41
Winner
3-4 , 1-2
34
2-5 , 0-2
Winner
3-4 , 1-2
41
34
| Team |
1st |
2nd |
3rd |
4th |
F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
10 | 7 | 3 | 21 | 41 |
|
|
0 | 14 | 10 | 10 | 34 |
Game Recap: Football |
HONOLULU — After erasing a 17-point second-quarter deficit, the University of Hawai’i football team’s comeback bid in the fourth came up short in a 41-34 loss to San Diego State on Saturday at the Clarence T.C. Ching Complex.
On a night when Hawai’i honored the legacy of former head coach Bob Wagner, who passed away on Oct. 3 at age 76, the Rainbow Warriors overcame a slow start to take a 24-20 lead into the fourth quarter.
But San Diego State answered with a 69-yard touchdown pass and recovered two UH fumbles in the fourth quarter to set up short scoring drives and the Warriors fell to 2-5 overall and 0-2 in Mountain West Conference play.
UH quarterback Brayden Schager completed 29-of-47 passes for a career-high 427 yards and three touchdowns, posting UH’s first 400-yard passing performance since Chevan Cordeiro threw for 406 against Colorado State on Nov. 20, 2021. Schager’s yardage total was UH’s highest since Cole McDonald threw for 493 against BYU in the 2019 Hawai’i Bowl.
UH wide receiver Steven McBride caught five passes for 157 yards, Nick Cenacle finished with 100 yards on three receptions and a touchdown and the Warriors had two receivers go over 100 yards for the first time since Oct. 30, 2021 against Utah State. Slot receiver Pofele Ashlock posted a team-high eight receptions for 68 yards and caught Schager’s first touchdown pass of the game.
San Diego State quarterback Jalen Mayden countered by going 18-for-24 for 221 yards and Mekhi Shaw finished with 126 yards on six receptions, including the go-ahead touchdown early in the fourth quarter.
Coming off their lone bye week of the season, the Warriors stumbled to a slow start and San Diego State converted a blocked punt into a field goal and later pushed the lead to 17-0 on SDSU defensive back Deshawn McCuin’s 70-yard interception return for a touchdown at the 12:25 mark of the second quarter.
The Hawai’i offense found its rhythm in the second quarter and the Warriors responded with 17 unanswered points with Schager connecting with Ashlock on a 17-yard touchdown and hitting Alex Perry for an 8-yard score, which was set up by a 62-yard bomb to McBride to the SDSU 4. The Warriors tied the game on Matthew Shipley’s 46-yard field goal with 8:34 left in the third quarter.
After an SDSU field goal, the Warriors took their first lead on a 52-yard touchdown pass from Schager to Cenacle on the final play of the third quarter. Schager found Cenacle behind the secondary down the left side and Cenacle cut back to the middle of the field to finish off his first career touchdown.
But SDSU responded less than two minutes later with the connection from Mayden connected to a wide-open Shaw for the go-ahead score.
The Aztecs then recovered a fumble at the UH 24 and pushed the lead to 34-24 after Lucky Sutton’s second touchdown run of the game, a 2-yard plunge with 12:27 left.
Schager launched another deep pass to McBride for a 65-yard completion to the SDSU 10 and UH closed to 34-31 on a 1-yard touchdown run by Landon Sims — whose father, Travis, played for Wagner in the early 1990s — with 10:22 left.
The Warriors took possession at the 5:39 mark, but San Diego State recovered a fumble at the UH 23 and again took command with a touchdown run with 2:11 remaining.
Shipley added a 47-yard field goal with 59 seconds left, but SDSU recovered an onside kick to seal the outcome as the Aztecs won for the 10th time in the last 12 meetings with UH. Five of the last six meetings have been decided by seven points or less.
UH safety Peter Manuma led the Warriors’ defense with nine tackles, eight solo, with an interception. Fellow safety Meki Pei also had nine tackles.
Despite being held to 27 yards in the first quarter, UH outgained SDSU 480 yards to 378, but committed four turnovers leading to 21 points for the Aztecs.
The Warriors go back on the road to face New Mexico on Oct. 21 in Albuquerque, N.M. Kickoff is set for noon Hawaii time.
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