ASSOCIATED PRESS
Hawaii receiver Gerald Welch couldn't hang on to a pass in the end zone while Nevada's Ali Jones gave him a shove during the first quarter yesterday. Nevada won 24-14, putting Hawaii's WAC title hopes in jeopardy.
Warriors wounded
Hawaii’s chances for
a WAC title disappear
with its lack of offenseStatistics, Turning Point & Coming Up
Nevada defense blows Hawaii offense away
Notebook: UH can't ride defense to victory this time
RENO, Nev. >> The Hawaii Warriors filed out of gloomy Mackay Stadium yesterday afternoon, heads down, trying to ignore a chorus of jeers.
"Aloha means good-bye, aloha means good-bye, aloha means good-bye," one parka-wearing Nevada fan chirped with glee, again and again.
A couple of the UH players flashed smiles and shakas in sarcastic response, but most realized they really had no room to do anything but keep moving on the first leg of a long, sad trip home after a 24-14 loss.
"The weather had nothing to do with this," Hawaii senior defensive tackle Lance Samuseva said after contributing six tackles to the losing effort. "They just did a good job on both sides of the ball and it was a well-deserved win."
One positive about the Warriors is they don't point fingers after losses, at least publicly. But you couldn't blame the defense if it did after yesterday, and the 15,268 who sat around on the cold and wet bleachers watching it -- including a sizable contingent in green -- couldn't either.
For the second game in a row, the run-and-shoot ran and hid. This time Hawaii didn't escape with a zebra-aided win like at San Jose State, and the Wolf Pack dealt a possible death blow to UH's hopes for a Western Athletic Conference championship.
The Warriors (6-4, 5-2 WAC) scored only one offensive touchdown as the 3-point underdog Wolf Pack (6-5, 4-3) harassed UH quarterback Tim Chang all afternoon and produced more than enough on offense to break a three-game losing streak while snapping Hawaii's four-win run.
The league loss all but eliminated the Warriors from the WAC title chase. They need Fresno State to beat Boise this Friday, then lose at Texas-El Paso the following week. The Warriors would then have to beat Boise State on Dec. 6 at Aloha Stadium to create the unlikely logjam that could also include Tulsa should the Golden Hurricane finish with a win at San Jose State this Saturday.
Don't count on it if the Warriors can't find some solutions on offense between now and then.
"We're so much better than what we showed," junior receiver Chad Owens said. "Again offensively, we didn't put it in the end zone. To get shut out in the first half is so disappointing."
It wasn't for lack of effort by Owens, who finished the game with 12 catches (matching his own school record) for 164 yards and a 38-yard touchdown reception from Chang that gave UH a 7-6 lead at 10:38 of the third quarter.
And 11 game-clock seconds later, when Travis LaBoy scooped and scored on a Nevada fumble from 16 yards out, it appeared the Warriors might roll over the Wolf Pack.
But UH didn't keep control long enough to even consider that. Two quick TDs and a field goal later in the period gave Nevada the lead, and it never lost the momentum again.
Chance Kretschmer (73 yards on 16 carries) jumped into the end zone from 1 yard out with 6:17 to go in the third, capping a 10-play, 80-yard drive.
One play later, defensive tackle Derek Kennard Jr. intercepted a Chang pass tipped by teammate Carl LaGrone Jr., and ran 11 yards for a score and the biggest play of the game. Nevada led 18-14 after missing on a pair of 2-point conversion tries. But Damon Fine was fine on field goals, making four of five to aid in the win. Meanwhile, UH kicker Justin Ayat continued to struggle, missing field-goal tries of 30 and 48 yards.
Hawaii coach June Jones stated the obvious afterward.
"We played well enough on defense to win. We just didn't get it done on offense," he said. "We didn't pass-protect well enough, didn't run-block well enough, didn't throw well enough. There was a lot of good effort, but we didn't execute."
Nevada was far from spectacular on the attack, but the Wolf Pack looked more like the team that won at Washington on Oct. 11 and at Tulsa a week later than the group that lost to Louisiana Tech, Rice and Fresno State since, putting coach Chris Tormey's job on the line.
"Offensively, we made key plays when we needed them," Tormey said. "That was the key today, converting on third down."
The Warriors were actually a shade better at that, making the needed yards eight of 17 times to seven of 18 for the hosts. But UH gave up the football three times to twice for Nevada.
"The big thing was the turnovers," Wolf Pack defensive end Jorge Cordova said. "Our goal is to get three a game. We were off the last couple of games, but I think we're back on track."
Constant pressure on Chang hurt the Warriors, too. He was sacked three times and hurried continually.
Hawaii's frustrations began early, as UH took the opening kickoff and drove from its 14 to the Nevada 12 in 15 plays -- only to see Ayat miss a 30-yard field-goal attempt. UH's next possession reached the Wolf Pack 27, but also resulted in a bust when Chang misfired on fourth-and-5.
Meanwhile, the Warriors' defense for the most part contained Kretschmer, who dominated with 162 punishing rushing yards when Nevada beat UH here 28-20 two years ago.
But Wolf Pack quarterback Andy Heiser did a savvy job selling play-action fakes, getting his team into range for Fine field goals of 28 and 43 yards and a 6-0 halftime lead.
Heiser, who completed 15 of 30 passes for 169 yards, didn't look quite as good on the first drive after the break.
After he was sacked by Mel Purcell, setting up third-and-long, Heiser threw a ball up for grabs that UH's Abraham Elimimian caught and ran 15 yards to the Nevada 39, setting up the Chang-to-Owens TD on the next play.
Then LaBoy scored his first UH touchdown when Heiser dropped the ball and LaBoy got a good FieldTurf bounce in stride.
Heiser quickly regained his composure to mount the steady drive ending in Kretschmer's score.
After Kennard's six points, Keone Kauo forced John West to fumble, and Daryl Towns recovered for Nevada. Fine took advantage with a 25-yard field goal to make it 21-14 with 1:58 still left in the third quarter.
Towns' interception of Chang with 10:51 left in the game wasn't the absolute end for UH. But on the heels of Fine's final 3-pointer, this one from 23 yards, the 10-point lead seemed like 100, taking into account Hawaii failed to make up similar late-game deficits at UNLV and Tulsa earlier this season.
The Wolf Pack avenged a 59-34 loss at Aloha Stadium last year.
"It was just a sense of urgency we had," Nevada running back Talib Wise said. He led the Wolf Pack with 78 yards on 16 carries, playing an expanded role due to the suspension of B.J. Mitchell. Starting cornerback Chris Handy was also out for his alleged involvement in the same felony battery case; true freshman Paul Pratt played well in his place.
As it has happened in all four of UH's losses this season, the Warriors could not answer a big defensive play by the opponents.
"That kind of stuff happens, momentum shifts. We have to have that momentum. Nevada did a great job on offense and defense. You have to hand it to them," Samuseva said. "We have to go back and regroup and contemplate next week. This one is all done already. It's going to hurt for the next few days, but I think we'll be all right."
