took turns subbing for the injured Ikaika Alama-Francis, all got injured themselves during the game and won't make the trip to Utah State and may not be playing for a while.

Watson had said he believed he suffered a chipped meniscus in his right knee. If so, he would require arthroscopic surgery to clip the affected area. The recovery period for such a surgery is at least four weeks.

Fruean said he suffered a severe sprain to his right ankle. He suffered a right high-ankle sprain last year.

"Same ankle, probably the same injury," Fruean said.

...

Purcell suffered what is believed to be a tear to the posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. He was scheduled to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging, a procedure in which magnetic fields are used to create a picture of the body's interior.

Head coach June Jones said he is hopeful Alama-Francis will be available to play this week.

That's insane. Let's hope their recovery goes smoothly.

In Dave Reardon's article, Coach Jeff Reinebold talks about the injuries.

"Ikaika was down, Mel (Purcell) was dinged. Fale was out. And we had guys playing all new positions," defensive line coach Jeff Reinebold said. "I give those guys a lot of credit because they came out and competed their butts off. I don't know how many yards they rushed for but it wasn't very many (Idaho finished with 141 of its 334 yards on the ground). We hit the quarterback and we did all the things good defensive lines do, and we did it with everybody."

Reinebold refuses to blame chop blocking by Idaho for UH's injuries.

"I don't know if anything can be directly attributed to that," he said. "I have a lot of respect for Dennis (Erickson, the Idaho coach), and that's a philosophical difference, not a rule. It's part of the game and it's a dirty, nasty game."

Dave goes on to write about Colt Brennan's amazing season.

Because he plays in a mid-major conference and his home games are six time zones away from the East Coast, Brennan hasn't received much national recognition. That will change if he continues on his current pace, as early as this week, Jones said.

"This game will probably do it," the coach said.

The Associated Press plans to produce a feature on Brennan this week, and that might provide a little more exposure.

What will help Brennan's profile is if he's still playing at this level when Hawaii hosts Purdue and Oregon State a month from now. Of course that's around the time Ohio State's Troy Smith will be playing against Michigan and Notre Dame's Brady Quinn against USC.

Pretty cool. I'll link to the AP article whenever it comes out. Because linking is what I do best!

Dave Reardon also has his Warrior Replay post-game feature. Here's an excerpt:

5. Knock out

The Setup: Hawaii 41, Idaho 10; 6:33 remaining, third quarter; Idaho ball, fourth and 10 at Hawaii 36.

The Play: Idaho QB Steven Wichman drops back, but quickly decides his best chance for a first down is to scramble. Strong safety Jake Patek, sitting in a deep zone, sees Wichman cross the line of scrimmage. Patek rushes forward, avoids a blocker and crashes into Wichman with a high but clean hit that puts the quarterback on his seat and knocks the ball out of his hands. UH linebacker Micah Lau recovers at Hawaii's 27.

The Impact: Patek's hit took away Idaho's last chance to make a game of it. Ian Sample scored on an 11-yard touchdown pass from Brennan four plays later, and Wichman never returned, becoming the sixth quarterback Hawaii's defense has knocked out of a game this year.

Patek: "The quarterback tried to cut outside. I changed directions and hit him and it felt great."

And since someone posted the video of Patek's hit online (which I linked to yesterday), here's a taste of what Warrior Replay would look like if it had video clips to go along with it:



Ouch! Wouldn't that be a great addition to Dave's excellent breakdowns?

And finally, Ross Dickerson is the WAC Special Teams Player of the Week for the second straight week!

You know why he won the award? Oh my goodness, take a look!



Pretty cool. I hope people post more highlights like this. For example, Michael Malala's kung fu tackle from a few weeks ago:



GO WARRIORS!!!!

Stats After Week 9 - It's Getting Ridiculous

From the NCAA and ESPN

Hawaii is 1st in the nation in scoring offense with 45.38 points per game.

Hawaii is 1st in the nation in passing offense with 421.9 yards per game

With all that passing, Hawaii is tied for 13th in the nation in passes had intercepted with only 5.

Hawaii is 1st in the nation in total offense with 529.25 yards per game

Hawaii is 78th in the nation in scoring defense with 24.9 points allowed per game.

Hawaii is 105th in the nation in total defense with 399.50 yards allowed per game.

Hawaii is 8th in the nation in tackles for loss allowed with 3.88 per game.

Colt Brennan is 1st in the nation in passing efficiency with a rating of 185.0.

Colt Brennan is 1st in the nation in total offense with 391 yards per game.

Colt Brennan is 1st in the nation in points responsible for with 27.00 points per game.

Colt Brennan is 1st in the nation in completion percentage with 74.0%

Colt Brennan is 1st in the nation in touchdown passes with 33.

Davone Bess is 4th in the nation in receptions with 7.38 per game.

Davone Bess is 14th in the nation in receiving yards with 82.88 per game.

Ross Dickerson jumps to 5th in the nation in kickoff returns with 32.87 yards per return.

Ross Dickerson also jumps to 21st in the nation in all-purpose yards with 126.38 yards per game.

Nate Ilaoa is 31st in the nation in all-purpose yards with 121.5 yards per game.

Nate Ilaoa is 32nd in the nation in scoring with 7.5 points per game.

NOTE: These aren't permalinks, so as the week changes, so will the stats.

Videos

Cool cool cool! First off, I forgot to post a link to a video of the post-game press conference, which was produced by the Honolulu Advertiser.

And secondly, somebody posted a video of Jacob Patek's hit last night! Here it is:

Hawaii vs Idaho Newspaper Wrap-Ups

Stephen Tsai's wrap-up highlights how the Warriors set up Ross Dickerson's opening kickoff return for a touchdown. It also has this passage about Dickerson being numbah one supa cool.

Dickerson also showed his leadership before the game. Dickerson started the first three games at right wideout, but moved to right slotback as an injury replacement for Ryan Grice-Mullins. With Grice-Mullins prepared to return last night, Jones decided to rotate Grice-Mullins and Dickerson. But Jones had difficulty coming up with an order.

Grice-Mullins wanted Dickerson to start, but Dickerson refused, and ordered Grice-Mullins to open at right slotback.

"I wanted him to go in there, but he kept insisting and insisting," Grice-Mullins said. "I had no choice. He took the leadership role and made me go in."

Brennan said: "Ross gave up his starting position to let Ryan play. I'm a big karma guy. I believe what goes around comes around. I think when Ross did that, he set the tone for us. He showed we're a team. He made a personal sacrifice to help us reach our team goals. That means a lot."

After that, the Warriors could not be stopped.

What a great guy. Jason Kaneshiro has more on the kickoff return.

The touchdown return was UH's first since Dickerson went the length of the field in his debut as a Warrior against Appalachian State in 2003.

"We've been close all year," UH special teams assistant Dennis McKnight said. "The kids up front have been busting their butts and we were fortunate tonight. Every guy got their guy and Ross made a great run.

Advertiser writer Kalani Takase writes about it as well.

His only regret was not getting another chance. "I was feeling it," he said. "If they had kicked it to me, the way my team was blocking for me, we would have had another one."

He admitted the unit may have fed off the pre-game introductions. "It made the team recognize that the kickoffs and kick return and everything on special teams is important," he said. UH usually introduces either the starting offense or defense.

McKnight recognized the importance of the return as well. "There's an invisible guy out there on the field: Mr. Momentum, and it's up to special teams to get him on the sideline, then the offense and defense to keep him there," he said.

I just hope that teams don't avoid kicking to him the rest of the year!

Leila Wai writes about the beneficiary of Dickerson's generosity, Ryan Grice-Mullins, who was grateful to be back.

Returning to the field for the first time in more than a month, Grice-Mullins scored two touchdowns as Hawai'i defeated Idaho, 68-10, in a Western Athletic Conference game at Aloha Stadium last night.

Grice-Mullins scored touchdowns of 18 and 34 yards, catching five passes for 83 yards. His two scores doubled the amount of touchdowns he had previously this season.

"Words can't explain it right now. And getting the win on top of that? I can't explain it," he said. "Just being back with the boys, playing around, out there playing and running around and scoring and celebrating, I can't explain it."

Good to see him speeding towards various end zones like normal.

Dave Reardon's wrap-up has a pretty funny quote from Colt Brennan, along with praise from his coaches:

"We're going to take what we can get. We're not going to try to force big plays," Brennan said. "We come into every game worried and ready for whatever they're going to throw at us. We're not walking into every game expecting a blowout and getting 35 or 40 at halftime. We walk in thinking its going to be a four-quarter battle and then we find ourselves sitting in the fourth quarter kind of bored."

Jones and UH quarterbacks coach Dan Morrison both said they've never seen anything close to Brennan's performance over the course of this many games.

"I think consistency's the main thing for him," Morrison said. "It's very rare to have a guy be that consistent for that long. He's very special."

I hope Colt Brennan gets bored in the 4th quarter the rest of the season. The good news is that would mean more of The Graunke. The bad news is that Colt won't be throwing for 600 yards and 8 touchdowns a game. The UH defense is hurting Colt's statistics!

Wai, Takase and Ferd Lewis write about last night's defensive performance, including Jacob Patek's big hit.

The defense gave up 334 yards of total offense and limited the Vandals to just 10 points.

In addition, UH knocked out its sixth opposing quarterback this season.

On fourth-and-10 from the Hawai'i 36-yard line, Idaho signal-caller Steve Wichman scrambled out of the pocket to his left before being crunched by Hawai'i strong safety Jake Patek.

"All I remember is seeing him scrambling and in my peripheral vision I saw the receivers, I guess, trying to cut block me. Then (Wichman) cut outside, I had to change directions and I got him," said Patek, a junior from Victoria, Texas.

"It's not like we're trying to knock him out," Patek explained. "We're just full speed to the ball and everybody's trying to get in on a tackle."

It was a great hit from out of nowhere. I hope someone posts it online.

The article also talks about the debut of kicker Briton Forester.

Fans weren't the only ones surprised when freshman kicker Briton Forester marched out on the field for the extra-point following Ross Dickerson's 100-yard opening kickoff return.

"(The coaches) were contemplating it during the week, but I just found out before the game," said the San Diego native.

The Warriors have had problems with PATs throughout the season and Forester was called upon as a solution.

"Coach just likes to get the ball up on the PATs and I guess I get a little bit more height on it than (Dan) Kelly does," Forester said.

Well, judging from the past few weeks, I'm not sure if any game the rest of this season will be close, but just in case, UH definitely needs to get some consistency in the kicking game. Snappers, holders and now kickers have been replaced or shuffled around this season. And there were two missed or muffed PATs last night. I hope the breakdowns will be eventually wiped out. Otherwise, 2 point conversions from here on out!

The Star-Bulletin's Football Notebook has more on the Patek hit as well as Forester's debut as well as injury reports on Keala Watson and Renolds Fruean.

Defensive end Keala Watson was helped off the field after he was down for about 5 minutes with what appeared to be a left knee injury late in the third quarter.

The sophomore from Nanakuli was optimistic with the early diagnosis.

"It's cartilage, so it might not be so bad," he said.

He was scheduled to undergo an MRI today.

Watson was replaced by Renolds Fruean, who re-injured an ankle he'd sprained earlier this season two plays after Watson left the field.

Watson had started in place of Ikaika Alama-Francis, who did not practice during the week due to back spasms. Alama-Francis could have played if necessary, defensive line coach Jeff Reinebold said.

Sounds like it's better news for Keala Watson than it looked. He was down for a long time and couldn't even put any pressure on the leg when he was helped out. Hope the MRIs turn out negative.

Nick Abramo writes that Idaho coach Dennis Erickson came away from the game impressed with Hawaii.

"That's an awfully good football team," Vandals coach Dennis Erickson said. "And we played terrible. It wasn't so much about getting hit as getting beat.

"(UH defensive coordinator) Jerry (Glanville) has done a nice job. They're a lot better on defense than they've been. It's the defensive side that makes them a good football team, a balanced team."

Erickson didn't try to explain the Vandals' poor performance against the UH offense. That's because he couldn't explain it.

"If I knew what was going on, it wouldn't have happened," Erickson said. "I don't have an answer for 68-10. If someone does, please let me in on it.

"We knew they were a good football team, but we made them awfully good. (Colt) Brennan was on all the time. In all my years of coaching college football, I don't know if I've seen an offense as productive as this one."

That's some high praise. I hope teams won't be too scared to play us down the road. And that leads us to a great column from Ferd Lewis, entitled "Secure the '07 foes now"

"I mean, with the way we've been playing lately, I don't think anybody is going to want to come out and play us next year," said UH quarterback Colt Brennan said after tossing five touchdowns for the fifth time in six weeks and the Warriors (6-2) claimed sole possession of second place in the Western Athletic Conference at 4-1. "Especially here, at home."

UH's eight-game WAC schedule for 2007 is a given. And Nevada-Las Vegas is signed on for one non-conference game, but with four more non-league games still to be announced for the 13-game schedule, you hope UH is sitting on a stack of signed, sealed and already-delivered contracts for next season and just hasn't gotten around to publicizing it.

God, I hope Herman Frazier has some games already under contract. And I hope it's against good teams. But like Ferd goes on to write, Michigan State is already trying to weasel their way out of next year's contracted game. But then again, it's MSU. Let's hope we don't end up having to play multiple Division I-AA games next year! Bring on BYU, bring on Texas Tech, bring on Alabama, bring on Washington, hell, even Stanford or Temple!

Well, Herman's supposed to make an announcement in the next couple weeks, so we'll see what the news is. In any case, there is the rest of this season to play, and Kalani Simpson, like many UH fans nowadays, thinks the Warriors are on a roll. Kalani, how hot are they?

They're so hot, if you find any typos it's because I looked directly at it, instead of using one of those eclipse-watching things. (My corneas!)

Hawaii opened the game with a kickoff return for a touchdown -- 100 yards!

They're so hot the special teams guys are stars now, sticking people, earning aaaahhhs!, all but taking bows after plays. The kickoff team is so hot kicker Dan Kelly is out there talking trash, too.

UH was so hot Idaho can have the play snuffed out -- stuffing a would-be shovel to Nate Ilaoa -- only to see Colt Brennan pull the ball back, and gallop for 23 yards. (They're so hot Brennan comes out of the game because he's tired from all that running, and Tyler Graunke goes in to complete two straight -- the second a 20-yard pass to Ryan Grice-Mullins, which causes assistant coach Dennis McKnight to sprint 20 yards onto the field for a high five.)

Hawaii is so hot you have to wear SPF 30 if you sit in the front row.

Nice. Right now, this team is unstoppable. Let's run the table the rest of the way! GO WARRIORS!!!!

Hawaii 68, Idaho 10

My apologies for Blogger crapping out at the end of the game. The liveblog was stuck at "Current Score: Hawaii 61, Idaho 10" with 3 minutes left to play for like 6 hours. Not that the game was in any doubt at that point.

Anyways, this offense is unstoppable. The defense played great as well. Tyler Graunke gotta be one of the better back-up QBs around. I hope he gets to play more, which means more blowouts like this! I'll put the newspaper wrap-ups up a little later.

UPDATE: Here's some final stats...

Colt Brennan was 31 of 38 for 333 yards with 5 touchdowns and no interceptions. He also rushed 5 times for 64 yards.

Nate Ilaoa caught 7 passes for 48 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed 3 times for 7 yards and another touchdown.

Nate, Ian Sample, Jason Rivers and Davone Bess all caught a touchdown pass. Ryan Grice-Mullins caught two.

Adam Leonard led the team with 7 tackles. But Jacob Patek had the biggest hit of the night.

Ross Dickerson ran back the opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown. Idaho never kicked to him the rest of the night.

LiveBlogging: Hawaii vs Idaho

If Blogger craps out during the game, you can always follow live game stats here, or follow the game through one of the ways listed two posts ago.

Final Score: Hawaii 68, Idaho 10

All Times Game Clock!

1st Quarter:

15:00 - Hawaii is back to receive.

14:42 - Idaho kicks off and Ross Dickerson takes it out of the end zone and RUNS IT ALL THE WAY IN FOR A TOUCHDOWN!!!!

14:42 - Dan Kelly Briton Forester kicks the PAT and it's good! Hawaii 7, Idaho 0

14:32 - Dan Kelly kicks it off, and Idaho runs it out to the 27, but illegal block in the back on Idaho.

14:11 - On 1st and 10 from the Idaho 13, Steve Wichmann completes a short pass to the 20.

14:00 - On 2nd down from the 21, Brian Flowers takes the hand off out to the 34 for a first down.

13:55 - On 1st down from the Idaho 34, Wichman scrambles out to the 40 yard line.

13:20 - On 2nd and 4 from the Idaho 40, hand off is taken to the 42. 3rd down.

12:37 - On 3rd down, a timeout is called by Idaho.

12:35 - On 3rd and 2, Wichman overthrows his man. 4th down!

12:24 - Idaho punts and Myron Newberry takes it from the 25 to the UH 36 yard line.

12:15 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 36, Colt Brennan swings it out to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it to the UH 38. Looked like a face mask, but wasn't called.

11:45 - On 2nd down from the UH 38, Colt Brennan swings it out to Davone Bess, who takes it to the UH 43. 3rd down and 3.

10:50 - On 3rd and 3 from the UH 43, Brennan finds Bess on the left side to the UH 49 for a first down!!!

10:20 - On 1st down, Brennan swings it to Ross Dickerson to the Idaho 45 yard line.

9:45 - On 2nd down from the Idaho 45, Brennan to Jason Rivers on a bubble screen to the Idaho 34 yard line. 1st down!!!

9:28 - Illegal motion on UH nullifies the last play. Not a first down.

9:10 - On 2nd and 8 from the Idaho 49, Brennan swings to Ilaoa, who takes it out to the Idaho 41 for a first down! For real this time.

8:40 - On 1st and 10 from the Idaho 41, Colt Brennan's pass is deflected to the ground. 2nd down.

8:32 - On 2nd and 10 from the Idaho 41, Brennan shovels to Chad Mock after getting nearly sacked. Mock is down at the 40. 3rd down.

7:45 - On 3rd and 9 from the Idaho 40, Brennan finds Ian Sample crossing over the middle all the way to the 19 yard line for a first down!!!

7:10 - On 1st down from the 19, Brennan finds Sample on the sideline for a 9 yard gain!

6:35 - On 2nd and 1 from the Idaho 10, Brennan overthrows Bess on a corner route in the end zone. 3rd and 1.

6:26 - On 3rd and 1 from the Idaho 10, Brennan finds Jason Rivers in the back of the end zone for a TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!

6:26 - Briton Forester kicks the PAT and it's good. Huh. Gotta check the last PAT, see who kicked it. UPDATE: Briton kicked the first PAT as well. Hawaii 14, Idaho 0

6:20 - Dan Kelly kicks it off into the endzone, Idaho brings it out to the 26.

6:05 - On 1st down from the Idaho 26, Wichman finds Luke Smith-Anderson over the middle for a quick first down.

5:35 - On 1st down from the 40, Brian Flowers is dropped by Adam Leonard, but not before gaining a couple.

5:00 - On 2nd and 7, Wichman finds a receiver on the sideline for a first down into UH territory.

4:50 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 35, Wichman scrambles and is nearly sacked, but he gets back to the line of scrimmage, possibly a one yard gain.

4:05 - On 2nd and 9 from the UH 34, Wichman over the middle to Smith-Anderson for a first down to the UH 24.

3:40 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 24, Wichman throws incomplete over the middle.

3:30 - On 2nd and 10 from the UH 24, Wichman hits Flowers on a screen, he takes it until Leonard Peters smacks him out of bounds at the 4 yard line.

3:22 - On 1st and goal from the 4, Flowers takes the hand off and is stopped at the 3 yard line.

2:50 - On 2nd and goal from the 3, Leonard Peters breaks up a pass in the corner of the end zone!!! 3rd down!

2:35 - On 3rd and goal from the UH 3, Wichman finds Wendell Octave in the back of the end zone for a touchdown.

2:34 - PAT is good. Hawaii 14, Idaho 7

2:30 - Idaho kicks a squib to avoid Ross Dickerson and it's downed at the UH 38.

2:15 - On 1st down from the UH 38, Colt Brennan finds Jason Rivers on the left sideline to the UH 44.

2:05 - On 2nd and 4, Brennan throws incomplete on the sideline. 3rd down.

2:02 - On 3rd and 4 from the UH 44, Brennan finds Ian Sample on the right sideline for a first down!

1:40 - On 1st down from the Idaho 49, Brennan shovels to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it to the Idaho 39. First down!

1:20 - On 1st down from the Idaho 39, bubble screen to Chad Mock, who takes it to the Idaho 30.

0:35 - On 2nd and 1 from the Idaho 30, Brennan finds Davone Bess, who takes it to the 17 yard line!

0:10 - On 1st and 10 from the Idaho 16 yard line, Brennan to Jason Rivers to the 8 yard line.

0:00 - End of 1st quarter. Timeout.


2nd Quarter:

15:00 - On 2nd and 2 from the Idaho 8, Colt Brennan hands off to Nate Ilaoa, who is dropped back at the 11 for a 3 yard loss.

14:25 - On 3rd and 5 from the Idaho 11, Brennan finds Ian Sample on the sideline and he's knocked out of bounds at the 2 for a first down!

14:12 - On 1st and goal from the Idaho 2, Brennan incomplete in the endzone to Davone. Just off his hands.

14:10 - On 2nd and goal from the Idaho 2, Brennan to Davone Bess on the left side for a TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!

14:08 - PAT is good. Hawaii 21, Idaho 7

14:05 - Dan Kelly kicks it to the 1 yard line and it's taken out to the 25 yard line.

13:40 - On 1st down from the Idaho 25, Wichman throws it too low. Incomplete!

13:25 - On 2nd and 10 from the Idaho 25, Wichman finds Octave to the Idaho 40.

13:05 - Hand off to Flowers for a 3 yard gain.

12:25 - On 2nd and 7 from the Idaho 43, Wichman to Luke Smith-Anderson into UH territory for a 1st down.

11:55 - On 1st down from the UH 48, Wichman to LSM on a sideline pattern all the way to the UH 10 yard line.

11:48 - On 1st down from the UH 10, Wichman overthrows on the sideline. 2nd down.

11:46 - On 2nd down from the UH 10, Wichman incomplete on a slant. 3rd down.

11:45 - On 3rd down from the UH 10, false start on Idaho.

11:45 - On 3rd down from the UH 15, UH calls a timeout.

11:45 - On 3rd and goal from the UH 15, Wichman throws into the end zone. Incomplete! 4th down!

11:41 - Idaho attempts a 32 yard fiel goal and it's wide left, but there's a flag on the field.

11:37 - It was a personal foul on Keala Watson because he hit the center before one second had elapsed. And on the replay it looked like nothing. What the hell. Automatic first down.

11:28 - So 1st and goal from the UH 7, Flowers is dropped for a 2 yard loss.

10:55 - On 2nd and goal, Wichman overthrows his receiver.

10:50 - On 3rd and goal from the 9, Wichman misses his target in the back of the end zone. INCOMPLETE! 4th down!

10:48 - On the 26 yard field goal attempt, this time it's good and there are no penalties. Hawaii 21, Idaho 10

10:44 - Idaho kicks off. It's another squib that's taken by Bully Fergerstrom at the UH 29.

10:25 - On 1st down from the UH 28, Brennan finds Ian Sample on a short sideline pattern to the UH 37.

9:40 - On 2nd and 1 from the UH 37, Brennan is caught from behind as he was scrambling out of the pocket. 1 yard loss.

8:50 - On 3rd and 2 from the UH 36, bubble screen to Jason Rivers and he takes it to the UH 46 for a first down!

8:20 - On 1st down from the UH 47, Brennan to Chad Mock on the left sideline for an 8 yard gain.

7:50 - On 2nd down from the Idaho 47, Brennan scrambles and breaks free and runs all the way to the Idaho 21!!!

7:25 - On 1st down from the Idaho 21, shovel to Nate Ilaoa, but Idaho was right on it and drops Nate for a loss. 2nd down.

6:45 - On 2nd down from the Idaho 27, Brennan shovels to Ilaoa who scrambles to the Idaho 10 for a 1st down!!!!

6:18 - Hawaii takes a timeout.

6:16 - On 1st and goal from the Idaho 10, Brennan throws incomplete into traffic. 2nd down.

6:10 - On 2nd and goal from the Idaho 10, Brennan hands off to Nate, who takes it into the ENDZONE FOR A TOUCHDOWN!!!!

6:07 - Before Briton Forester attempts the kick, the officials will review the play to see if Nate wasn't down before he got in.

6:07 - After review, the officials rule that Nate was down at the 1 yard line. 3rd down.

6:07 - On 3rd and 1 from the Idaho 1 yard line, Colt Brennan options to Nate Ilaoa who just walks on in for a TOUCHDOWN!!!!

5:46 - Whistle before the kick. Are they reviewing this again?

5:46 - Nope, it was a false start.

5:46 - After being moved back a few yards, Briton Forester kicks the PAT. Hawaii 28, Idaho 10

5:42 - Dan Kelly kicks it way back into the end zone for a touchback. Dan Kelly angry!

5:25 - On 1st down from their own 20, Brian Flowers takes it 12 yards to the Idaho 32.

5:00 - On 1st down from their own 32, Wichman is sacked by a bunch of Warriors!

4:12 - On 2nd and 10 from the 32, Wichman completes a sideline pass to the 40. 3rd and 2.

4:07 - On 3rd and 2 from the Idaho 40, Flowers is dropped by Mel Purcell for NO GAIN. 4TH DOWN!

3:30 - Idaho punts and Myron Newberry lets it go, where it bounces out of bounds at the UH 19. Some extra-curricular after the play, but no flags.

3:10 - On 1st down from the UH 19, Colt Brennan runs it out to the UH 28.

2:25 - On 2nd and 1 from the UH 28, Brennan runs it all the way to the Idaho 48 yard line! 1st down!

1:52 - Tyler Graunke is in the game after that long run by Brennan. He passes to Ilaoa, who bobbles it but hangs on. He's dropped for a short loss.

1:10 - On 2nd down and 12, Tyler Graunke completes a beautiful pass to Ryan Grice-Mullins to the left sideline to the Idaho 36!

1:05 - Brennan is back in the game and he hits Ian Sample on a bubble screen. Sample breaks a couple tackles and takes it out to the Idaho 18 for another first down!

0:35 - On 1st and 10 from the Idaho 18, Brennan's throw is batted in the air and falls to the ground. 2nd down.

0:25 - On 2nd and 10 from the Idaho 18, Brennan shovels to Nate, who takes it all the way in for another TOUCHDOWN!!!!

0:21 - PAT is good. Hawaii 35, Idaho 10

0:18 - Dan Kelly kicks off out of bounds, but into the endzone for another touchback.

0:03 - On 1st down from the 20, hand off is taken to the 35, but it's the end of the quarter.

0:00 - END OF 1ST HALF. Hawaii 35, Idaho 10

Halftime - Some stats at the half:

Colt Brennan is 24 of 30 for 201 yards and 3 touchdowns. He's also rushed 4 times for 57 yards.

Nate Ilaoa has 3 rushes for 7 yards and 1 touchdown. He also has 7 receptions for 48 yards and a touchdown.

Briton Forester has kicked all 5 PATs.

Ross Dickerson has returned 1 kick for a 100 yard touchdown. All other kicks by Idaho have been squibs.


2nd Half:

3rd Quarter:

15:00 - Dan Kelly kicks off and Idaho takes it out the 25 yard line.

14:30 - On 1st down from the 23, Steve Wichman completes a pass to Wes Williams to the 42 yard line.

14:02 - On 1st down from the Idaho 42, Wichman throws incomplete.

14:00 - On 2nd down and 10 from the Idaho 42, Wichman's pass is dropped. 3rd down.

13:55 - On 3rd and 10 from the Idaho 42, Wichman throws incomplete over the middle and there's a flag on the play. Holding on Idaho, but UH will decline. 4th down!

13:50 - Idaho punts out of bounds to the UH 25 or so.

13:40 - On 1st down from the UH 25, Brennan swings it to Davone Bess who breaks a tackle and takes it to the UH 37! At the end of the play, roughing the passer. 15 yards added to the end of the play.

13:05 - On 1st and 10 from the Idaho 48, Brennan swings it to Ryan Grice-Mullins, who scampers to the Idaho 43.

12:20 - On 2nd down and 4, Brennan scrambles and completes a pass to Jason Rivers, but there's an ineligible player downfield. Replay the down.

12:15 - On 2nd down from the Idaho 48, Brennan finds Ross Dickerson way down field and the pass BOUNCES OFF HIS CHEST! 3rd down.

12:02 - On 3rd and 10, Brennan, after scrambling for a few seconds, finds Chad Mock over the middle for a first down!

11:30 - On 1st down from the Idaho 34 yard line, Brennan finds RGM on the sidelines and he speeds his way into the end zone for a TOUCHDOWN!!!!

11:30 - Errr, PAT is no good. Hawaii 41, Idaho 10

11:28 - Dan Kelly kicks off to the 4 yard line and it's taken out to the 28 yard line.

11:05 - On 1st down, Flowers takes it to the 30 yard line for a short gain. Adam Leonard with the stop.

10:30 - On 2nd and 8 from the Idaho 30, AJ Martinez with the nice stop on another short gain. 3rd down.

9:50 - On 3rd down from the Idaho 31, Wichman completes a pass to the 40 for a first down.

9:30 - On 1st down from the 40, Flowers takes it to the 45. He nearly fumbled on the play.

8:50 - On 2nd and 5 from the Idaho 45, short 2 yard gain, but there's a flag on the play. Holding on Idaho.

8:38 - On 2nd and 15 from the Idaho 35, Wichman, under pressure, throws it away. 3rd and 15.

8:18 - On 3rd and 15 from the Idaho 35, Steve Wichman completes a pass to the UH 47. Man, Adam Leonard nearly sacked him on the blitz.

7:50 - On 1st down, short rush to the UH 44.

7:15 - On 2nd and 6 from the UH 44, Wichman scrambles for a first down.

6:50 - On 1st down from the UH 36, Wichman throws incomplete over the middle.

6:40 - On 2nd down, pass bounces off the receiver. 3rd down.

6:36 - On 3rd and 10 from the UH 36, Wichman completes it out of bounds. 4th down!

6:31 - On 4th and 10 from the UH 36, Idaho is going for it. Wichman scrambles and GETS NAILED BY JACOB PATEK AND FUMBLES!!! Micah Lau recovers!!! HAWAII BALL! WOW!

6:25 - Sorry, I've calmed down. That was a nice hit from out of nowhere.

6:22 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 27, Colt Brennan finds Ross Dickerson over the middle! Dickerson nearly breaks one into the end zone but is tackled from behind. Man.

5:40 - On 1st and 10 from the Idaho 23, Colt Brennan scrambles for a few yards.

4:50 - On 2nd and 4 from the Idaho 17, Brennan finds RGM over the middle to the 11 yard line. 1st down!

4:20 - On 1st and 10 from the Idaho 11, Brennan rifles it into the end zone and finds IAN SAMPLE FOR THE TOUCHDOWN!!!!

4:20 - Briton Forester kicks the PAT and it's good. Hawaii 48, Idaho 10.

4:15 - Dan Kelly kicks it off and Rustin Saole drops the returner at the 19! Nice!

3:50 - On 1st down from the Idaho 19, ball is taken to the 26. Idaho has a new QB.

3:10 - On 2nd and 3, Idaho breaks off a run out to the Idaho 41. UH player is down on the field.

3:05 - Looks like it's Keala Watson and it looks like his knee. The UH trainers are taking their time with him. Hope he's okay.

3:05 - Watson is being helped off the field and he's not using his right leg at all. Doesn't look good.

2:55 - Idaho's RB takes it into UH territory to the 47. Another Idaho first down.

2:22 - Before the next snap, Idaho's QB Brian Nooy calls for a timeout.

2:18 - On 1st and 10, the Idaho RB is dropped back at the 49. Another nice stop by Elimimian and Patek, and another UH player is down....

2:05 - It looks like Renolds Fruean was injured on the play. And now he's being helped off the field.

1:55 - On 2nd and 12, a lateral is bobbled and taken back out to the UH 48.

1:15 - On 3rd and 10 from the UH 48, the pass is incomplete. 4th down!

1:08 - Idaho punts out of bounds and UH will get it at their own 28.

0:50 - Tyler Graunke is back in! He completes a short pass to Bess for little or no gain.

0:15 - On 2nd and 10 from the UH 28, Graunke throws incomplete and there's a late hit on Ian Sample, but there's no flag. You gotta call that! BS.

0:05 - On 3rd and 10, Tyler Graunke completes a pass over the middle to Ian Sample. 1st down at the 40!

0:00 - End of 3rd Quarter. Timeout.


4th Quarter:

15:00 - There was a penalty on Idaho, so UH has the ball on the Idaho 45.

15:00 - On 1st and 10 from the Idaho 45, Tyler Graunke is sacked and fumbles. Idaho recovers back on the UH 40.

14:42 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 38, the Idaho RB is stopped for a short gain.

14:00 - On 2nd and 9 from the UH 37, pass is incomplete.

13:45 - On 3rd and 9 from the UH 37, screen pass is incomplete. 4th down.

13:42 - Idaho punts and it lands in the end zone. UH ball on the 20.

13:32 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 20, Tyler Graunke completes a beautiful bomb to Jason Rivers all the way to the Idaho 18 yard line!

12:50 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 18, Graunke throws it to Chad Mock and the refs rule it incomplete. But it looks like they may review it.

12:38 - The replay definitely looks like Chad Mock caught it. The refs look pissed because it was June Jones' challenge! Let's see what they say...

12:38 - After review, the play stands. Hahaha! You pissed off the refs June!

12:35 - On 2nd and 10 from the UH 18, Tyler Graunke swings it Ryan Grice-Mullins who speeds his way and DIVES INTO THE ENDZONE FOR A TOUCHDOWN!!! I guess Ryan is fully recovered from his sprained ankle.

12:31 - PAT is good. Hawaii 55, Idaho 10

12:29 - Dan Kelly kicks off and it's taken out to the 27 yard line. Media timeout.

12:20 - On 1st down, Idaho runs it to the 32 for a five yard gain.

11:40 - On 2nd and 5 from the 32, pass is incomplete under pressure from Blaze Soares.

11:32 - On 3rd and 5 from the 32, Nooy passes incomplete to the sidelines. Another punt!

11:25 - Idaho punts and they down it at the UH 35.

10:52 - Tyler Graunke completes a pass to Jason Rivers to the UH 47. Nice grab.

10:20 - On 1st down, Khevin Peoples takes the hand off for a 9 yard gain! There he is.

9:50 - On 2nd and 1 from the Idaho 44, Malcolm Lane drops the bubble screen.

9:40 - On 3rd and 1, Graunke completes a pass to Chad Mock for a first down!

9:22 - On 1st down from the Idaho 29, Khevin Peoples gets dropped for a loss.

8:50 - On 2nd down from the Idaho 36, Tyler Graunke completes a beautiful pass to Aaron Bain for a first down all the way to Idaho 10. Graunke can throw some pretty passes.

8:07 - David Farmer takes the ball to the Idaho 5.

7:30 - Tyler Graunke on the QB keeper for a touchdown!

7:27 - Snap is bobbled and the PAT is not attempted. Anyway, Hawaii 61, Idaho 10

7:24 - Dan Kelly kicks it away deep into the end zone, and the Idaho guy takes it to the 10 yard line where he's stopped.

6:50 - Idaho 3rd string QB Chris Joseph (?) is in. Running back takes it out to the 14 yard line. Flag on the play. Personal foul on Kahai LaCount, I think.

6:35 - On 1st down from the Idaho 30, the Idaho RB takes it out to the 34.

5:45 - On 2nd down from the Idaho 34, pass is incomplete.

5:30 - On 3rd and 6, ball is completed on a screen, but short of the first down to the Idaho 35. Gotta punt.

5:00 - Idaho punts and Myron Newberry takes it out to the 26.

4:30 - Siave Seti takes the hand off for no gain.

3:50 - Inoke Funaki takes it on a keeper for a couple of yards. 3rd down.

3:05 - On 3rd and 7 from the UH 29, Funaki throws incomplete over the middle. 4th down. Could this be the first UH punt of the game?

2:57 - Kurt Milne punts and CJ Hawthorne makes an immediate stop on the punt returner.

2:40 - Idaho runs a play and loses a yard.

1:50 - On 2nd and 11, Ryan Keomaka intercepts the pass and takes it into the endzone for a TOUCHDOWN!!!! Pick six!

1:46 - PAT is good. Hawaii 68, Idaho 10

1:43 - Dan Kelly kicks off into the end zone where it is downed.

1:26 - On 1st down from the 20, hand off is taken to the Idaho 27.

0:45 - On 2nd down and 3 from the 27, ball is taken to the 29.

0:15 - On 3rd and 1, the ball is taken to the 33. The clock winds down...

0:00 - END OF GAME. FINAL SCORE - HAWAII WARRIORS 68, IDAHO VANDALS 10

UPDATE: Blogger actually did crap out in the final 3 minutes of the game, so here's the final score, about 6 hours too late.

Bloggered

Blogger is being a bastard once again. So updates may be intermittent during the game, which starts in a little over an hour. Hope the issues clear up before then!

Ways to Follow the Hawaii vs Idaho Game

In Hawaii:

Go to Aloha Stadium!

Watch it on Oceanic PPV.

Listen to it on 1420 AM


Outside of Hawaii:

Watch it on ESPN GamePlan


In or Outside of Hawaii:

Streaming video from Hawaiian Tel Media

Streaming audio from Sports Radio 1420.

Live game stats from CSTV

And I'll probably be liveblogging it (if Blogger isn't screwing up) GO WARRIORS!!!!

GameDay: Hawaii vs Idaho

For the second straight Saturday, Blogger is acting strange. Anyways, here's a post I wrote 4 hours ago:

It's homecoming! Sorry Idaho, but you have to lose by 30 points or else everyone will be disappointed. Stephen Tsai's gameday preview opens with a funny conversation with Jerry Glanville, like the start of a TV show, before going into the breakdowns. And here's a quote from Dennis McKnight, which must mean he's not mad at Stephen anymore. Maybe.

"I think Idaho's front seven, and I'm not saying this just sucking up, is one of the best we've seen — them and Nevada," UH offensive line coach Dennis McKnight said. "It's a great defense. They play like the University of Miami used to play. They run to the ball. Everybody shows up and gets there. Everybody gets a piece of the ballcarrier."

It will be interesting to see how Nate does against them. Lot of good quotes in that article.

Dave Reardon's gameday preview highlights this key match-up:

Hawaii QB Colt Brennan vs. Idaho CB Stanley Franks

One of the biggest reasons Colt Brennan leads the nation in quarterback efficiency is his ridiculous touchdown-to-interception ratio of 28 to 5. Brennan has not thrown a pick in 120 passes, a span covering the past three games.

But he faces a serious threat to that streak tonight. Stanley Franks is second in the nation with seven interceptions in eight games.

Franks, a 5-foot-11, 167-pound JC transfer from Long Beach City College, has only been a Vandal since January. But he's already the school's career interception return leader after just eight games with 220 yards on his seven runbacks. He's also credited with defending three other passes and forcing a fumble.

Every celebrated DB Hawaii has played against this year hasn't done so well against Colt. But they are confident. Here's what another Idaho corner is saying.

Quarterback Colt Brennan is a big reason for Hawaii's success this year.

The junior has a 73 percent completion rate while throwing for 26-hundred yards and an N-C-A-A leading 28 touchdowns this season. Vandals cornerback Kiel McDonald says Idaho will be ready for Hawaii's passing game.

He says he expects Hawaii to go deep, to go short, to run screens and draws.

McDonald says Idaho's whole defense is excited. He says defensive backs love quarterbacks who throw the ball.

Well I like candy canes, but that doesn't mean I like them shoved up my butt. In any case, I hope the Idaho DBs are all super confident. It makes for great football. Or maybe he was being ironic. Can't really tell. Or maybe it's all misinformation and they'll be keying on Nasty. Either way, one will open up the other.

Dave Reardon writes about Dennis Erickson and what he brings to Idaho. Here's a quote from Leonard Peters:

"They're mostly known for being a running team. But last week against Boise they passed the whole first half. You never know what they're going to do, but they're a great team. They almost beat Boise," UH safety Leonard Peters said. "I remember (Erickson) as an NFL coach. It's going to be a good game for him and Coach Glanville (defensive coordinator Jerry) to out-chess each other."

And finally, Kalani Simpson reads quotes from the Idaho media guide. Must've been a late night!

That's Nasty

Kalani Simpson writes a column about Nate Ilaoa and the way he makes the UH offense go.

And make no mistake. Colt Brennan is in a Rolo zone and Hawaii's receivers are both good and plenty, and the line is playing out of its mind (this line is incredible). This offense would get a lot of yards and a lot of points even without a running threat, that's true. But Ilaoa is the X factor -- he gives it that next-level gear. He's the guy who makes it all go.

Doubt it? Why is it that it looked like those New Mexico State guys looked like they actually wanted to hit him, for once?

"I think they did a better job," Ilaoa says. "I feel like they were spying on me, both linebackers were spying on me, so not that I knew anything, but the ends were kind of two-gapping it, looking in the backfield, waiting for those little screens."

Think about that. That's four guys looking at one guy. You think you have a shot to stop Colt Brennan if that's your defensive scheme?

Stephen Tsai writes that Ikaika Alama-Francis will likely be out for tomorrow's homecoming game due to a lumbar strain. If he is out, Keala Watson will start in his place. Stephen also profiles back-up QB Tyler Graunke.

"My time will come," Graunke said. "I can't complain. I can't take away anything from what Colt's done. I'm waiting, being patient. I'm going to take it where Colt leaves it."

Brennan said: "We're great friends. We're good buddies. We lived together last year. We root each other on. I'm one of his fans when he goes in. He's really a good kid. I always like seeing him go in. He obviously has a bright future here, along with Inoke."

He's gonna rip it up when he gets his chance.

Ferd Lewis writes to the fans who think UH is too good for the Hawaii Bowl.

Those who forget that UH went 9-3 in 2001 and, as its reward, got to watch the bowl games on TV.

Just this month a writer of a letter to the editor of your favorite morning newspaper suggested "playing in UH's own bowl (the Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl) is not acceptable anymore."

Judging from calls, e-mails and radio callers, it is a widely held sentiment. And, also a flawed one.

Fact is UH — and its fans — should thank their lucky stars that they have the game in their backyard. Because without it bowl appearances would be few and far between. And those that did manage to come UH's way would otherwise be in Boise, Idaho, or Albuquerque, N.M.

Good column. Nothing's wrong with the Hawaii Bowl. And UH gets to play another game in front of the home crowd. And I'm sure all the tourism officials like it when ESPN shows shots of Waikiki, since half the audience is probably freezing their butts off.

Dave Reardon writes that the internet is changing the way June Jones recruits. But there's this section towards the bottom of the article which I'm most excited about:

(Herman) Frazier also said he expects to make an announcement "within the next two weeks" regarding next season's football schedule. The Warriors have only one (at UNLV, Sept. 15) of a possible five nonconference games set.

Well maybe excited is not the word. Maybe it's anxious. Or maybe a mix of the two that I'm going to call anxcited. Let's hope it's a good announcement. Ideally, we're still playing Michigan State along with a couple big name schools. I hope we're not playing any Division I-AA teams and I definitely hope we're not playing TWO Division I-AA teams. Next year is gonna be a HUGE year for UH, and I hope we play some great teams. Let's do it Herman!

Vandal Preview

Matt Dessert of Vandalvenue.com has a good preview of this Saturday's Hawaii vs Idaho game.

Dennis Erickson does not like to lose. He has repeatedly said that. The Vandals played well in their loss, but also made costly mistakes, and Erickson has probably made his players aware of this. Most likely, he Vandals will show up ready to play. Considering the short period of time the offensive coaching staff has known these players, and the head coach has known this team, the progress at Idaho has been amazing this season.

In a short, while Erickson has instilled a fight in the Vandals the fans haven’t seen for years, his team has played better each week and has shown no quit in their play. Even in last week’s loss, the Vandals showed periods of dominance on offense and defense, including impressive defensive stands, long touchdown passes, etc. The Vandals are coming together and playing some solid and exciting football.

This is all good for the conference. They'll probably be a really good team next year. This year however, I think UH will win by at least 4 touchdowns. GO WARRIORS!!!!

Patek

Ka Leo's Kiyomi Ueda writes an article on safety Jacob Patek.

Defensive coordinator Jerry Glanville feels Patek has exceeded the expectations set for him by the coaches.

“For a guy that has played junior college linebacker,” Glanville said, “to play that well and change positions to safety, he’s done a real good job. He plays harder [and] he plays better than what he is.”

Glanville also feels Patek does not have potential — in a good way.

“Potential means you’ve got something and you’re not using it,” Glanville said. “[Patek] is the opposite; he’s using more than he has. We gave him a gallon of gas, and he burns up two gallons.”

Here's a profile on Jason Rivers from yesterday, written by Rebecca Gallegos.

Cal Lee, currently an assistant coach on the UH football staff, was Rivers’ head football coach at St. Louis. Lee has seen the young receiver mature over the years into a veteran Division I contributor.

“When you’re young, you try to take shortcuts,” Lee said. “He had so much talent that he didn’t have to work very hard. Lately, he’s realized that had he worked harder in high school, he would have been better now in college.”

Lee believes that Rivers has always had a lot of potential and has been doing some unbelievable things this season as a result of his redefined work ethic.

Gallegos also has a preview of the Idaho game.

KITV also has a preview, which is courtesy of sportsnetwork.com

Texas

Stephen Tsai writes a profile on the starters in the secondary who happen to be from Texas: Jacob Patek, Myron Newberry and Gerard Lewis.

The three have bonded — with one another and their teammates. Newberry, the only child of a single mom, said: "All of these guys are my brothers."

Patek said it's difficult to live far away. Last week, his parents traveled by plane for the Warriors' road game against New Mexico State. He said his aunt, uncle and a high school friend made the 13-hour drive from Victoria, Texas, to Las Cruces, N.M.

"They really showed how much they love me," he said. "They could have been doing better things back home, working, making money, whatever. But they sacrificed their time to come out and watch me play."

Jones said the Texas players "are very respectful. They're really, really good kids. There's a lot of similarities between the aloha spirit and Southern hospitality."

Lewis said: "That's the way we were raised. It's 'yes, sir," or 'no, sir.' We're taught to mind our manners. On the field, we play with a lot of heart. There are a lot of guys who are taller, but they don't have the same sized heart."

Tsai also has injury updates on RGM, Ikaika and The Juggernaut.

Dave Reardon writes about Al Noga hanging around practice, an RGM update, more on Vaughn Meatoga, and an update from yesterday that Samson Satele will be going to the Senior Bowl.

"Hopefully we got more guys. Leonard (Peters), Mel (Purcell), Ikaika (Alama-Francis). I hope Nate (Ilaoa) gets invited because I'd feel honored to block for him," Satele said.

It's more likely the other Warriors standouts will get invitations to either the East-West Shrine Game, the new Border War game in El Paso (Texas vs. the rest of the country) or the Hula Bowl (if it is played).

I think there's gonna be at least 10 UH players in All-Star games this year.

And finally "Can't Let It Go" Joe Moore is being whiny again. I think he secretly desires to coach Hawaii. But I think he's more suited for Michigan State. Anyways, whatever JOE! Just support the team. You boto.

D-Lineman Commits

Vaughn Meatoga, a Kamehameha defensive lineman, has committed to become a Warrior.

"I want to play at home," said Meatoga, who was born on Kaua'i and has boarded at Kamehameha since the ninth grade. "As a kid, I always wanted to play for UH. Now I'll get the chance."

Meatoga, who is 6 feet 2 and 274 pounds, plays defensive tackle for Kamehameha. He is projected to compete at defensive end in UH's 3-4 alignment.

Rivals.com, a respected scouting service, rated Meatoga as the nation's 43rd-best defensive tackle. He also is listed as the state's No. 7 overall football prospect.

"That was nice, because I never went to the Nike combine or anything like that," Meatoga said.

Right on. Hopefully a lot of Hawaii guys decide to stay home. With the loss of Mel Purcell and Ikaika Alama-Francis at the end of this year, UH will definitely need people to fill their shoes. Who knows, maybe Vaughn will start as a freshman!

Speaking of Ikaika, Stephen Tsai writes in the same article that he's still hurting.

Alama-Francis experienced back spasms Friday night following a walk-through practice in El Paso, Texas. He indicated to the medical staff that he did not know if he would be able to play against New Mexico State the following night.

But Alama-Francis started at right end, helping to contain the Aggies' prolific passing attack, in the Warriors' 49-30 victory. He was used for 51 plays, the most among the UH defensive linemen.

After the game, Alama-Francis appeared to be in discomfort, again complaining of back spasms.

Monday night, he underwent a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to determine the condition of his lumbar. An MRI uses magnetic fields to create an image of the body's interior.

Let's hope he's okay. Colt Brennan on the other hand, should be good to go.

An MRI showed quarterback Colt Brennan has a "curvature" in his back that can cause tightness in his hamstrings but is otherwise harmless.

He said he does not have any nerve problems, and his condition — classified as a "lumbar strain" — is not a concern.

"It's all good," he said, adding he had his best "Tuesday practice of the season" yesterday. On Tuesdays, the Warriors practice against the scout team, which portrays the upcoming opponent's defense.

Brennan said he underwent the MRI because he has had recurring tightness in his hamstrings during practices.

Dave Reardon writes that Idaho is here to win! Too bad they won't win. But they are a good team and UH is not overlooking them. Dave also writes that Tyson Kafentzis and Ryan Grice-Mullins practiced and may play on Saturday, and another player has committed to become a Warrior.

Casey Purdy, a 6-foot-4, 280-pound offensive lineman, plans to join the Warriors. Purdy, a Word of Life graduate and former Pac-Five player, is back from Western Montana, where he was on the team for a week before he suffered an ACL injury.

Idaho coach Dennis Erickson is giving UH some respect.

"You’re playing against a football team that is, in my opinion, as good as Boise State, and they proved that week in and week out," said Idaho coach Dennis Erickson, whose Vandals travel to face Hawaii on Saturday.

Of course all coaches say stuff like that before the game, but it's still pretty cool.

And finally, Ferd Lewis profiles and praises Dennis Erickson.

When the 49ers let Erickson go, Spear, on a whim in 2005, said he asked Erickson over dinner if he might consider returning to coaching some day. When Erickson said he was done with the NFL, Spear persisted. Would Erickson consider a non-Bowl Championship Series school? One like Idaho, perhaps? "Sure,'' Spear said he was told.

Still, when Nick Holt was preparing to resign as Idaho's coach in January, Spear said caution told him Erickson had probably just been polite. Common sense told him not to get his hopes too high. "When I called him and reminded him of the conversation we'd had eight months prior, I said, 'well, I think the job is going to open up, coach, what do you think?' "

Spear said, "The exact words out of his mouth were: 'I'll take you to the next level.' "

That's right Dennis Erickson, Play UP! While that slogan still sounds lame, it's great that the WAC has all these great coaches, and that can't help but to improve the entire conference.

Glanville Fills In

Today's Warrior Beat Dennis McKnight chat suddenly turned into a Jerry Glanville chat because McKnight is mad at Stephen Tsai about something. About what, I don't know. I do know I wouldn't want McKnight mad at me! In any case, it was really cool of coach Glanville to fill in at the last minute. You should definitely read the whole thread, but as always, I am selfishly excerpting my question and the answer to it:

Comment from: Tombo [Visitor]
hi coach glanville,

how valuable is it having solomon elimimian (41) on the field as a "player/coach"? do you think it helped him later on the field to be up in the coaches box when he was injured?

Comment from: jerryglanville [Member]
Tombo:
I think we would have had an entirely different game against Boise State if he played. He would have helped us more than anyone realized. He would have received and "F" in the box. Tyson Kafentzis did a better job in the coaches box. I was disappointed in 41 in the box, because they call out substitutions based on the color: red, blue, white, green, and I think we were in the fourth quarter when 41 finally said "White." It took him three quarters to say a color.
Last year, I can remember 41 as a freshman had some difficulty in the Wisconsin game, but other than that he's way past his years in getting us in the right spot.
We were playing San Jose State last year, and we were at the night before the game's dinner, and they took a cake over to 41, and I foolishly asked him how old he was. He was turning 18. I realized when I first started in pro football, every player was at least 10 years older than me as a coach. And then I realized I was at least 10 years older than him.

Clever as ever. You forget how young some of the players are. Just gotta say thanks again to Stephen and his crew for putting it together for the fans, and thanks to Jerry Glanville for filling in and answering questions. Maybe Dennis McKnight will be by later after all is forgiven.

Lumbar

Stephen Tsai writes that Colt Brennan and Ikaika Alama-Francis are suffering from lumbar strains, but aren't expected to miss the Idaho game.

Brennan and Alama-Francis were scheduled to undergo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) procedures last night to determine the extent of the conditions.

Brennan said the condition causes tightness to both hamstrings, and makes it difficult to run "at full speed" during practices. Fueled by adrenaline, Brennan said, "I can run during games." He called the condition an "annoyance."

Hope they're both good to go.

In the same article, Tsai also profiles Ross Dickerson and talks about the problems he's causing!

Last week, head coach June Jones said Grice-Mullins, if healthy, would regain the right slotback job. Dickerson was the starting right wideout before moving to become Grice-Mullins' replacement. Ian Sample is now the starting right wideout.

Yesterday, Jones softened his stance, and said if Grice-Mullins were available, Dickerson would play extensively at both slot positions.

Dickerson said he welcomes Grice-Mullins' eventual return, insisting, "it'll make our team that much more dangerous, another weapon for us in our offense."

As for his role once Grice-Mullins returns, Dickerson said: "I don't think one of us will have to sit. We'll split the reps. Starting doesn't mean a lot to me. Winning games means a lot to me."

Indeed, Dickerson enjoys being healthy enough to play the sport he first embraced in the fourth grade. "I played for the Waipahu Jackrabbits," he said, proudly.

It's a good problem to have, and Ross has a great attitude about it. He's gonna rip it up in these final 7 games!

The article also has news that John Estes got the game ball, The Juggernaut has a lot of injuries and is undergoing an MRI on his knee. Argh, that pains me. Not as much as the pain he's going through I'm sure. And Amani Purcell and Karl Noa have moved from OLB to defensive end.

Dave Reardon writes about the Warriors' hard-hitting defense.

New Mexico State rolled up 448 yards in UH's 49-30 victory Saturday. The game tape, however, shows Jerry Glanville something else: correct assignment and alignment, swarming to the ball and crunching tackles.

"We look at the assignments. Richie (defensive backs coach Miano) just said they went 13 plays in a row in the secondary where everybody did everything exactly the way they were supposed to. With their techniques, their assignments," Glanville said yesterday after his daily jog with Miano. "We look for people who do it the right way, who give us 100 percent hustle and go hit. It ain't that hard to figure out."

UH's style is to collect rent on the massive territory it yields with bruising physical play, often causing turnovers while demoralizing opposing players, sometimes knocking them out of the game.

In its current four-game winning streak, Hawaii has gathered 11 fumbles and interceptions and scored seven touchdowns after them.

I think the defense is playing great. The stats are misleading because the Warriors offense scores so often and so quickly, that the defense has to be on the field more. That's my theory anyway. As of this week, UH is 90th in the nation in time of possession. So maybe I'm not talking completely out my arse.

Reardon also writes that the OLB and corner positions are set for this weekend, with the starters being Gerard Lewis and Myron Newberry at corner, and Brad Kalilimoku and Micah Lau at OLB.

And finally, Kalani Simpson has a great column on how football coaches like to steal from each other.

"One of the things that I've been noticing is that the other teams, the last four games, every team has copied things that (Jerry Glanville's) doing to other teams. And now we're having to block that stuff," Jones said earlier this month.

Yes. That's right. Glanville is coming up with all these great new blitzes, and their teams are taking Hawaii's secrets and turning right around and using these very same plays against UH!

"We've had to block everything Jerry has invented this year," Jones said yesterday. "Jerry's doing a lot of things that we didn't do last year and nobody's done. We had to block 'em, after the other teams haven't showed them all year. All of a sudden they watch our tapes and put them in."

The whole column is a good read, so definitely check it out!

And finally again, don't forget to visit The Warrior Beat for an online chat with Dennis McKnight today at around 9:30am HST!

Coach McKnight Chats

Tomorrow, The Warrior Beat will be hosting a chat with Coach Dennis McKnight. Think of a good question! Chat starts around 9:30am HST!

Ross and Melila with the Awards

Mel Purcell and Ross Dickerson were named WAC defensive and special teams players of the week. Woo hoo!

Purcell, a senior from Pago Pago, American Samoa (Leone HS), recorded seven tackles (5 solo), including three for a loss – two of which were sacks – in the win at New Mexico State. He also forced two fumbles including one that was picked up by a teammate and returned 20 yards for a touchdown.

Dickerson, a senior from Waipahu, O‘ahu (St. Louis School), returned four kickoffs for 158 yards, including a long of 64, in the win over the Aggies. The Warriors scored touchdowns after three of the four returns while driving to the New Mexico State one-yard line before fumbling on the fourth return. Dickerson finished the game with 283 all-purpose yards after also catching six passes for 125 yards and two touchdowns.

Man, it's gonna be tough to move Ross from the slot when Ryan Grice-Mullins comes back from injury. Congratulations to Ross and Mel!

Running of the Tables

Dave Reardon writes about the possibility that Hawaii may just win every game from here on out.

At first glance, it looks relatively easy for the team with the nation's most productive offense, including an O-line that one NFL scout called the best in the nation. We're looking at 12-2 and the best record in school history, right?

Not so fast, says the most efficient quarterback in the country.

"One thing I learned from this week is that anyone you play has a chance to step up and have a great game and give you a run," said Colt Brennan, after passing for five touchdowns for the fourth time this season. "On our schedule right now, it may look like we have a great chance to run the table, but we can't expect anything.

"We gotta work hard and go get it. Next week we have Idaho at home and they've actually been doing real well. I think they played Boise pretty tough. We've got another turnaround, another big game."

Glad we're not overlooking anybody.

Dave Reardon also has another installment of Warrior Replay. Here's one of the replays:

2. Hot route

The Setup: Hawaii 7, New Mexico State 0; around 6:30 remaining, first quarter; Hawaii ball, first and goal at New Mexico State 34.

The Play: New Mexico State comes with a blitz. Hawaii receiver Ross Dickerson reads it and breaks off his route as a safety valve and quarterback Colt Brennan dumps it off to him. Dickerson slips out of a tackle and goes 34 yards for his first of two touchdowns on the night and Brennan's first of five scoring passes.

The Impact: Brennan's eighth consecutive completion to start the game gives Hawaii a 14-0 lead and serves notice it will be a long evening for New Mexico State's defense.

Brennan: "It's great when you're a quarterback and throw a 5-yard pass and Ross goes and gets you a 40-yard touchdown."

Great breakdowns. Now alls we needs is accompanying video!

And as for rankings, Hawaii:

is ranked 37th in the BCS poll

received 2 votes in the AP poll

received 7 votes in the USA Today poll

remains 30th in the CFN poll

Any other poll I missed?

UPDATE: Yes, I did. Thanks to Anonymous, here are two more.

Hawaii is ranked 36th in the CBS Sportsline Poll.

And Hawaii received three votes in the Harris Interactive Poll, which is included in the BCS formula.

Stats After Week 8

From the NCAA and ESPN

Hawaii is 1st in the nation in total offense with 522.71 yards per game

Hawaii is 2nd in the nation in scoring offense with 42.14 points per game. Clemson is first with 42.25 points per game.

Hawaii is 87th in the nation in scoring defense with 27 points allowed per game.

Hawaii is 108th in the nation in total defense with 408.86 yards allowed per game.

These defensive stats are a little misleading since UH scores so quickly that the opponents get the ball back more. And then they have to throw it to try to come from behind all the time. That's my theory anyway!

Hawaii is 6th in the nation in tackles for loss allowed with 3.71 per game. That's mostly due to the great offensive line!

Colt Brennan is 1st in the nation in passing efficiency with a rating of 183.1

Colt Brennan is 1st in the nation in points responsible for with 26.57 points per game.

Colt Brennan is 1st in the nation in completion percentage with 72.9%

Colt Brennan is 1st in the nation in touchdown passes with 28.

Davone Bess is 2nd in the nation in receptions with 7.57 per game.

Davone Bess is 11th in the nation in receiving yards with 89.14 per game.

Nate Ilaoa is 54th in the nation in rushing with 74.86 yards per game.

Nate Ilaoa is 18th in the nation in all-purpose yards with 131 yards per game. Ross Dickerson is 29th with 122 yards per game.

Ross Dickerson is 13th in the nation in kickoff returns with 28.07 yards per return.

Adam Leonard is 45th in the nation in tackles with 8.57 per game.

Melila Purcell is tied for 6th in the nation in forced fumbles with 3 total, or 0.43 per game.

NOTE: These aren't permalinks, so as the week changes, so will the stats.

Hawaii at NMSU Newspaper Wrap-Ups

Stephen Tsai's wrap-up has this quote from June Jones:

"I knew it would come down to hitting and turnovers," UH head coach June Jones said. "We out-hit them, and we got some turnovers."

And this quote from Colt Brennan:

"We're going to drive this race car as far as we can, and get as many victories as we can," Brennan added, "and hopefully by the end of the year we'll be sitting there proud of what we've done."

As well as this amazing quote from Ross Dickerson:

Two plays later, Brennan and Dickerson teamed on a 36-yard scoring play. Dickerson ran a streak pattern along the right sideline, but "the ball got lost in the light. Colt threw it in such a perfect spot that I caught it in my hands. I lost it in the lights, and then it reappeared."

That's crazy. They should be all kung fu and go out on routes blindfolded.

Dave Reardon's wrap-up has this quote from NMSU coach Hal Mumme.

"I think they are the best team in our conference. We've played all the top teams now and those guys are road warriors," Mumme said. "You realize they've been on the road four out of the last eight weeks and with who've they had to play, June has done a real good job."

Here is a link to video of Hal Mumme's post-game comments, praising the Warriors. It's in Windows Media format.

NMSU's website also has more post-game comments, not in video though.

Dave Reardon highlights Ross Dickerson's performance last night.

"Ross has played outstanding football the last couple weeks," UH coach June Jones said. "Kickoff returns, making big plays, run after the catch."

The 5-foot-10, 198-pound senior didn't shy away from contact last night, as he went right after Aggies defenders if it meant extra yards or reaching the goal line.

"That's the weightroom, getting in the weightroom, getting stronger," he said. "Some guys want to take me on, I'll take 'em."

Rivers has known Dickerson since eighth grade, when both were at Saint Louis School.

"He's tough. He's a hard runner. He has a passion for the game and he shows it every time he's on the field," Rivers said. "He's always aggressive. He used to play running back."

Stephen Tsai writes that Ross Dickerson is making it hard for the coaches to put him back on the bench when Ryan Grice-Mullins comes back from his ankle injury.

Meanwhile, Dickerson has been amassing quite a resume for the job with 28 receptions for 362 yards and five touchdowns in the last four games.

"I hope Ryan is able to come back soon and help the team," said Dickerson, who caught 34- and 36-yard TD passes last night. "I'll play wherever they put me, inside (slots) or outside (wide receiver). Whatever it takes to win."

The article has a bit on the Warriors' "human timeouts" that may or may not have taken place during the game.

KGRT radio announcers — and not a few NMSU fans — wondered about UH nose tackle Michael Lafaele's recuperative powers after he went down several times with apparent injuries and was able to quickly return to the game.

Lafaele was apparently one of UH's designated "human timeouts," players who help the UH defense get a breather.

However, Lafaele wasn't owning up to it.

"My hamstring was bothering me," he said.

But observers noted that UH trainer Eric Okasaki had trouble suppressing a smile.

Well, it's good to hear that Lafaele, Renolds Freuan, Keala Watson, Ikaika Alama-Francis and whoever else was down on the field doesn't appear to have serious injuries...

Ferd Lewis writes about Nate Ilaoa's busy night.

He carried a career-high 18 times for 94 yards and a touchdown in the Warriors' fourth consecutive victory of a 5-2 season.

It was the most carries by a UH running back in the last five seasons.

Twice in the game he carried the ball on three consecutive plays. "Yeah, a couple of times Nate came back (to the huddle) trying to get his breath," quarterback Colt Brennan said.

Probably because of the altitude! Nate should've gone down with "cramps" too.

Ferd Lewis marvels at Colt Brennan's performance this season.

"He's got such good vision and such a great feel for the windows (of opportunity) that I wouldn't put anything past him," quarterbacks coach Dan Morrison said. "He's to the point where the receiver is over there, the defenders are here and he sees the window and lets the ball go real tight to where the window will be."

UH coach June Jones, never one to spare the superlatives on his quarterbacks, might also be in the window when it comes to Brennan.

"He's been playing phenomenal and I can't imagine there's a quarterback playing better in the country," Jones said. "He's just getting better every week and getting a better grasp of what we're doing. He's got it all."

Stay Colt, stay! No stay go! GO WARRIORS GO!!!!

Hawaii 49, NMSU 30

Another good road win by the Warriors. There were a couple mistakes, but nothing game-changing as it turns out. Let's hope there were no serious injuries. Glad UH can play back at home next week. Idaho actually played a pretty good game against Boise today, but UH will just have to destroy the Vandals nonetheless. Here are some unofficial stats from today's game:

Colt Brennan was 22 of 31 for 330 yards with 5 touchdowns and NO interceptions.

Nate Ilaoa rushed 18 times for 94 yards and 1 touchdown. He also caught 2 passes for 41 yards for a total of 135 all purpose yards.

Ross Dickerson caught 6 passes for 125 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Ross also returned 4 kickoffs for 158 yards for a 39.5 yards per return average.

Solomon Elimimian had 14 tackles.

Adam Leonard had 11 tackles with a fumble recovery taken in for a touchdown!

LiveBlogging (Not Really): Hawaii at NMSU

Okay, Blogger was being a bastard and did not work at all during the game. Despite that, I just had to keep a liveblog anyway. In MS Notepad. So without further ado, below is the liveblog I did in Notepad while Blogger was down. I know, it's not really a "live" blog anymore. But oh well, I already typed it and here it is:

FINAL SCORE: Hawaii 49, NMSU 30

1st Quarter:

PreGame - Hawaii wins the toss and will receive!

15:00 - NMSU kicks off and Ross Dickerson takes it out to the UH 36 yard line! Nice return.

14:27 - Colt Brennan passes to Jason Rivers, who is tackled out of bounds at the UH 48 for a first down!

14:15 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 48, Brennan scrambles to the UH 47 where he is sacked.

13:55 - On 2nd and 11 from the UH 47, Brennan hits Bess on a crossing route to the NMSU 48.

12:45 - On 3rd down and about 6, Brennan hits Ian Sample, who wrestles his way to the NMSU 43.

12:07 - On 4th and 1, Brennan on the keeper takes it to the NMSU 39 for a FIRST DOWN!!!

11:35 - On 1st and 10, Brennan hits Ross Dickerson on a crossing pattern, and he takes it to the NMSU 30, but there's a penalty on NMSU. And they're measuring for a first down... And it's a bit short. Ball on the 30.

11:34 - On 2nd and 1 from the NMSU 30, hand off to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it to the NMSU for the first down!

10:50 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 27, CB passes to Davone Bess, who catches it on the sideline at the NMSU 4 yard line!!!!

10:42 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 4 yard line, Nate Ilaoa takes it in for the TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!

10:39 - Dan Kelly attempts the PAT, and it is WIDE. For goodness sake. Hawaii 6, NMSU 0

10:35 - Dan Kelly kicks off out of bounds. NMSU will have it on their own 20.

10:18 - On 1st and 10 from the 20, a sweep end-around or whatever takes it out to the NMSU 39.

9:50 - Short run is stopped back at the 36 yard for a loss. Looked like Solomon Elimimian was in on the play.

9:20 - On 2nd down, short pass, which is stopped at the line of scrimmage.

8:39 - On 3rd down and 13 from the NMSU 36, Chase Holbrook throws over the middle to nobody. GOTTA PUNT!

8:33 - NMSU punts and it is taken by Myron Newberry at his own 8. He's dropped at the UH 11.

8:10 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 11, Colt Brennan shovels to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it to the UH 35!!!

7:40 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 35, Brennan finds Dickerson over the middle to the NMSU 43.

7:05 - Ilaoa takes the handoff to the NMSU 34 yard line! 2nd down.

6:30 - On 2nd and 1 from the NMSU 34, Brennan finds Ross Dickerson on the sideline and he breaks 2 or 3 tackles and takes it into the ENDZONE!!!!!! TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!

6:17 - UH is going for 2.

6:17 - Brennan passes to Davone Bess, and the refs aren't sure if Bess caught it in the end zone. And now they say he CAUGHT IT!!! And on the replay, it looks like the right call! Hawaii 14, NMSU 0

6:13 - Dan Kelly kicks off and NMSU takes a knee in the end zone.

5:53 - NMSU hands off, and Adam Leonard makes the tackle at the 24.

5:30 - On 2nd and 6 from the NMSU 24, they hand off and the running back takes it to the 32 for a first down.

4:50 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 32, handoff is taken to the 37 for a five yard gain.

4:25 - On 2nd and 5, Holbrook finds a receiver over the middle for a first down. Their hurry up offense is making it hard to keep up!

4:08 - On 1st down, Holbrook gets off a short crossing pass, but Solomon Elimimian makes a nice tackle on the UH 44.

3:29 - On 2nd and 9, incomplete pass over the middle.

3:30 - On 3rd and 9 from the NMSU 44, Holbrook completes a pass to the UH 44. First down.

3:00 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 44, pass complete over the middle for a first down.

2:20 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 32 yard line, Holbrook scrambles to the UH 29 yard line for a 3 yard gain.

1:55 - On 2nd and 7 from the UH 29 yard line, Holbrook scrambles to the UH 14 yard line. 1st down.

1:25 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 14, Holbrook passes incomplete over the middle.

1:14 - On 2nd and 10, Holbrook passes over the middle to the 3 yard line. 1st down. Yikes.

1:00 - On 1st and goal from the UH 3, Holbrook passes out of the end zone. 2nd down.

0:38 - On 2nd and goal from the UH 3, handoff, and #35 takes it in for an NMSU touchdown.

0:35 - PAT is good. Hawaii 14, NMSU 7

0:32 - NMSU kicks off and they try an onside kick... but there's a flag on the play...

0:15 - Errr, NMSU gets the ball back on the onside kick because the penalty was on UH.

0:10 - Holbrook completes a pass to the UH 27 yard line.

0:01 - And then Holbrook completes a sideline pass and the receiver takes it in for a touchdown. WOW!

0:01 - PAT is good. Hawaii 14, NMSU 14

0:00 - NMSU kicks off and Ross Dickerson takes it to the 25 yard line.

0:00 - End of 1st Quarter. Hawaii 14, NMSU 14


2nd Quarter:

15:00 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 25, Colt Brennan passes to Ian Sample, who jukes to the UH 45 yard line!

14:30 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 45, Brennan passes incomplete to Jason Rivers on the sideline. Looks like a drop.

14:20 - On 2nd and 10 from the UH 45, Brennan hands off to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it to the NMSU 48 yard line. 3rd and 3.

13:40 - On 3rd and 3, Brennan tries throwing deep to Davone Bess, and it's incomplete, but there's a lot of contact on the play, and there's interference on NMSU! 1st down!

13:35 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 33, shovel pass to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it all the way to the NMSU 17 yard line!

13:25 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 17, Colt Brennan rifles a pass into the end zone to Davone Bess for a TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!

13:24 - Okay, will Dan Kelly make the PAT? Right down the middle, son! Hawaii 21, NMSU 14

13:20 - Dan Kelly kicks off into the end zone and it is downed in the endzone.

13:19 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 20, Chase Holbrook with a shovel pass, but it's incomplete.

13:04 - On 2nd and 10 from the NMSU 20, Chase Holbrook completes a pass to the sideline. The receiver is run out of bounds at the NMSU 30. First down.

12:55 - Shovel pass on the next play and it's taken out the the NMSU 45. Biters!

12:52 - Looks like Renolds Freuan is down on the play. Let's hope he's okay.

12:44 - Another shovel pass to the UH 45, and that's another NMSU first down. What the hell.

12:20 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 45, handoff takes it to the UH 43. Adam Leonard and Solomon Elimimian with the stop.

11:40 - On 2nd and 8, Holbrook completes a pass to the 35, but there's an incidental facemask on UH. Crap.

11:10 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 29, Holbrook completes a short pass to the UH 23.

10:12 - On 2nd and 4 from the UH 23, Holbrook completes a pass to the UH 13 yard line.

9:40 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 13, Renolds Freuan sacks Holbrook back on the 16!!! Guess he's okay!

9:05 - On 2nd down from the UH 16, short pass to the UH 8 yard line. 3rd down.

9:00 - On 3rd and 5 from the UH 8, JACOB PATEK breaks up a pass in the end zone!!!! NICE!

9:00 - On the NMSU field goal attempt, NMSU makes it. Hawaii 21, NMSU 17

8:50 - NMSU kicks off and Ross Dickerson takes it out to the 33 yard line. And there's a flag after the play...

8:43 - Unsportsmanlike conduct on NMSU. 15 yard penalty.

8:27 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 49, handoff to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it into NMSU territory to the NMSU 42!

8:16 - On 2nd and 1 from NMSU 42, Nate takes it 1 yard to the NMSU 41 for a 1st down!

7:52 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 41, hand off to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it to the NMSU 39.

7:20 - On 2nd and 8 from the NMSU 39, hand off to Nate who takes it to the NMSU 36. 3rd down.

6:30 - On 3rd and 5 from the NMSU 36, Brennan throws out of bounds.... What will they do?

6:24 - They're gonna punt!

6:24 - Kurt Milne gets back to punt, but NMSU takes a timeout.

6:24 - UH ends up going for it and Colt Brennan completes a pass to the sideline to Jason Rivers to the NMSU 25 yard line! 1st down!!!!

6:05 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 25, Brennan hands off to Nate Ilaoa, who spins his way to the NMSU 17!

5:20 - On 2nd and 2 from the NMSU 17, Brennan passes to Davone Bess and it is intercepted, but there was an inadvertant whistle on the play, so UH retains possession. WOW.

5:10 - ON 2nd and 2 from the NMSU 17 again, handoff to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it to the 12. Penalty flag on the play. Personal foul on UH. 1st down after a 15 yard penalty.

4:50 - On 1st down from the NMSU 27, bubble screen to Jason Rivers, who takes it to the NMSU 20.

4:15 - On 2nd down and 3 from the NMSU 20, hand off to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it to the NMSU 9 yard line!!! 1st down!

3:55 - On 1st and goal from the NMSU 9 yard line, Brennan finds Ian Sample in the back of the end zone for a TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!

3:41 - Dan Kelly hooks it but makes the PAT. HAWAII WARRIORS 28, NMSU 17

3:37 - Dan Kelly kicks off into the endzone and it is downed. NMSU ball at the 20.

3:30 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 20, Chase Holbrook passes a bubble screen to the 24.

2:50 - On 2nd and 6 from the NMSU 24, Holbrook scrambles and he's tackled by Mel Purcell for a 1 yard loss! But Michael Lafaele looks like he's down on the play... Looks like he's okay as he walks off the field.

2:20 - On 3rd and 7 from the NMSU 23, Gerard Lewis WITH THE INTERCEPTION!!!!!

1:50 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 42, hand off to The Juggernaut aka "Reagan Mauia", who takes it to the NMSU 36.

1:20 - On 2nd down and 4, sideline pass to Jason Rivers to the NMSU 30 for a first down!

1:05 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 30, the ball is not really snapped, and there's a flag on the play. It was an illegal snap with a 5 yard penalty. 1st and 15 from the 35.

0:55 - Quick pass to Ross Dickerson, who takes it to the NMSU 31. 2nd and 11.

0:50 - On 2nd and 11 from the NMSU 31, Brennan scrambles and throws incomplete. 3rd down.

0:42 - On 3rd and 11 from the NMSU 31, Brennan throws to the 1 yard line to Ian Sample, and he drops it! DOH!

0:42 - UH takes a timeout. Don't tell me they're going for it.

0:42 - On 4th and 11 from the 31, UH is going for it! Brennan throws out of bounds in the back of the end zone. NMSU gets the ball back.

0:25 - On 1st down, NMSU with a quick pass to their own 35 yard line.

0:17 - On 2nd and 6, Mel Purcell knocks the ball out of Chase Holbrook's hands! But it's recovered by an NMSU receiver.

0:02 - On 3rd down and 9 from the NMSU 32, Holbrook throws it deep, but it is incomplete.

0:00 - Crazy 1st half. Hawaii 28, NMSU 17


2nd Half:

3rd Quarter:

15:00 - UH kicks off out of the end zone. NMSU ball at the 20 yard line.

14:51 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 20, Chase Holbrook completes a pass to the NMSU 26.

14:25 - On 2nd and 4 from the NMSU 26, Holbrook with a shovel pass to the 30 yard line for a first down.

14:15 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 30, Holbrook scrambles and completes a 9 yard pass to the sideline under pressure. And there was holding on Brad Kalilimoku.

13:50 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 40, Holbrook passes deep but incomplete under pressure.

13:30 - On 2nd and 10 from the NMSU 40, Holbrook hands off, and the runner is dropped back at the NMSU 39 by Adam Leonard!

12:50 - On 3rd and 11 from the NMSU 39, Holbrook scrambles, and scrambles, and completes a touchdown pass to Chris Williams, who is WIDE OPEN, and he takes it in for a TOUCHDOWN.

12:39 - PAT is good. Hawaii 28, NMSU 24 Yikes.

12:35 - NMSU kicks off and Ross Dickerson takes it back all the way into NMSU territory!!! Ball on the NMSU 36 yard line!

12:05 - Nate Ilaoa takes the hand off on first down and takes it to the NMSU 27 for a 9 yard gain.

11:32 - ON 2nd and 1 from the NMSU 27, Brennan finds Bess underneath, and he takes it to the NMSU 16 yard line for the first down!

11:00 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 16, pass to Dickerson, who bobbles and drops. Incomplete.

10:52 - On 2nd and 10 from the NMSU 16, Brennan powers his way to the 5 yard line for a FIRST DOWN!!!

10:30 - On 1st and goal from the NMSU 5, Brennan's pass is tipped and it is incomplete in the back of the end zone.

10:20 - On 2nd and goal from the NMSU 5, Nate Ilaoa powers his way to the 1 yard line!!!

9:25 - On 3rd and goal from the 1, Nate is stopped back at the 2 yard line. 4th down. CRAP.

8:50 - On 4th and goal from the 2, they're going for it, and Brennan throws it behind Nate Ilaoa on the option. Ball is recovered by NMSU on the 8 yard line. CRAP. Brennan was hit on the play.

8:30 - On 1st and 10 from the 8, NMSU rushes to the 19 yard line for a first down.

8:20 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 19, a rush to the NMSU 24 yard line.

7:55 - On 2nd and 5 from the NMSU 24, ball is taken to the NMSU 27 yard line. 3rd and 2.

7:20 - On 3rd and 2 from the NMSU 27, the ball is taken to the NMSU 34 yard line for a 1st down.

6:55 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 34, the ball is taken 5 yards to the 39.

6:20 - On 2nd and 5 from the NMSU 34, the ball is taken 1 yard to the 40. 3rd down! COME ON D WITH THE STOP!

6:02 - Mel Purcell gets up slowly on the play, and Michael Lafaele is down on with possibly cramps...

5:57 - On 3rd and 4 from the NMSU 40, shovel pass to Williams, who is stopped by Adam Leonard at the NMSU 43.

5:15 - On 4th and 1 from the NMSU 43, Holbrook completes a pass to the NMSU 47. 1st down.

5:04 - Illegal substitution on NMSU. 1st and 15.

5:00 - On 1st and 15 from the NMSU 43, ball is handed off and taken up the middle to the NMSU 46.

4:12 - On 2nd and 12 from the NMSU 46, short pass is turned into a big gain to the UH 39.

4:00 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 39, Holbrook scrambles to the UH 33.

3:50 - On 2nd and 4 from the UH 33, Holbrook throws an INTERCEPTION to Myron Newberry, but there's a roughing the passer penalty on UH. So that nullifies the INT. FRICK.

3:42 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 18, Holbrook throws it out of bounds.

3:35 - On 2nd and 10 from the UH 18, short hand off to the 16 yard line. Ikaika Alama-Francis is slow to get up, but he walks off the field under his own power.

3:16 - On 3rd and 8 from the UH 16, false start on NMSU.

3:16 - On 3rd and 13 from the UH 21, pass is incomplete!!! 4th down!!!

3:10 - And it looks like they're going for it on 4th and 13!

3:05 - On 4th and 13, Chase Holbrook scrambles, but he is stopped short of the 1st down!!!!

2:45 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 11 yard line, Brennan passes over the middle deep to Ian Sample! But it's ruled incomplete.

2:32 - NMSU is challenging and the play is being reviewed... because Ian fumbled.

2:32 - The ruling stands and it is incomplete. 2nd and 10.

2:27 - On 2nd and 10 from the UH 11 yard line, Brennan throws deep to Ross Dickerson on the sideline, but it's incomplete.

2:22 - On 3rd and 10 from the UH 11 yard line, Brennan scrambles to the 22 yard line for the 1st down!!!!

2:12 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 22, Brennan scrambles to the UH 29 yard line. 2nd and 43.


1:30 - On 2nd and 3 from the UH 29, handoff to Nate Ilaoa, who takes it to the UH 36 yard line for a 1st down!

0:55 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 36, Nate Ilaoa takes it to the UH 44 yard line.

0:20 - On 2nd and 2, Nate takes the hand off for a 1 yard gain to the UH 45. 3rd and 1.

0:00 - End of 3rd quarter. Hawaii 28, NMSU 24


4th Quarter:

15:00 - On 3rd and 1 from the UH 45, Reagan Mauia takes it to the UH 47 for a first down!!!

14:32 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 47, Brennan completes it over the middle to Ross Dickerson to the NMSU 33!

14:05 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 33, Brennan finds Chad Mock on the sideline for another first down to the NMSU 15!

13:52 - ON 1st and 10 from the NMSU 15, Brennan on the bubble screen to Ian Sample, who takes it to the NMSU 7 yard line!

13:15 - On 2nd down from the 7 yard line, Nate Ilaoa takes it in to the ENDZONE!!! But there's holding on UH. So ball comes back. CRAP.

13:10 - On 2nd down from the 17, Nate Ilaoa takes it to the NMSU 12 for a five yard gain. 3rd down.

12:35 - On 3rd down from the 12, Colt Brennan hits Jason Rivers on a slant for a TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!!!

12:27 - Dan Kelly kicks the PAT. Hawaii 35, NMSU 24

12:24 - Dan Kelly kicks it off and it's downed in the end zone.

12:00 - On 1st and 10 from the 20, Holbrook throws it accidentally in the ground. Incomplete.

11:49 - On 2nd and 10 from the NMSU 20, Adam Leonard hits Jeremiah Williams at the line of scrimmage for no gain!!!

11:15 - On 3rd and 10, Mel Purcell sacks Chase Holbrook!!! He FUMBLES!!!! And Adam Leonard takes the fumble into the end zone for a TOUCHDOWN!!!!!

11:11 - Chase Holbrook is down on the field. He looks pretty dazed.

11:11 - Timeout.

11:11 - Dan Kelly kicks the PAT. Hawaii 42, NMSU 24 Holbrook is still shaken up on the sidelines.

11:02 - Dan Kelly kicks off, and it's taken out to the 20 by Chris Williams.

10:55 - On 1st and 10 from the 20, replacement QB Alex Gibson completes a short 7 yard pass.

10"35 - On 2nd and 3, hand off is taken to the 35 yard line for a first down.

10:15 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 35, Gibson scrambles to the NMSU 42.

10:05 - On 2nd down, hand off is taken to the 48 yard line. Mel Purcell is down on the play. Let's hope he's okay.

10:03 - Chase Holbrook is back on the field. And on the handoff, Williams is stopped back at the 46. Loss of 2.

9:15 - Holbrook, under pressure, is nearly intercepted by Blaze Soares! 3rd down and 12.

9:00 - On 3rd down and 12, the snap is fumbled, and UH recovers!!!! Kahai Lacount with the recovery!

8:37 - Reagan Mauia takes the handoff from the NMSU 42 to the NMSU 36. 2nd and 4.

8:00 - On 2nd and 5, Brennan throws on a sideline pattern to Ross Dickerson for a TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!!!

7:58 - Dan Kelly barely makes the PAT. Hawaii 49, NMSU 24

7:53 - Kelly kicks off into the end zone and NMSU takes a knee.

7:35 - On 1st and 10 from the 20, Holbrook completes a pass to the 29. 2nd and 1.

6:59 - Holbrook completes a pass to the 32 for a first down.

6:40 - On 1st down, a sideline pass is completed, and the NMSU receiver takes it to the UH 31.

6:18 - After scrambling for about 10 seconds, Holbrook scrambles out of bounds for no gain.

6:05 - Holbrook completes a pass over the middle to the 21 for a first down.

5:40 - On 1st and 10 from the UH 21, Mel Purcell sacks Holbrook again! Back at the 22.

5:09 - Under pressure, Holbrook has to throw it away.

5:00 - On 3rd and 11 from the UH 22, short pass is taken to the UH 13. 3rd down.

4:48 - Keala Watson is down on the play. Timeout.

4:48 - Keala Watson limps off the field, but under his own power, which is good.

4:40 - On 4th and 1 from the UH 13, Holbrook completes a touchdown pass.

4:25 - They're going for 2... and UH takes a timeout.

4:25 - Conversion pass is incomplete, but pass interference on Adam Leonard.

4:25 - And on the 2nd attempt, the running back is stuffed! PAT no good! Hawaii 49, NMSU 30

4:22 - On the kickoff, NMSU tries the onside kick, but it's recovered by Nate Ilaoa! UH Ball!!!

4:05 - Tyler Graunke's in the game, and he hands off to Reagan Mauia, who takes it 4 yards to the NMSU 42.

3:15 - On 2nd and 6 from the NMSU 42, Graunke takes it on the option to the NMSU 38. 3rd down and 2.

2:35 - On 3rd and 2 from the NMSU 38, Graunke passes over the middle, and it's almost picked off. What?

2:25 - On 4th and 2, UH is going for it, and Graunke takes it on the option to the NMSU 35 for a 1st down!

1:53 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 35, hand off to Reagan Mauia, who takes it one yard to the the 34. Timeout NMSU.

1:48 - On 2nd and 9 from the NMSU 34, Graunke nearly throws an interception, but it's dropped. 3rd and 9.

1:42 - On 3rd and 9 from the NMSU 34, Graunke completes it to Michael Washington to the NMSU 11 yard line!

1:35 - On 1st and 10 from the NMSU 11, handoff to Mauia, who barrels his way to the 6 yard line.

1:01 - On 2nd and 5 from the NMSU 6, false start on UH.

0:40 - On 2nd and 10 from the NMSU 11, hand off to Reagan Mauia, who takes it to the 9 yard line. And that looks like the ballgame.

0:00 - Clock runs down. FINAL SCORE - Hawaii 49, NMSU 30