Box Score

HONOLULU - The University of Hawai`i football team (12-0, 8-0 Western Athletic Conference) completed an undefeated regular season by rallying past Washington, 35-28, Saturday night at sold-out Aloha Stadium. A raucous crowd watched the Warriors erase a 21-point first half deficit and score the game's final 28 points.

Heisman Trophy candidate Colt Brennan completed 42-of-50 for 442 yards and five touchdowns, four to wideout Jason Rivers, who also grabbed 14 receptions for 167 yards.

After the Warriors tied the game at 28, Brennan led the game-winning drive, ending with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Grice-Mullen with 44 seconds left.

"What a win," exclaimed UH head coach June Jones. "(The team) was committed to getting a win tonight. They played hard and I can't be more proud of them. It's unbelievable. The (regular season) could not have ended better."

UW (4-9, 2-7 Pac-10) scored on its first three possessions in the game's first 10 minutes. The first two scores were aided by a UH illegal substitution penalty and a UH fumble. Quarterback Jake Locker scored on an 8-yard run followed by Luke Kravitz's 1-yard plunge. It was Kravitz again finding the endzone from two yards out to make it 21-0. UH fumbled the ball over to UW three times in the opening quarter.

The Warriors finally got on the scoreboard with 10:17 left in the second with Brennan hooking up with Rivers on a 7-yard pass to cut the deficit to 21-7. But UW took the ensuing kickoff and traveled 84 yards capped by Paul Homer diving over from a yard out.

UH made it a 14-point game as Brennan connected again with Rivers on a 3-yard scoring pass. Brennan completed all five of his passes accounting for the 75 yard-drive.

Hawai'i pulled to within seven just before the half when Rivers caught his third touchdown from Brennan, a 13-yarder. Originally, the catch was ruled incomplete, but it was overturned after the review. Brennan completed his final 17 passes of the half, breaking the UH record of 16 set by Jason Whieldon in 2003.

Neither team scored in the third quarter. UW had a chance, but Ryan Perkins' 38-yard field goal was blocked by Joshua Leonard. The Warriors tied it at 28 when Brennan hit Rivers on a 40-yard streak pass at the 8:01 mark in the fourth.

The UH defense came up big in the fourth aided by a huge penalty when Locker passed the line of scrimmage to throw what would have been a first down. Instead, the penalty was tacked on and a loss of down forcing UW to punt and setting up UH's game winning drive.

The drive started at their own 24 and the Warriors marched downfield in eight plays covering 76 yards capped by a five-yard pass to Grice-Mullen with 44 seconds left.

"Coach Jones trusted me on that last call," Brennan said. "I told coach 'we got 'em' so I changed it to a pass play because I knew they were going to be in man. I've got the most talented receiving corps in the nation."

The Huskies weren't done just yet. Locker completed a 25-yarder to Michael Gottlieb and a 49-yard bomb to Marcel Reece to the UH four. Two plays later, Locker's pass was deflected by Gerard Lewis and picked off by Ryan Mouton setting off a wild celebration.

UH will now await word on whether it will receive a berth into the Bowl Championship Series.

-UH-