Aztecs’ Run Game and UH Errors Equal 52-14 Loss

Hawaii running Will Gregory runs through San Diego State’s defense Saturday. Photo courtesy of UH Athletics.

By Rodney S. Yap

The University of Hawai’i Warrior football team dropped its third straight contest with a 52-14 loss to San Diego State in a Mountain West contest Saturday night at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, Calif.

Playing on the road for the second straight week, the Warriors (1-4, 0-2 MWC) got off to a slow start and couldn’t recover. The Aztecs (3-3, 1-1 MWC) scored the game’s first three touchdowns and took a 35-7 lead into the locker room in cruising to their first conference win of the year. UH, meanwhile, dropped to 0-2 in the Mountain West and is off to a 1-4 start for the first time since 2005.

Aztec quarterback Ryan Katz led SDSU to the win, running for three touchdowns and throwing for two more. Four of those five touchdowns came in the first half alone as Katz scored on runs of 27-, 34- and 9-yards while tossing a 36-yard pass to Brice Butler.

After falling behind 21-0, the Warriors finally got on the board when Sean Schroeder connected with Trevor Davis for a 1-yard score midway through the second quarter. It was the sophomore’s second touchdown of the year and snapped a scoreless streak of nearly six quarters for the Warriors.

The Aztecs, however, responded with two straight touchdowns, including one following a UH fumble in their own territory late in the half.

The Warriors came out strong in the second half, taking its opening drive 78 yards, capped by a 3-yard Will Gregory scoring plunge. But a UH rally was not in the works with the Aztecs scoring the game’s final 17 points.

Turnovers stung the Warriors as three fumbles resulted in 17 SDSU points. The Warriors, who were out-gained 412-173, have given up 45 or more points in each of the last three games, the first time that has happened since 1998.

Hawai’i now returns home for the first time in three weeks when they host New Mexico for Homecoming. Kickoff is set for 6:00 p.m. at Hawaiian Airlines Field at Aloha Stadium.

Hawai’i head coach Norm Chow

On the game overall:

“You’re not going to win the game if you turn the ball over four times playing a team that doesn’t turn it over.  (We) made crazy, crazy mistakes.  We thought we were ready.  We thought we were prepared.  I’m searching for answers just like everybody else.  We’ll go back.  We’ll regroup.  We’ll look at the tapes.  I told them at halftime I wanted to see how tough we were.  We just have to go back to work.”

On dropping the football:

“We can’t do that. We just cannot play good football against a team like this.  They don’t turn it over.  They don’t have fumble exchanges.  They don’t have balls going back on the ground.”

On what is next:

“We regroup and go back to work on Sunday.  We have a long season yet to go.”

On personnel changes:

“We’re going to look real hard at that.  (It won’t be) a quarterback.”

Hawai’i junior cornerback/kick returner Mike Edwards

On the game:

“It’s a tough feeling. We’ve gone through ups and downs so far this season. The main thing is we have to move on to the next game. The next game is the most important game.”

Hawai’i junior quarterback Sean Schroeder

On the team:

“Our problem hasn’t been effort, it’s lack of execution. The coaches are putting us in great situations. Now, it’s up to the players. We’ve got to sustain drives and find a way to execute.

On the game:

“If you turn the ball over four times, you’re not going to win football games. It stings, it hurts, but we’ve got to bounce back next week.”

Hawai’i senior defensive end Paipai Falemalu

On San Diego State:

“(SDSU) is a good offense. Good running backs, good quarterback. My hat’s off to them. They did a great job.”