HONOLULU – In a battle of high-octane offenses the University of Hawai'i football team defeated San Jose State, 42-40 Saturday in Mountain West shootout at Aloha Stadium.
With the win, the Rainbow Warriors (6-4, 3-3 MW) captured the inaugural Dick Tomey Legacy Trophy, which was created in honor of the legendary head coach of both programs who passed away earlier this year. UH also kept its West Division hopes alive with two conference games remaining.
In his first start of the season and second of his career, redshirt freshman Chevan Corderio passed for 309 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 55 yards and two more scores. His 2-yard run with 4:23 left put the Warriors ahead 42-33. The Spartans pulled within two after Josh Love's touchdown pass but Hawai'i recovered the ensuing onside kick and ran out the clock.
The game was a back-and-forth affair as both teams did not punt once. There were six lead changes in the first two quarters alone with the Spartans taking a 23-21 advantage into the locker room after Matt Mercurio's 43-yard field goal in the final minute of the first half. The Warriors nearly retook the lead on Cordeiro's Hail Mary to end the half but the ball slipped right through the hands of
Nick Mardner.
Cordeiro directed a touchdown drive to open the second half to give the Warriors the lead they would not surrender. Both teams traded scores, however, the UH defense held the Spartans to four field goals, the latter of which closed the lead to 28-26 near the end of the third quarter.
Hawai'i extended its lead to 35-26 on a
Jared Smart 5-yard touchdown catch but the Spartans answered with a 91-yard drive, capped by a 40-yard pass from Love to Baily Gaither. However on UH's ensuing possession, Cordeiro directed a 12-play, 85-yard drive that sealed the win.
JoJo Ward was the recipient of two Cordeiro touchdown passes, both in the first half – a 5-yarder just before the end of the first quarter and a 71-yard bomb that put the Warriors up 14-13. Ward finished with seven catches for 170 yards.
Running back
Miles Reed topped the 100-yard mark for the first time in his career with 124 yards on 17 carries. His 4-yard touchdown run gave the Warriors a 21-20 lead with 2:37 left in the first half. The UH offense finished with 509 yards of total offense, including 200 yards on the ground. The Warriors reached 200 yards rushing for the third consecutive game, the first time that has happened since 1994.
Hawai'i will next head to Las Vegas for their final road game of the season when it takes on UNLV on Saturday, Nov. 16. Kickoff is at 1:00 p.m. PT/11:00 a.m. HT. At stake is the Island Showdown Trophy, which UH reclaimed last season.
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