HONOLULU – In a tight game throughout, defending Mountain West champions San Jose State staved off Hawai'i, 17-13, in the conference opener for both teams Saturday night at the Clarence T.C. Ching Complex.
 
UH (1-3, 0-1 MW) had an opportunity to win on the final play of the game but Chevan Cordeiro's pass floated high in the corner of the endzone. With the victory, San Jose State (2-1, 1-0) retained possession of the Dick Tomey Legacy Trophy and posted its ninth consecutive Mountain West win. 
 
The third straight meeting in Honolulu was a defensive battle as each team punted 11 times. But it was a blocked punt by the Spartans in the second quarter that led to a SJSU touchdown to tie the game at 7. 
 
Trailing 14-7 at halftime, the Warriors converted a pair of Matthew Shipley field goals in the third quarter to pull within one. But two failed possessions and a Jared Smart fumble on another in the fourth quarter led to a Spartan field goal with 1:19 remaining. Cordeiro then marched the Warriors down to the 21-yard line but his pass in the corner of the end zone fell incomplete. 
 
UH held the Spartans to 291 total yards and forced two turnovers – an interception by Kai Kaneshiro and a forced fumble by Eugene Ford. Cordeiro threw for 242 yards while Dae Dae Hunter rushed for 51 yards. Nick Mardner caught five passes for 97 yards. 
 
UH took a 7-0 lead on a Calvin Turner's 1-yard run and was in control for the first 25 minutes of the game, holding the explosive Spartan offense to no points and less than 100 yards of offense. But a pair of special teams miscues gave San Jose State a short field on back-to-back possessions and the Spartans took full advantage with a pair of touchdowns in a three-minute span giving them the momentum and a 14-7 lead going into the locker room. 
 
UH went just 4-of-18 on third down conversion.
 
The Rainbow Warriors will return to the road next week when it travels to New Mexico State for a matchup with a former WAC rival on Saturday, Sept. 25. Kickoff is at 6:00 p.m. MT/2:00 p.m. HT.