Hawaii proves a lot with 2 road wins

After the conquest of UNLV, the Warriors' road kills are up to five in a row

LAS VEGAS » Weren't we here just seven days ago and two time zones east?

Weren't we watching Hawaii stumble around in the first quarter while an underdog host controlled the tempo?

This time, at UNLV, the Warriors woke up a little quicker than the week before at Louisiana Tech.

They came back from a 7-0 deficit to post a 49-14 rout Saturday night at Sam Boyd Stadium (maybe it doesn't really count as a road game, since Hawaii fans accounted for around half the sellout crowd of more than 38,000). The blowout of the Rebels -- who played then-No. 5-ranked Wisconsin tough seven days earlier -- was much more convincing than the 45-44 overtime study of survival the week before in Ruston, La.

It was enough for the Associated Press pollsters to move UH up from No. 24 to No. 19 -- the second-highest Hawaii has ever been in the media poll to a No. 18 ranking in 1981. United Press International, which then ran the coaches' poll, had Dick Tomey's Rainbows at 16th then. Today, the coaches say UH has the 18th-best team in the land.

You also have to go back to the early 1980s to find when Hawaii enjoyed this much success on the road. The 'Bows of the Gary Allen and Raphel Cherry era put together a six-game winning streak, with victories at New Mexico State and UNLV in 1980, and Wyoming, San Diego State and UTEP in 1981. After a win at Colorado State in 1982, the streak was stopped by -- you guessed it -- BYU.

Now, with five wins in a row away from the friendly confines of Aloha Stadium, perhaps Hawaii can again take the title of Road Warriors. While the early 1980s performances were great, the challenges are tougher now.

Instead of three road games a year, Hawaii plays five, sometimes even six. With two consecutive road games, the first at LaTech, coach June Jones decided to keep the team on the mainland in the week in between the games to avoid jet lag in both games.

It worked.

"It's tough to win on the road," Jones said. "I'm proud of the guys -- two road wins and staying on the road for 12 days. It will go a long way."

It all makes Saturday's game against Division I-AA opponent Charleston Southern seem simple.

But the Warriors have to be concerned about the health of quarterback Colt Brennan. The Heisman Trophy candidate accounted for five touchdowns against the Rebels, but to do so he had to take a shot to numb the pain of a sprained right ankle.

Brennan had only two touchdown passes, but he rushed for three others. He now has 12 touchdown passes and just one interception for the season. He is also UH's spiritual leader.

"I knew if I shot it up and hobbled around on one foot and made plays then it would do a lot for the team and the crowd," Brennan said. "And that's what I wanted to do."

Despite the ankle injury, Brennan scrambled plenty and often passed on the run.

"It was pretty rough for him," quarterbacks coach Dan Morrison said. "That's his plant foot. But he was determined to tough through it. Your feet are your whole foundation for any athlete who moves around. The ankle probably swelled up a bit, but he was walking OK (this morning when the team arrived home). He's a pretty tough kid."

Now, the Warriors must re-adjust to the routine of being home, which includes catching up with school for the players and scouting for the coaches.

Morrison said being on the road for two weeks put the staff a week behind in its scouting duties.

"(Yesterday's) another big work day," he said. "It takes 4 hours to (input) the tape and we've got to do Charleston Southern and Idaho. Usually we're two weeks ahead."

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Warriors Replay Five big plays from Hawaii's 49-14 win over UNLV 1. The Tank The Setup: Hawaii 0, UNLV 0, 8:15 remaining, first quarter, UNLV ball, third and goal at Hawaii 6. The Play: QB Travis Dixon throws to RB Frank "The Tank" Summers in the right flat. Summers bulls to the goal line, where he is met by LB Brad Kalilimoku. It is close, and Hawaii asks for a review, but Summers is judged to have crossed the line before being taken down. The Impact: The touchdown caps a 13-play, 79-yard drive, and UNLV has the lead and the momentum. The Hawaii defense looked confused by the UNLV misdirection and option plays. Hawaii defensive tackle Mike Lafaele: "They do a lot of different things, and we had to get a feel for what they wanted to do." 2. Clutch throw and catch The Setup: UNLV 7, Hawaii 0; around 3 minutes remaining, first quarter, Hawaii ball, third and 2 at UNLV 13. The Play: QB Colt Brennan completes an 11-yard pass to WR Jason Rivers for a first down at the UNLV 2. The Impact: This is one of 13 completions in a row for Brennan after he misfired on a swing pass on the first play of the game. It keeps alive a steady drive of 11 plays and 67 yards that ends with Brennan's first of a career-high three rushing touchdowns. Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan: "We had seven days to prepare, in a hotel room stuck with nothing to do. I thought it was going to be a shootout." 3. Sacked and shanked The Setup: Hawaii 14, UNLV 7; around 13 minutes remaining, second quarter, UNLV ball, first and 10 at own 40. The Play: UNLV WR Casey Flair gets tagged with one of three personal fouls on his team, pushing the ball back 15 yards. The Impact: Hawaii defenders Jake Patek, Solomon Elimimian and Karl Noa push UNLV back farther, and P Brian Pacheco mis-hits a directional punt for 14 yards, giving Hawaii the ball at the UNLV 34. Four plays later, Brennan passes to Ryan Grice-Mullins for a TD and Hawaii leads 21-7. UNLV coach Mike Sanford: "We made the dumb mistakes that hurt us in critical situations." 4. Long to C.J. The Setup: Hawaii 28, UNLV 7; 8:24 remaining, third quarter, Hawaii ball, first and 10 at own 12. The Play: WR C.J. Hawthorne is covered fairly well down the right sideline by CB Mil'Von James, but Hawthorne curls back a step and cradles a 46-yard pass from Brennan, his longest of the game. The Impact: Hawaii gets out of a field position hole caused by a holding penalty on the previous UNLV punt. It takes 11 more plays, but Brennan fakes a handoff into the line and throws a 1-yard TD pass to Rivers for a 35-7 lead. Hawthorne, a converted cornerback, leads Hawaii with nine catches for 104 yards. Hawaii coach June Jones: "C.J. Hawthorne made some unreal catches." 5. Clincher The Setup: Hawaii 35, UNLV 7; 1:20 remaining, third quarter, UNLV ball, first and 10 at own 28. The Play: CB Ryan Mouton picks off a pass by QB Travis Dixon that goes off the hands of WR Casey Flair. Mouton, with his first interception as a Hawaii player, dashes 40 yards into the UNLV end zone. It is the first touchdown for the Hawaii defense since Adam Leonard picked up a fumble and scored against New Mexico State last season. The Impact: The game's only turnover gives Hawaii a five-touchdown lead with little more than a quarter left to play, all but ruling out any UNLV hopes for a miracle comeback. After its rocky start, the Hawaii defense yielded just 142 yards after halftime. Hawaii defensive end Karl Noa: "Coach (Greg McMackin) got on our butts and everybody stepped up." Described by the Star-Bulletin's Dave Reardon.

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