WARRIOR FOOTBALL
GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
Hawaii's Karl Noa sacked Nevada quarterback Travis Moore during last night's game at Aloha Stadium.
|
|
Nevada stopped short
Backed up to their own 3-yard line with a possible overtime looming and momentum decked out in blue and white, the Hawaii defense felt strangely at ease.
"We have a saying any time any team comes into our 20," Hawaii safety Leonard Peters said. 'We've got 'em where we want them.'
"It's how much you want to win the game."
With their Western Athletic Conference title hopes in the balance, the Warriors stopped Nevada on four plays 3 yards from the goal line to preserve a 41-34 win last night at Aloha Stadium.
"Everybody put their hearts on the line and it showed up," Peters said of the defense's last stand.
Hawaii was seemingly in control most of the night, opening up a 17-point lead in the second quarter. But the Wolf Pack raised the anxiety level with two fourth-quarter touchdowns to close to within a touchdown with 3:57 left in the game.
Nevada appeared poised to tie the game and perhaps send it into overtime when Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan was stripped of the ball and the Wolf Pack recovered to set up first and goal.
"We went on the field knowing we had to make a stop," said linebacker Adam Leonard, who finished with a game-high 10 tackles. "We couldn't let this game go into overtime with the momentum they were getting. It was all heart, who wanted it more."
DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Hawaii running back Nate Ilaoa shed some tacklers as he approached the goal line during the second quarter last night.
|
|
On first down, the Warriors stuffed Nevada running back Luke Lippincott for no gain with Peters credited with the stop.
A pass to Adam Bishop was short and UH cornerback Kenny Patton was on the coverage when Travis Moore lobbed a throw in the direction of Jack Darlington that sailed out of bounds.
"I just did a technique the coaches work with us on called an armbar and that drew him out of bounds and there was no way he was going to catch the ball," Patton said.
On fourth down, outside linebacker Amani Purcell stormed in off the right side of the formation to pressure Moore, who fired a pass to the back of the end zone. The ball went high to end the Nevada threat.
"I happened to be the guy that was supposed to put the pressure on him," Purcell said. "So I'm glad I did my job. ... I thought he almost caught it though, our DBs made another great play, everybody did their job."
"It was all-around effort," Patton said. "If the D-line didn't get pressure on them they would have been easy throws. ... It's not want-to, it's have to."
After sweating out the last series, UH defensive coordinator Jerry Glanville didn't reserve his praise for the Warriors, congratulating the Nevada players and coaches as they left the field.
"I'm proud of their team, too. I'm proud of both teams," Glanville said. "Our team wouldn't quit or surrender and we didn't either."
RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
Nevada receiver Jack Darlington made a catch over Hawaii cornerback C.J. Hawthorne in the second quarter.
|
|
GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
J.J. Milan and Jason DeMars of Nevada brought down Hawaii receiver Ross Dickerson after he made a catch during last night's game.
|
|
DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Hawaii head coach June Jones spoke with quarterback Colt Brennan during the game at Aloha Stadium last night.
|
|
RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
Hawaii receiver Ross Dickerson tried to get past Nevada cornerback Joe Garcia in the first quarter last night.
|
|