UH renews rivalry with Fresno State

By Fred Guzman

When eight teams bolted from the Western Athletic Conference to create the Mountain West a dozen years ago, the University of Hawaii was deprived of some intense football rivalries. Gone were BYU and Utah, replaced by the likes of New Mexico State and Idaho.

But one bitter rival remained, and a renewal of their not always fond acquaintances is on tap Saturday when Hawaii pays a visit to Fresno State on Saturday.

Hawaii put on a dazzling aerial display in a 41-21 home victory over LaTech in last week’s WAC opener, improving its overall record to 3-2. QB Bryant Moniz completed 42 of 58 passes for 532 yards and four touchdowns.

The slotback tandem of Kealoha Pilares and Greg Salas put on a show. Pilares caught a school record 18 passes for 217 yards. Greg Salas, who held the previous single-game reception mark, had 10 grabs for 197 yards and two scores.

But Fresno State poses a much tougher challenge for Hawaii. The Bulldogs are 3-1, beating Cincinnati, Utah State and Cal Poly, while losing to Ole Miss. Unlike UH, the Bulldogs rely heavily on a ground game, running the ball 66 percent of the time.

That’s enabled Ryan Colburn to capitalize on play-action to complete 72.5 percent of his passes for 997 yards and 11 touchdowns with just three picks. His quarter rating of 179.83 ranks fourth nationally.