ASSOCIATED PRESS
Nevada's Ekene Agwuenu brought down Hawaii's Chad Owens as Nevada defenders Paul Pratt, on the ground, and Carl LaGrone Jr. looked to assist yesterday in Reno, Nev.
Nevada defense
blows Hawaii offense
awayWarriors wounded
Statistics, Turning Point & Coming Up
Notebook: UH can't ride defense to victory this time
RENO, Nev. >> All last week, leading up to Nevada's 24-14 win over Hawaii yesterday, fans and gamblers kept a close eye on the forecasts for this area. The last time weather was such a big story in Hawaii, a Hurricane named Iniki wreaked havoc on Kauai more than 10 years ago.
But the Wolf Pack defense -- in particular the line -- arrived in full force and did more damage to the Warriors than anything Mother Nature could've conjured up.
The rain and snow storm predicted by some was a definite no-show; there was a slight drizzle for much of the afternoon and the noon kickoff temperature of 55 dropped steeply as the afternoon progressed.
And UH coach June Jones' main concern of a blustery day never came to be. The Mackay Stadium flags drooped, but Hawaii's offense was just as listless, producing merely one touchdown despite 358 yards.
Jones knew going in that his young offensive line would be challenged by Nevada's tough front four. But Jorge Cordova and Derek Kennard Jr., the Western Athletic Conference's top two sackmasters with 11 1/2 and 10 1/2, went home with empty bags.
Instead, the less-heralded Carl LaGrone Jr., J.D. Morscheck and Craig Bailey got to Hawaii quarterback Tim Chang once each.
"They were a good defensive front and they proved that," Jones said. "I was watching the pass protection today because we were having trouble blocking them."
Warriors offensive linemen Uriah Moenoa and Jeremy Inferrera made no excuses.
"We came up short. No, no, no. There's nothing to blame but ourselves," junior right guard Moenoa said. "We didn't perform well enough to block for Timmy and it showed in our results."
Inferrera, a true freshman left tackle, could use youth as an alibi. He didn't.
"We needed to protect better, to give our quarterback time to find his receivers," he said. "We started making plays, but it didn't come all together."
Chang completed 25 of 48 passes for 269 yards, and was intercepted twice more, running his season total to 15 against 21 touchdowns.
Nevada seemed to have Hawaii pegged for certain tendencies, taking away the shovel pass at times, the vertical stretch short passes at others -- all the while mixing in blitzes and watching attentively for the deep ball.
"We were doing a lot of stuff, mixing it up," said Jones, whose team ran the ball 20 times (for 89 yards), compared to 48 passes.
But whatever the Warriors tried, the Wolf Pack seemed to have the right answer.
"We definitely prepared well," Kennard said. "As far as that shovel pass, we watched film and learned they love that play and get a lot of mileage out of it. We shut it down pretty well. They're a very explosive team.
"We were out there to have fun, be relentless and try to affect the throw any way we could, even if it's just our presence. I didn't get any sacks today and I'm a little hurtin' about that. But I definitely got the momentum going with my first touchdown ever. Once Timmy Chang has time, he can take anybody apart."
He did it to the Wolf Pack last year at Aloha Stadium with a 42-point first quarter on the way to a 59-34 rout.
"Last year we put it hard on them and they're a better team than what their record shows," Chang said. "Today they made a couple of big plays and we didn't make the plays."
Chang was often off-target, bouncing more than a few throws. He said the ball was a little slippery because of the drizzle, but that the cold didn't bother him.
His 39-yard TD pass to Chad Owens was the only play in which the Wolf Pack deep coverage looked befuddled.
"The young defensive backs played with a lot of poise and maturity," said Nevada coach Chris Tormey, who started two freshmen in the secondary.
They were helped a lot by their big friends up front. And maybe -- regardless what the Warriors say -- the cold and the wet.
"All weather is Wolf Pack weather," Kennard said. "But today was especially Wolf Pack weather."
