Greg McMackin has often said he doesn't pay much attention to yardage numbers.

But the amount of territory Fresno State's running backs covered last week was tough for the Hawaii coach to ignore.

The Warriors gave up 318 rushing yards and saw two backs break the 150-yard mark in Fresno, though the damage was somewhat muted by six takeaways in Hawaii's overtime win.

Still, tightening their run defense remains a focus for the Warriors (2-3, 1-1 Western Athletic Conference) as they return to Aloha Stadium tomorrow to face Louisiana Tech (2-2, 0-1) on homecoming night.

“;We don't want to let someone run the ball against us like that,”; McMackin said. “;We made up for it in turnovers, but this is an excellent rushing team coming in here and we've got to control their running game.”;

Louisiana Tech, which ranks last in the WAC in passing offense, generates 47 percent of its offense on the ground. But the Bulldogs have struggled to punch it into the end zone with just five offensive touchdowns this season.

The Warriors saw LaTech back Patrick Jackson run for 94 yards in their 2006 meeting and pick up 98 yards and two touchdowns in last year's overtime thriller when the Bulldogs rolled up 223 yards on the ground.

Jackson hasn't quite hit his stride yet this year in averaging just 3.2 yards per carry, while Daniel Porter leads LaTech with 201 rushing yards. But the potential for a breakout remains for a duo that combined for 1,542 yards and 14 scores last season.

“;We have to play very physical with our defensive front,”; McMackin said. “;They'll be as good a pair of running backs as we'll see.”;

LaTech will test a UH defense that gave up 162 yards to Fresno State back Lonyae Miller, including an 80-yard touchdown run, and 158 to backup Anthony Harding last week.

“;We watched film and we had some mis-alignments and we did things that hurt us,”; said linebacker Solomon Elimimian, whose sack on the first play of overtime forced Fresno State to throw the ball in the extra period.

“;They got a lot of yards on stuff that we did more so than them just physically whipping us. That's something we learned from.”;

LaTech ranks last in the conference in scoring and coach Derek Dooley said the Bulldogs' youth along an offensive line that starts four sophomores and a freshman has contributed to their growing pains.

UH counters with a veteran front seven recharging following a physical battle at Fresno State and is working through various aches and pains.

“;That's what football is all about, coming out here every morning when you're banged up,”; defensive tackle Keala Watson said. “;Everybody's taped up, we've got braces on. Like Coach Mack says, there's a difference between injury and being hurt. Everybody hurts.”;

The Warriors frequently rolled defensive linemen into last week's game to help keep them fresh and the linebacker unit should be closer to full strength with the return of Adam Leonard from a hamstring injury.

Linebacker Brashton Satele played through a shoulder injury to record nine tackles and an interception last week and is looking forward to another grind at the line of scrimmage.

“;It's going to be a fun, hard-nosed, hard-hitting game,”; Satele said. “;I like the running games, it's a man-on-man kind of offense.”;