HONOLULU — On Military Appreciation Day at the Clarence T.C. Ching Complex, the University of Hawai'i's defense keyed the Rainbow Warriors' 27-13 upset of Mountain West Conference leader Air Force on Saturday.
The Warriors (4-7, 2-4 MW) struck on the game's opening possession and defended the lead by coming up with four turnovers in the fourth quarter — including a fumble return for a touchdown — to secure the signature win of second-year head coach Timmy Chang's tenure to date and UH claimed possession of the Kuter Trophy for the first time since 2016.
A crowd of 12,742 watched the Warriors hand Air Force (8-2, 5-1) its first loss in conference play.
UH safety
Peter Manuma made 12 tackles, seven unassisted, and came up with the second of UH's three interceptions in the fourth quarter. Linebacker
Jalen Smith finished with eight stops and forced a fumble that safety
Meki Pei returned 32-yard for a touchdown to give UH a 27-10 lead with 11:09 left in the game.
Linebacker
Noah Kema also came down with his first career interception and cornerback
Cam Stone's pick sealed UH's first win over Air Force since 2016 and the first at home since 2001.
Coming off Chang's first road win at Nevada a week earlier, UH won back-to-back games for the first time since the final two weeks of the 2021 season.
Air Force had outscored UH 114-33 in its last two visits to Honolulu (58-7 in 2015 and 56-26 in 2019), but the Warriors held the Falcons to their lowest point total in the series since a 6-3 win in 1992 in Colorado Springs.
Air Force entered the game leading the nation in rushing with 284.2 yards per game but was held to 201 on Saturday in a game of ball control that took 2 hours and 46 minutes.
The UH offense set the tone with a 12-play, 75-yard march and scored on its opening dive for the first time this season with quarterback
Brayden Schager hitting receiver
Pofele Ashlock for a 5-yard touchdown pass to punctuate the seven-minute drive.
Schager completed his first 10 passes and finished 22-of-29 for 176 yards and two touchdowns, both going to Ashlock, who had a season-high 12 receptions for 67 yards. Schager also scored on the ground with a 1-yard push with two seconds left in the first half that gave UH a 13-3 lead at the break.
Air Force struck early in the third quarter when Dylan Carlson scored on a 35-yard run through the middle to bring the Falcons within a field goal. But UH answered with an 11-play drive and Schager fired a throw to Ashlock crossing to his left for their second touchdown connection of the game. The 19-yard strike and
Matthew Shipley's PAT gave UH a 20-10 lead with 7:20 left in the third quarter.
The defense took over from there with Pei's fumble return and three interceptions in the final period, matching the team's total entering the week.
The Warriors converted eight-of-13 third-down situations, two coming on the game's opening possession on runs by backup quarterback
Dalen Morris, an active duty service member in the Navy.
The Warriors held the ball to 11:48 of the first quarter and closed the period with a nine-play drive that ended with 48-yard field goal attempt that went wide left.
Air Force took possession to begin the second quarter and held the ball for the next 20 plays in a 61-yard ground-hugging drive that took 11:49 off of the clock. The Falcons drove inside the UH 10 and faced a third-and-goal at the 4 when Pei dropped Cade Harris for a 4-yard loss and Air Force settled for a 25-yard field goal.
UH kept the ball for the remainder of the half with Schager converting a third down with a 40-yard keeper for the team's longest rush of the season. UH faced third-and-9 at the Air Force 29 when Schager threw a fade to
Steven McBride, who was initially ruled out of bounds. Upon review, McBride's left foot touched the turf inbounds, giving UH first-and-goal at the 1.
After a pass interference call, Morris was ruled short of the goal line on a run up the middle and UH called timeout with 5 seconds left. With the Warriors packed tight at the line of scrimmage, Schager pushed his way into the end zone for his second rushing touchdown of the season. The point-after went wide left and the Warriors took a 13-3 lead into halftime.
UH went into the break with 191 yards in total offense while holding Air Force to 72. There were five total possessions in a first half that took a little more than an hour — two for Air Force and three for UH.
After the teams traded touchdowns on their opening drives of the third quarter, Air Force's first pass completion of the game went for 65 yards to the UH 9. A holding penalty pushed the Falcons back and the Warriors held Air Force to a field-goal attempt that went wide left.
After UH's first punt of the game, Air Force faced a third-and-4 near midfield when Smith stormed into the backfield and forced a fumble by quarterback Jensen Jones. Pei scooped up the loose ball and returned it 32 yards for UH's first defensive touchdown of the season and extended the lead to 27-10 with 11:09 left.
Air Force chipped into its deficit with a field goal then forced a punt, and a kick-catch interference penalty set the Falcons up at the UH 40. But UH defensive end
Elijah Robinson pressured Jones and his throw fluttered into the hands of linebacker Kema for his first career interception to give the Warriors the ball back with 5:05 remaining.
Air Force threatened again in moving to the UH 19, but Manuma came up with another interception at the UH 3 and Stone's pick near the goalline finished off the victory.
The Rainbow Warriors head to Wyoming for their final road game of the season on Nov. 18 and close the regular season at home against Colorado State on Nov. 25.
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