Hawaii's situation leaves the Warriors little margin for error and even less room for dwelling on the past.

So after completing a sweep of a two-game homestand, it didn't take long for the Warriors to turn their attention to their final road trip of the season.

“;It's San Jose State,”; running back Leon Wright-Jackson said on his way to the locker room. “;This game's over with; it's time to look on to the Spartans, so we're just going to get ready for that.”;

The Warriors (4-6, 2-5 Western Athletic Conference) kept their bowl hopes alive with a 24-6 win over New Mexico State on Saturday and close their league schedule with a trip to Northern California to face struggling San Jose State (1-8, 0-5).

The Warriors enter the week with the status of quarterback Bryant Moniz in question. Moniz left Saturday's game in the fourth quarter with sore ribs. He said after the game the injury “;wasn't serious at all.”;

UH offensive coordinator Ron Lee spoke with Moniz yesterday, and “;he said he felt better than last night.”; But he cautioned that Moniz's status won't be certain until he has X-rays taken.

Shane Austin finished the game and completed eight of 11 passes, including a touchdown that put the game out of reach.

UH quarterbacks coach Nick Rolovich anticipates Moniz, who has started the last six games, won't throw much early in the week, leading to more reps for Austin and Brent Rausch.

“;(Austin) gets enough reps in practice, and this is the second time he's had to be on a moment's notice, so I think he'll continue to be ready to play in the game like a starter,”; Rolovich said. “;We're going to continue to bring Brent back (from a broken finger), and it's Shane's job to hold him off.”;

As the coaches reviewed the New Mexico State game, there were bright spots in the offense's performance, particularly early in the game. But Lee noted several dropped passes that helped keep the Aggies in contention.

“;We can't afford any drops at the end of the season,”; Lee said.

The Hawaii defense, meanwhile, didn't allow an offensive score for the first time since shutting out Idaho in 2005. They will next face a San Jose State offense that ranks 118th out of 120 FBS teams in scoring at 13.6 points per game and enters the week on a five-game losing streak.

“;It's part of football, and we have to do what we have to do,”; linebacker Blaze Soares said of going back on the road. “;Take this intensity, times it by 10 and go into that game with a chip on our shoulder.”;

Salas climbs the charts

Greg Salas' career night moved him into the national lead in receiving yards. Salas caught a school-record 16 passes for 196 yards against New Mexico State, raising his season total to 1,360, for an average of 136 yards per game. Bowling Green's Freddie Barnes is second at 1,285 and 128.5 ypg.

After breaking Davone Bess' single-game record for catches, Salas is also on track to pass Bess' school record for receptions per game. Salas now averages 8.5 catches, just ahead of Bess' mark of 8.3 set in 2007.

Ashley Lelie's yardage records set in 2001 would also appear to be within reach. Salas enters the final three games of the regular season 353 yards shy of Lelie's school and WAC record of 1,713. He would need to average 117.7 yards to catch Lelie, who set the mark in 12 games while Salas will have 13.

Salas also moved into UH's top 10 in career receiving yards with 2,226.

Safety Mana Silva's fifth interception of the season moved him into first in the WAC and a nine-way tie for eighth in the national rankings.

Bowl speculation rises

While Hawaii's win kept the Warriors in the hunt for a berth in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl, SMU became bowl eligible with a win over UTEP on Saturday.

The Hawaii Bowl has the second pick or a “;preferred selection”; from Conference USA, and bringing former UH head coach June Jones back to the islands would add some sizzle to the game. But a catch remains.

SMU's win coupled with Houston's loss pushed the Mustangs into first place in the West division. If SMU (6-4, 5-1) wins out, the Mustangs would play in the league title game. The Conference USA champion is contracted to go to the AutoZone Liberty Bowl.

While the situation remains fluid at best, Hawaii Bowl executive director David Matlin said having SMU in the game “;would be a great matchup for the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl.”;

Hawaii is the lone WAC team whose bowl eligibility has yet to be determined. Boise State, Nevada, Fresno State and Idaho are eligible.

Short yardage

Receiver Jovonte Taylor started Saturday's game despite missing all of last week's practices while being treated for a staph infection in his arm. He didn't catch a pass and averaged 24 yards on two kickoff returns. ... Scott Enos retained the kicking duties and went 1-for-2 on field goals, making a 38-yarder and missing from 22. He improved to 28-for-28 on PATs.