Hawaii vs Boise State Wrap-Ups

What a beautiful morning! I'll be adding to this post throughout the AM (and maybe PM) as I go through all these stories about Hawaii's sweet victory over Boise State.

UPDATE: Done. I think.

To start off, here's game stats and scoring breakdowns from the Advertiser.

Stephen Tsai has a great wrap-up. Here are some excerpts:

"I'm happy," said UH head coach June Jones, who earned the first outright championship of his coaching career. "I'm happy for the state of Hawai'i, and I'm happy for my team. These players are very committed, and they did a hell of a job all year."

The Broncos were held to a season-low 101 rushing yards, with only 32 in the second half.

Running back Ian Johnson, who finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting last year, rushed for 86 yards and two touchdowns — one for 50 yards in the first quarter— but he had only 11 yards after intermission.

"When I signed, people asked, 'Why Hawai'i?'" said defensive back Ryan Mouton, who joined the Warriors in August. "The reason is these guys around here. This is what a team's about — love, family, and competing and fighting to win games."

Dave Reardon's wrap-up has the line of the day.

Hawaii won the physical battle against the team that went unbeaten last year and beat Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl.

Not only did the Warriors take Cinderella's slipper, they hit her on the head with it. Repeatedly.

"They're physical," BSU coach Chris Petersen said. "When they bring it, they bring it."

Awww damn. And in the same article, Blaze Soares got the line of the year.

"I want to thank ESPN and Mel Kiper," said linebacker Blaze Soares, who had seven tackles, including a huge sack. "He called us a cupcake defense. Well, how do you like these cupcakes? Have some for breakfast."

Mmmm, I hope they're delicious.

Here's a wrap-up from Chadd Cripe of the Idaho Statesman.

Freshmen wideouts Titus Young and Austin Pettis combined for just four catches. Several catchable balls were dropped or knocked out of receivers' hands. And the Warriors sacked Tharp three times and got so much penetration that Johnson often didn't have time to even look for a hole.

"They were just playing with their heads on fire and doing an awesome job and sometimes winning one-on-one battles," Johnson said.

Brian Murphy of the Idaho Statesman has a wrap-up as well.

"We proved something tonight to all the so-called experts who picked Boise to beat us. I guess they just don't know what they're talking about," Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan said.

Brennan, the undisputed leader of Hawaii's team and its Heisman hopeful, threw five touchdowns and added a sixth on the ground.

Brennan carved up the Broncos worse than a Thanksgiving turkey, completing 40-of-53 passes. Without enough cornerbacks to play man-to-man, Hawaii feasted on a steady diet of zone coverage. And Boise State rarely applied enough pressure to disrupt Brennan's timing as his receivers ran free.

It was a sublime performance, a conductor in perfect harmony with his symphony.

Not so the Broncos, on this night, a disjointed garage band.

Speaking of those so-called experts, if I have time, I will put-together a compilation of some of their pre-game predictions and hating on UH, awww yeah.

Brian McInnis highlights the performance of the UH offense.

"Ryan, and Davone, and Colt, all of them, they rise to games," quarterbacks coach Dan Morrison said. "Any time a game gets tougher, they get better, and they've always been that way. That was again evident tonight."

Stacy Kaneshiro highlights the performance of the UH defense.

The leader in tackles for lost yardage was Soares. Despite playing with an assortment of aches and pain, the 6-foot-1, 239-pound sophomore linebacker still registered the second-highest number of total tackles on the team with seven, three of them for losses.

"Football, you have to play through pain," he said. "Not only me. Michael Lafaele, Karl Noa. Everybody's battling through pain. A little shoulder injury, my shin. That ain't going to stop me."

Neither could Boise State's blockers.

Kaneshiro also discusses Colt and the offense.

Brennan, who admitted to throwing up before the game, got off to a stutter start, completing 1 of his first 4 passes of the game. He also was intercepted twice on a 40-of-53 night, while breaking two records held by BYU's Ty Detmer.

"I made some mistakes, but I didn't let it affect me," Brennan said. "I bounced back really well when I made mistakes."

Indeed.

Jason Kaneshiro looks at Hawaii's dominant 3rd quarter performance.

Said McMackin: "The guys played their responsibilities and played hard. They were throwing the ball a little bit (in the first half) and we made some adjustments in the second half, blitzed more, tried to put more pressure on (BSU quarterback Taylor Tharp) and our guys made plays. It's not schemes, players make plays."

Dayton Morinaga has an article about the great game by Davone Bess.

One of his finest games in an already stellar career at Hawai'i came in a victory that clinched the Western Athletic Conference title for the Warriors.

"I'm so happy, I'm speechless," the 5-foot-10 junior said. "I give all the credit to my teammates. Without the line blocking, and without Colt (Brennan) throwing me the ball, I'm nothing."

Ferd Lewis talks to coaches, players and spectators about the victory, and writes about the fans storming the field.

The turf turned mosh pit as students and fans stormed the field. Security settled for protecting the goal posts and the departing Broncos. UH fans, meanwhile, danced and hugged. They posed for pictures to mark the occasion. Amid a deafening roar, someone yelled: "Did you ever think you'd see something like this?"

Michael Tsai writes about the UH fans showing aloha to the Boise fans in the stands.

Boise State fan Brooks Aberg, 37, said he expected to face some "issues" when he showed up in a Broncos game uniform, but he was pleasantly surprised at the reception he got from UH fans.

"Everybody has been really good," he said. "We talk back and forth. I was tailgating all day surrounded by Hawai'i fans and we just traded stories and drinks. You all are gracious hosts and we'll definitely be back."

Boise State graduate Zach Smith, 32, said he too had some concerns about coming to the game after hearing stories about what happened to Fresno State fans. Still, he and his wife Jennifer, 27, felt nothing but aloha as they strode through the sea of green.

"I think as long as you're respectful, you'll be treated the same way," Jennifer Smith said. "I don't think I'm concerned at all."

Mark Mooney, 40, flew to Hawai'i for the game as a birthday present to himself. He couldn't figure out what all the concern was about.

"These are some of the nicest fans I've ever seen," he said.

Brian Murphy of the Idaho Statesman has more in a story about the Boise fans visiting Hawaii.

But concerns about the safety and security of Boise State fans at Aloha Stadium seemed unfounded before the game. The issue surfaced after incidents at the Warriors' home game with Fresno State and led stadium and university officials to increase security for Friday.

Hawaii coach June Jones appeared in television and newspaper ads, encouraging fans to "show our aloha spirit and exhibit good sportsmanship towards our visitors."

The message seemed to have gotten out. A few scattered boos greeted Bronco fans, but the majority of comments were welcoming to the orange-and-blue clad faithful during the first sellout for Hawaii and the largest crowd in the WAC this season. The press box atop the stadium swayed and the lights flickered at times.

Dan Nakaso was with some UH fans at Eastside Grill.

Worried about UH quarterback Colt Brennan's recovery from a concussion suffered two weeks ago, nearly the entire crowd shouted "Slide, slide, slide!" whenever Brennan carried the ball.

The Star-Bulletin Sports Notebook has some notes about injuries, school records, a happy Mufi, and overcoming some special teams miscues.

"It's satisfying. It wasn't a perfect game, but we were able to overcome a nonperfect game, which shows a lot of character about this team," said kicker Dan Kelly, who had those two PATs blocked and made three others.

Dayton Morinaga has some game notes featuring how UH defense stopped Ian Johnson, John Fonoti's big sack and forced fumble, the record crowd, and some winning streaks that were extended.

Yesterday was Hawai'i's 12th consecutive victory, a streak dating to the final game of last season.

It is the longest winning streak in school history, breaking the former mark of 11 that was set during the end of the 1980 and start of the 1981 seasons.

It is also the longest current winning streak in the nation. At least for the moment.

Kansas, which has an 11-game winning streak, will play Missouri today.

Ian Johnson talks about the game and gives UH props in this Nick Abramo article.

"They (Hawaii) kept scoring, so we needed to pass more," he said. "We wanted to continue to pound the ball, like we did in the first half. Try to wear their defense down. But all we could come up with (in the second half) was possession runs of 3 or 4 yards, just to keep the chains moving. Maybe we abandoned our game plan a little too early."

Johnson was highly impressed with the Warriors.

"We already knew that Hawaii was amazing at home, but over the last three years, they've done so much," he said. "I have nothing but respect for them. They have intensity and their fans have intensity. They had this place sold out and they've put together quite a season."

In his own way, Boise president Robert Kustra complimented Hawaii by saying Boise isn't looking to leave the conference.

Robert Kustra, who said he has written MWC presidents seeking to gauge their interest in Boise State, said, "Frankly, there is no (expansion) talk in the Mountain West that I know of. So, we are completely comfortable continuing to play in the WAC, especially playing teams like Hawai'i. It is a great rivalry (with UH) and one that, one way or the other, I hope can go on for many years no matter what conference we're in."

So generous of him.

Michael Tsai has a few complimentary quotes from Broncos coach Chris Petersen.

"You've got to give credit to Hawai'i," he said. "They've got good players and they play hard. We had our opportunities, but they're an excellent team and we knew it."

Petersen said he thinks the Warriors should be invited to a BCS bowl game if they beat Washington next week.

"They're a heck of a team. They've got great energy and great momentum going now, and if they win out, I do think they ought to go."

Now that the WAC season is over for UH, Billy Hull talks to some of the players about fighting for some national respect.

"Since last spring and into the summer, all we have preached is being WAC champs," Leonard said. "Now that we got it, we can start focusing on the BCS."

Their schedule obviously hasn't been up to the standards of most teams in the country, but it's something out of the players' control.

All they have had control of is winning games, and the Warriors have done it 11 straight times this season and in 21 of their last 22.

"It is what it is," Lewis said. "Everyone has an opinion, but we're the ones actually out here playing. Other teams have lost and we're still undefeated."

And finally, I think, Paul Arnett writes a column about this big victory and a big game against Washington up ahead.

You could hear it in the locker room as they sang songs and relished beating Boise State for the first time in the 21st century. Warriors quarterback Colt Brennan addressed quietly in this massive celebration the possibility of a letdown next week against the Pac-10 foe.

He shook his head and smiled that Colt smile as he said the importance of that game would not be lost in yesterday's celebration. In his mind, the players and coaches know fully what's at stake. It's one thing to be the WAC champions, but qualifying for a major BCS bowl is bigger still.

Just from watching some of their games, the Huskies are a lot better than their record indicates. It'll be a great battle. But for now, basking in the afterglow, awww yeah, right on, woot woot!