Tag: Hawaii Football

Grading UCLA’s Week 1 performance versus Hawai’i

UCLA gets a C.

The UCLA Bruins finally took the field on Saturday to play their first game under first-time head coach DeShaun Foster in a 16-13 win over Hawai’i.

With the dust settled on the Bruins first game, UCLA deserves a “C-Grade” for their opening performance. Not good, not bad, and given the state of the team, UCLA’s opening-day performance was perfectly average.

Falling behind early, the first half was a whirlwind for the Bruins. Shut out through the first two quarters, quarterback Ethan Garbers was picked twice, the running game failed to generate momentum, and the offensive line struggled.

That said, the Bruins rebounded and pulled out the win in the second half, showing more confidence, poise, and urgency on both sides of the ball. The defense forced turnovers and Garbers found a notable rhythm that earned them an average grade.

UCLA’s first season under DeShaun Foster will have its rough patches, especially as the Bruins face tough competition in the Big Ten. While they did not start strong, they finished strong and laid the framework for how their team can find success this season.

If UCLA can avoid “playing behind the eightball” and their defense can keep games close, the Bruins can improve their report card this fall.

UCLA departs for Hawai’i ahead of Week 1 showdown

Wheels up!

There has been a lot of anticipation for the 2024 UCLA Bruins season, with an abundance of storylines from the team joining the Big Ten to DeShaun Foster’s hiring.

But the wheels are up for the Bruins, who on Thursday headed west for the Aloha State, according to a post by the team on X.

Taking on unraked Hawai’i, who took down Division II Deleware State in Week 0, the Bruins have their first test of the season. With many counting out the Bruins and predicting a sub-.500 record on the year, Saturday’s game at Hawai’i is the perfect opportunity to quiet some of their doubters.

With a recipe for success, the Bruins have a path to start their season 1-0, potentially string together some early momentum.

Predicting what the Bruins will look like in 2024 is impossible until seeing them on the field for the first time. Though expectations are low, the Bruins could very easily exceed them. On the other hand, they sink far below them.

Bruins fans are hoping it is the former.

Mountain West Football’s Updated 2024 Matchups Released

Mountain West Football’s Updated 2024 Matchups Released The Mountain West revised its college football schedule to include games against wayward Oregon State and Washington State. Contact/Follow @MattK_FS & @MWCwire What’s new? The vagaries of …

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Mountain West Football’s Updated 2024 Matchups Released

The Mountain West revised its college football schedule to include games against wayward Oregon State and Washington State.

Contact/Follow @MattK_FS & @MWCwire

What’s new?

The vagaries of college football realignment didn’t directly impact the Mountain West Conference over the last calendar year, but the shockwaves of moves across the country resulted today in a revised slate of matchups that includes the Oregon State Beavers and Washington State Cougars, the two Pac-12 programs left behind by their conference mates’ exodus.

When it was announced that the conference would do away with the Mountain and West divisions in 2022, the conference announced a rotation that would protect two games for each team and extend through the 2025 season. A multitude of Power 5 programs had other plans, however, and when the Big 12, Big Ten, and ACC raided the Pac-12 for ten of its teams throughout 2023, it left Oregon State and Washington State standing alone.

Here are the home and away games that the Mountain West had previously unveiled for 2024:

Air Force, Nevada, and San Diego State will host the Beavers while Boise State, Fresno State, and New Mexico will do the same for the Cougars. Conversely, Colorado State, San Jose State, and UNLV will travel to Corvallis; Hawaii, Utah State, and Wyoming will head to Pullman. None of the games will count as part of the conference standings, however, meaning that each Mountain West team will have seven conference games rather than the usual eight.

The changes, as you might expect, have differing impacts on every Mountain West team’s pre-existing schedule. Air Force, for instance, will get to face Oregon State at home instead of Hawaii, but Colorado State now travels to Oregon State and Nevada rather than Boise and San Diego. As DNVR Sports’s Justin Michael noted, it will be the first time since 2010 that the Rams and Broncos do not face each other. Similarly, Wyoming will now host San Diego State and Utah State rather than Nevada and UNLV.

One interesting twist is that the two teams who played in the Mountain West championship game this month, Boise State and UNLV, are now set to square off at Allegiant Stadium rather than Albertsons Stadium next year. Exact dates for the Mountain West schedule will be released at a later time, but next year’s title game is slated for Saturday, December 7, 2024.

Air Force

Home – Colorado State, Fresno State, San Jose State, Oregon State
Away – Nevada, New Mexico, San Diego State, Wyoming

Boise State

Home – Nevada, San Diego State, Utah State, Washington State
Away – Hawaii, San Jose State, UNLV, Wyoming

Colorado State

Home – New Mexico, San Jose State, Utah State, Wyoming
Away – Air Force, Fresno State, Nevada, Oregon State

Fresno State

Home – Colorado State, Hawaii, San Jose State, Washington State
Away – Air Force, Nevada, New Mexico, UNLV

Hawaii

Home – Boise State, Nevada, New Mexico, UNLV
Away – Fresno State, San Diego State, Utah State, Washington State

Nevada

Home – Air Force, Colorado State, Fresno State, Oregon State
Away – Boise State, Hawaii, San Jose State, UNLV

New Mexico

Home – Air Force, Fresno State, Wyoming, Washington State
Away – Colorado State, Hawai‘i, San Diego State, Utah State

San Diego State

Home – Air Force, Hawaii, New Mexico, Oregon State
Away – Boise State, UNLV, Utah State, Wyoming

San Jose State

Home – Boise State, Nevada, UNLV, Wyoming
Away – Air Force, Colorado State, Fresno State, Oregon State

UNLV

Home – Boise State, Fresno State, Nevada, San Diego State
Away – Hawaii, San Jose State, Utah State, Oregon State

Utah State

Home – Hawaii, New Mexico, San Diego State, UNLV
Away – Boise State, Colorado State, Wyoming, Washington State

Wyoming

Home – Air Force, Boise State, San Diego State, Utah State
Away – Colorado State, New Mexico, San Jose State, Washington State

Oregon State

Home – Colorado State, San Jose State, UNLV
Away – Air Force, Nevada, San Diego State

Washington State

Home – Hawaii, Utah State, Wyoming
Away – Boise State, Fresno State, New Mexico

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Hawaii Football: Brayden Schager Enters Transfer Portal

After helping the Warriors improve by two wins this season, the veteran quarterback makes a shocking exit. 

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Hawaii Football: Brayden Schager Enters Transfer Portal

After helping the Warriors improve by two wins this season, the veteran quarterback makes a shocking exit. 

Contact/Follow @MattK_FS and @MWCwire

Another high-profile exit.

College football’s transfer portal claimed another prominent Mountain West quarterback on Wednesday when Hawaii’s Brayden Schager left the program.

Rumors of Schager’s potential exit bubbled up last week after Pete Nakos of On3 Sports published a report that was refuted by Warriors head coach Timmy Chang. The seeming about-face came to fruition, anyway, provoking reactions from other Hawaii players like cornerback Cam Stone, wide receiver Steven McBride, and linebacker Jalen Smith.

Entrusted with Chang’s run-and-shoot offense, Schager showed marked improvement this fall from his first full year as a starter in 2022. He led the Mountain West with 3,542 passing yards, completing 63.2% of his conference-high 525 attempts for 26 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. In his three-year collegiate career, Schager has made 26 starts and owns a 59.9% completion rate, throwing for 6,505 yards and 41 touchdowns against 29 interceptions.

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Mountain West Wire’s 2023 Postseason All-Conference Football Team

Who did our staff pick as the best of the best in Mountain West football this season?

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Mountain West Wire Presents Its 2023 Postseason All-Mountain West Football Teams

Our staff has made its selections for the best of Mountain West football as we close out the 2023 season.

Contact/Follow @MWCwire

Only the best of the best make the cut.

Mountain West Wire’s 2023 postseason honors:

All-Conference Teams | Offensive Player of the Year | Defensive Player of the Year | Special Teams Player of the Year | Freshman of the Year | Newcomer of the Year | Coach of the Year | Coordinator of the Year

With the Mountain West’s regular season in the books and the conference championship game just one day away, our staff here at Mountain West Wire has once again put its collective heads together to create our fifth annual postseason all-Mountain West football team.

If you’re interested in seeing how these selections stack up against our preseason picks, click here. Alternatively, you can click the following links to find our postseason honorees from 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, and 2018.

As always, our all-conference roster goes four deep and attempts to best reflect the variety of offenses and defenses we see week in and week out throughout the conference:

  • We vote for a Defensive Flex player to better reflect that some units — like Boise State, San Diego State, and Wyoming — often operate with five defensive backs or a nickelback/linebacker hybrid in their 3-3-5 or 4-2-5.
  • We split our linebacker selections into two, inside and outside, as we’d previously differentiated between centers, guards, and tackles on the offensive lines and between interior linemen and edge rushers on defense.
  • We vote for three wide receivers instead of two.

If you disagree with our choices, feel free to let us know what you’d have done differently on Twitter or Facebook.

First Team

Offense

QB – Chevan Cordeiro, San Jose State
RB – Ashton Jeanty, Boise State
RB – Jacory Croskey-Merritt, New Mexico
RB – Kairee Robinson, San Jose State
WR – Tory Horton, Colorado State
WR – Ricky White, UNLV
WR – Jalen Royals, Utah State
TE – Dallin Holker, Colorado State
C – Thor Paglialong, Air Force
G – Mark Hiestand, Air Force
G – Wesley Ndago, Air Force
T – Adam Karas, Air Force
T – Cade Beresford, Boise State

Defense

DT – Jordan Bertagnole, Wyoming
DT – Payton Zdroik, Air Force
DE – Mohamed Kamara, Colorado State
DE – Ahmed Hassanein, Boise State
OLB – Jackson Woodard, UNLV
OLB – Bo Richter, Air Force
ILB – Easton Gibbs, Wyoming
ILB – MJ Tafisi, Utah State
CB – Cameron Oliver, UNLV
CB – Jay’Vion Cole, San Jose State
CB – Carlton Johnson, Fresno State
S – Ike Larsen, Utah State
S – Wyatt Ekeler, Wyoming
FLEX – Morice Norris Jr., Fresno State

Special Teams

K – Jose Pizano, UNLV
P – James Ferguson-Reynolds, Boise State
KR – Jacob De Jesus, UNLV
PR – Jacob De Jesus, UNLV

Second Team

Offense

QB – Jayden Maiava, UNLV
RB – Malik Sherrod, Fresno State
RB – Emmanuel Michel, Air Force
WR – Steven McBride, Hawaii
WR – Terrell Vaughn, Utah State
WR – Pofele Ashlock, Hawaii
TE – Mark Redman, San Diego State
C – Jacob Gardner, Colorado State
G – Mose Vavao, Fresno State
G – Wes King, Wyoming
T – Frank Crum, Wyoming
T – Kage Casey, Boise State

Defense

DT – Soane Toia, San Jose State
DT – Cole Godbout, Wyoming
DE – P.J. Ramsey, Air Force
DE – Tre Smith, San Jose State
OLB – Levelle Bailey, Fresno State
OLB – Andrew Simpson, Boise State
ILB – Alec Mock, Air Force
ILB – Bryun Parham, San Jose State
CB – Noah Tumblin, San Diego State
CB – Donte Martin, New Mexico
S – Trey Taylor, Air Force
S – Jack Howell, Colorado State
FLEX – Seyi Oladipo, Boise State

Special Teams

K – Jonah Dalmas, Boise State
P – Marshall Nichols, UNLV
KR – Jaelen Gill, Fresno State
PR – Tory Horton, Colorado State

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Mountain West Football: 2023 Postseason All-Conference Team, Individual Honors Announced

The regular season is in the books. Here are the all-Mountain West teams, players of the year, and coach of the year.

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Mountain West Football: 2023 Postseason All-Conference Team, Individual Honors Announced

The regular season is in the books. Here are the all-Mountain West teams, players of the year, and coach of the year.

Contact/Follow @MattK_FS & @MWCwire

Only the best of the best.

The Mountain West football season is nearly complete, but before Saturday’s championship tilt between Boise State and UNLV and bowl games after that, the conference media announced its selections for the all-Mountain West two-deep and individual awards.

Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty earned the nod as the Mountain West’s offensive player of the year, becoming the first sophomore to do so since Nevada’s Carson Strong in 2020. Though he was limited to just ten games because of injury, the Broncos’ super sophomore led the conference with 110.9 rushing yards per game and 164.6 all-purpose yards per game and finished second with 18 total touchdowns. According to Pro Football Focus, Jeanty’s 92.4 overall grade also led the Mountain West and ranked third among all FBS running backs.

Colorado State’s Mohamed Kamara was tabbed as the Mountain West’s defensive player of the year, the first Ram to be decorated as such since Shaquil Barrett in 2013. His 13 sacks and 17 tackles for loss both paced the conference, as did the 35 quarterback hurries for which he was credited by PFF, while his 83.2 overall grade is third-best among all Mountain West defenders.

Meanwhile, UNLV kicker Jose Pizano stepped up to win the conference’s special teams player of the year award. After transferring in from Missouri State, Pizano led the Mountain West in connecting on 23-of-25 field goals, including a perfect 16-of-16 inside of 40 yards, and finished second overall with 119 total points. That made him just the second Rebel to crack the century mark dating back to 2009.

UNLV quarterback Jayden Maiava was named the conference’s freshman of the year, becoming the fourth Rebel in the last seven seasons to earn the honor. He stepped into a difficult situation when incumbent starter Doug Brumfield was sidelined by injury in September, but the Vegas native stepped up and finished the regular season with a 64.1% completion rate, 2,626 passing yards, 14 touchdowns, and a 2.1% interception rate. More than any of the other individual awards, this one may have been a foregone conclusion after Maiava had already earned freshman of the week five times throughout 2023, a conference first.

Lastly, UNLV’s Barry Odom became the first Rebels head coach since John Robinson in 2000 to be named the Mountain West’s coach of the year. After taking over from Marcus Arroyo, Odom shepherded the Rebels to a 9-3 record, the team’s highest single-season win total since 1984, engineering an offense that led the conference with 35.5 points per game and a defense that tied for first with 22 total giveaways and led the way in allowing a 34.6% third-down conversion rate.

As for the all-conference teams, every program has at least one player on this year’s postseason honor roll. UNLV leads the way with six first-team selections, while three players — Wyoming’s Easton Gibbs and Colorado State’s Jack Howell and Tory Horton — each earned their second postseason first-team appearance.

2023 ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST FOOTBALL FIRST TEAM

Offense

QB – Chevan Cordeiro, San Jose State
WR – Tory Horton, Colorado State
WR – Ricky White, UNLV
WR – Jalen Royals, Utah State
RB – Ashton Jeanty, Boise State
RB – Kairee Robinson, San Jose State
TE – Dallin Holker, Colorado State
OL – Thor Paglialong, Air Force
OL – Cade Beresford, Boise State
OL – JC Davis, New Mexico
OL – Tiger Shanks, UNLV
OL – Frank Crum, Wyoming
PK – Jose Pizano, UNLV
KR – Jacob De Jesus, UNLV

Defense

DL – PJ Ramsey, Air Force
DL – Ahmed Hassanein, Boise State
DL – Mohamed Kamara, Colorado State
DL – Tre Smith, San Jose State
LB – Bo Richter, Air Force
LB – Jackson Woodard, UNLV
LB – MJ Tafisi, Utah State
LB – Easton Gibbs, Wyoming
DB – Trey Taylor, Air Force
DB – Jack Howell, Colorado State
DB – Emany Johnson, Nevada
DB – Ike Larsen, Utah State
P – James Ferguson-Reynolds, Boise State
PR – Jacob De Jesus, UNLV

2023 ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST FOOTBALL SECOND TEAM

Offense

QB – Jayden Maiava, UNLV
WR – Steven McBride, Hawaii
WR – Nick Nash, San Jose State
WR – Terrell Vaughn, Utah State
RB – Emmanuel Michel, Air Force
RB – Jacory Croskey-Merritt, New Mexico
TE – Mark Redman, San Diego State
OL – Adam Karas, Air Force
OL – Kage Casey, Boise State
OL – Jacob Gardner, Colorado State
OL – Mose Vavao, Fresno State
OL – Cade Barnett, San Diego State
PK – Jonah Dalmas, Boise State
KR – Terrell Vaughn, Utah State

Defense

DL – Jalen Dixon, UNLV
DL – Devo Bridges, Fresno State
DL – Soane Toia, San Jose State
DL – Jordan Bertagnole, Wyoming
LB – Alec Mock, Air Force
LB – Andrew Simpson, Boise State
LB – Chase Wilson, Colorado State
LB – Levelle Bailey, Fresno State
DB – Carlton Johnson, Fresno State
DB – Morice Norris Jr., Fresno State
DB – Noah Tumblin, San Diego State
DB – Cameron Oliver, UNLV
P – Jack Browning, San Diego State
PR – Tory Horton, Colorado State

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Mountain West Football: 2023-24 Transfer Tracker

Mountain West Football: 2022-23 Transfer Tracker College football’s transfer is open for business in the new academic year. We’ll keep track of who’s leaving and who’s coming to the Mountain West. Contact/Follow @MWCwire Who is the league losing and …

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Mountain West Football: 2022-23 Transfer Tracker

College football’s transfer is open for business in the new academic year. We’ll keep track of who’s leaving and who’s coming to the Mountain West.

Contact/Follow @MWCwire

Who is the league losing and adding?

College football’s regular season is underway, but transfer portal season is never really over.

Since the new year officially began on August 1, football players from the Mountain West and beyond have announced their intention to find new places to play. Check back here periodically as we keep an eye on who is arriving and who’s heading out from the conference in the days, weeks, and months to come.

Leaving the Mountain West

Air Force

Boise State 

Colorado State

Fresno State

Hawaii

Nevada

New Mexico

San Diego State

San Jose State

UNLV

Utah State

Wyoming

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Colorado State vs Hawai’i: How The Rams Can Win, How to Watch, Odds, Predicition

The Rams are in Hawai’i needing just one win to reach bowl eligibility. Here’s how CSU can beat the Warriors to do so.

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Colorado State vs Hawai’i: How The Rams Can Win, How to Watch, Odds, Predicition

The Rams are on the Islands to face the Warriors

Contact/Follow @J0shFr3d & @MWCwire

Can the Rams reach bowl eligibility?

WEEK 13: Colorado State Rams (5-6, 3-4 MW) vs. Hawai’i Rainbow Warriors (4-8, 2-5 MW)

WHEN: Saturday, November 25th — 9:00 p.m. MST / 8:00 p.m. PST

WHERE: Jonah Field at War Memorial Stadium; Laramie, WY (29,181)

WEATHER: Partly Cloudy, high of 81 degrees

STREAM: Team1 Sports App

RADIO: K99-FM 99.1 / ESPN 1600 AM (Colorado)

SERIES RECORD: This will be the 28th all time matchup between the two schools. CSU leads 16-11

LAST MEETING: Colorado State won 17-13 in Fort Collins last season.

WEBSITES: CSURams.com, the official Colorado State athletics website | HawaiiAthletics.com, the official Hawai’i athletics website

GAME NOTES (PDF): Colorado State | Hawaii

ODDS: Colorado State -5.5

OVER/UNDER: 53.5

SP+ PROJECTION: Colorado State by 6.0

FEI PROJECTION: Colorado State by 6.0

PARKER FLEMING PROJECTION: Colorado State 57.45% win probability (29.07 to 26.58)

Now onto some keys to victory for the Rams.

Three Keys to a colorado state victory

1. DBs Wake Up

After facing a gauntlet of teams that run the ball more often than not, the Rams now find themselves in a virtual mirror matchup. Hawai’i throws the ball as often as CSU wants to and the Rams defensive backs will need to be up for the job.

Brayden Schager is as wild a thrower as Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi is. Five more touchdowns and one less interception, but Schager isn’t afraid to throw it in there. Everyone from Jack Howell to Henry Blackburn to Chigozie Anusiem need to be ready to play a full 60 minutes at speed.

2. Pressure, Pressure, Pressure

Hawai’i has allowed 38 sacks. Colorado State has collected 32 sacks. Something has to give and the Rams need to make sure it isn’t them. 12 players have collected at least 0.5 sacks for CSU and everyone needs to step up against the Warriors.

They also need to not over run the play. Schager isn’t that much of runner, but he will run if necessary. Mohamed Kamara, Nuer Gatkuoth, and company need to set the edge and maintain it if they want to get off the field and not let Hawai’i drive down the field.

3. Take Your Shots

Tory Horton, Justus Ross-Simmons, Louis Brown, Dallin Holker, and Dylan Goffney. The Rams receiving core has been outstanding this year. All five have at least two touchdowns and at least one 40 yard catch down the field. Against the Warriors, they all need to be at their best one more time.

We can’t forget Justin Marshall. The freshman has burst onto the scene in these past two games with 217 yards and one touchdown on 37 carries. The run game will be key to keep the Hawai’i defense honest and Marshall has shown he can break plays open.

what will happen

It’s the last game of the season. One win. 1-0. That’s the goal for the Rams. Win and in. Bowl eligibility is in grasp. Now they need to go take it. And they will. The offense has been better somewhat than last year. The defense has taken a step back. But against Hawai’i, it all comes together and the Rams reach bowl eligibility for the first time since 2017.

Final Score: Colorado State 38, Hawai’i 27

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Mountain West Football: Week 9 Winners And Losers

Emmanuel Michael, Senika McKie, and Wyoming are among Mountain West football’s biggest winners and losers from Week 9.

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Mountain West Football: Week 9 Winners And Losers

Who came out ahead and who left something to be desired across the Mountain West in Week 9 of the college football season?

Contact/Follow @MattK_FS & @MWCwire

Encouragements and letdowns from the week that was.

You might as well have called last weekend in Mountain West football “Statement Saturday.”

While there wasn’t a lot of high drama (though they had that covered in the Central Valley almost single-handedly), everyone got a chance to send a message to the rest of the conference: It’s Air Force and it’s everyone else. Boise State isn’t dead yet and neither is Fresno State. Nevada may have found some footing after all.

Because some of those statements were less encouraging than others, however, here are the winners and losers from Week 9.

Winners

1. Air Force running back Emmanuel Michel

The battle for the Ram-Falcon Trophy may have turned out to be tougher and snowier than expected for the Mountain-West leading cadets, but Michel’s performance in the second half of Air Force’s 30-13 win over Colorado State helped ensure the road team would hang on rivalry bragging rights. He picked up 113 of his 130 rushing yards after halftime, including a key 53-yard scamper in the third quarter that flipped the field and helped to set the Falcons up with a ten-point lead, and capped the scoring with a five-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.

2. Fresno State linebacker Levelle Bailey

The Bulldogs’ senior star has developed a knack for being in the right place at the right time, killing UNLV’s last-gasp rally with a game-sealing interception to secure a 31-24 win over the Rebels.

Most people will immediately point out that isn’t even Bailey’s first game-sealing pick of the season — he did the same thing to Eastern Washington back in September — but it’s also worth mentioning he tied for the team high with eight total tackles, broke up a second pass in the first quarter and, per Pro Football Focus, allowed just 25 total yards on the five times he was targeted in coverage.

3. Nevada cornerback Michael Coats Jr.

Sometimes, it’s just your day. That certainly appeared to be the case for the former East Central Community College transfer on Saturday in a 34-24 win over New Mexico, as the Lobos tested him early and often but, according to PFF, would be repeatedly denied: His second quarter interception would set up a short scoring drive that extended the Wolf Pack lead to 24-0 at that point, but he also broke up two passes and allowed just three receptions on a team-high ten targets. For a team sorely lacking in bright spots in the first half of the season, Coats Jr.’s performance came at just the right time for the Nevada faithful to think things might be headed in the right direction after all.

Losers

1. UNLV wide receiver Senika McKie

Catching a football is sometimes harder than it looks. It’s important to remember that when someone lets a well-placed goal-line fade — far from the easiest play to make on a route tree under most circumstances — slip through their fingers like McKie did on Saturday night in a 31-24 loss to Fresno State.

PFF notes it was the only pass dropped by a Rebels receiver against the Bulldogs, though McKie now has twice as many dropped passes (six) as anyone else on the roster on just 34 targets this season. For the moment, that 27.3% drop rate is the highest among all qualifying Mountain West players; the latest misfortune just happened to come at a moment that many UNLV folks will probably be thinking about for a long time.

2. Wyoming

Cowboy football’s remaining skeptics came away with plenty to talk about on Saturday in the wreckage of a 32-7 defeat on the road to Boise State. The offense was dead on arrival, averaging 2.5 yards per play, finishing 1-of-11 on third downs, and crossing midfield only because Stefan Cobbs muffed a punt return late in the first quarter. On defense, Jay Sawvel’s secondary was simply overmatched by Eric McAlister and couldn’t capitalize on Ashton Jeanty’s limited availability, allowing Maddux Madsen to move through the air seemingly at will while George Holani’s return from injury allowed the Broncos to survive on the ground.

Now effectively eliminated from the Mountain West title chase, the Cowboys are sitting at 5-3 with a -20 point differential after eight games. They were also 5-3 after games in 2022, but the difference is that this was supposed to be the year in which their returning production advantage might finally put them over the top. The more things change, though, the more they seem to stay the same in Laramie.

3. Hawaii

Are Timmy Chang’s Warriors regressing before our eyes? It’s not what you hoped to see on the back half of his second year in charge, but a 35-0 shutout to San Jose State marked the third time in four conference games that Hawaii has lost by at least three touchdowns. Quarterback Brayden Schager never got going, finishing 17-of-29 for 132 yards and one interception before being relieved in the fourth quarter, while punter/kicker Matthew Shipley ended up as the team’s leading rusher with a 17-yard run on a third-quarter fake.

The more serious concern is that the defense has stagnated even more, allowing the Spartans to average 6.9 yards per play through the first three quarters. Perhaps no one is more emblematic of the team’s growing pains than sophomore linebacker Jalen Smith, who collected two of his three tackles for loss on SJSU’s second possession but also picked up an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty that enabled to Spartans to extend the drive and, eventually, collect their first points of the game. Patience is probably still a virtue here, but you can’t blame fans for feeling a little angst at blowout after blowout.

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San Jose State vs. Hawaii: Why The Spartans Can Win, How To Watch, Odds, Prediction

The Spartans look to hold on to the Dick Tomey Legacy Trophy in a road clash with the Warriors. Here’s how to watch and what to watch for.

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San Jose State vs. Hawaii: Why The Spartans Can Win, How To Watch, Odds, Prediction

The Spartans look to hold on to the Dick Tomey Legacy Trophy in a road clash with the Warriors. Here’s how to watch and what to watch for.

Contact/Follow @MattK_FS and @MWCwire

A rivalry battle on the islands.

WEEK 9: San Jose State Spartans (3-5, 2-2 MW) vs. Hawaii Warriors (2-6, 0-3 MW)

WHEN: Saturday, October 28 — 9:00 PM PT/6:00 PM HT

WHERE: Clarence T.C. Ching Complex; Honolulu, HI

WEATHER: Isolated showers, 20% chance of rain, low of 72 degrees

TV: Spectrum Sports Pay-Per-View (Hawaii only)

STREAMING: For college football fans on the mainland, the game can only be streamed using the Team1Sports application. That is available for download on Android and Apple devices and over-the-top platforms like Roku and Amazon Fire. Please note that the game will not be available on desktops or laptops.

RADIO: The San Jose State broadcast can be found in and around San Jose on 860 AM (KTRB). The Hawaii broadcast can be found and streamed on ESPN Honolulu or the Sideline Hawaii app, which is available on Google and Apple).

SERIES RECORD: The all-time series is tied, 22-22-1. In the last meeting on November 26, 2022, the Spartans defeated the Warriors, 27-14, in San Jose.

LAST GAME: San Jose State beat Utah State at home, 42-21, while Hawaii lost on the road to New Mexico, 42-21.

WEBSITES: SJSUSpartans.com, the official San Jose State athletics website | HawaiiAthletics.com, the official Hawaii athletics website

GAME NOTES (PDF): San Jose State | Hawaii

ODDS: San Jose State -10

SP+ PROJECTION: San Jose State by 8.9

FEI PROJECTION: San Jose State by 12.9

PARKER FLEMING PROJECTION: San Jose State 77.61% win probability (32.87-22.44)

After securing their third win of the season last Saturday, the San Jose State Spartans will cap off college football’s Week 9 slate with a late-night date against the Hawaii Warriors.

It marks the fifth iteration of the Dick Tomey Legacy Game, a contest which San Jose State hasn’t lost since 2019. Hawaii also represents arguably the most winnable game left on the Spartans’ schedule, so rallying to secure back-to-back bowl bids for the first time since 1986-87 is likely to mean they won’t want to get tripped up as road favorites.

Here’s what San Jose State can do to make it four wins in a row over the Warriors.

Three Keys to a San Jose State Victory

1. Knuckle down in the red zone on defense.

One problem that has plagued the Spartans all season is a propensity to give up six points rather than three when opponents get inside the 20-yard line. Not only have the Spartans allowed a 96.3% overall red zone conversion rate, they’ve coughed up a touchdown on 88.9% of such trips; both rates are the worst in the Mountain West.

If there’s one silver lining upon which Derrick Odum’s unit can capitalize, it’s that Hawaii quarterback Brayden Schager can be somewhat erratic in the red zone. While his 13 passing touchdowns on 59 attempts lead the conference, he’s also thrown three interceptions and has only completed 49.2% of his passes inside the 20.

2. Win the turnover battle.

If San Jose State can continue to create its own breaks, this is one area of the game where the Spartans could run away with a win. They’ve generated seven takeaways in four conference games so far, tied for the second-most in the conference, while Hawaii has given it away ten times on offense.

More critically, however, the Warriors have struggled all year to force turnovers of their own. Hawaii has just four takeaways in eight games to date, which is something that should bode well for Chevan Cordeiro and his 1.2% interception rate and, more broadly, a Spartans offense that has lost three fumbles this year.

3. Figure out how to exploit a weak Warriors offensive line.

In a run-and-shoot offense that’s thrown the ball roughly 43 times per game this year, it won’t come as a shock that Hawaii quarterback Brayden Schager has taken a Mountain West-high 28 sacks in eight games. However, in the last two weeks against San Diego State and New Mexico, the Warriors have only allowed three sacks in 104 total dropbacks, which perhaps signals some subtle progress in the trenches.

It will be important for the Spartans, then, to disprove that. San Jose State is one of four Mountain West teams with a trio of players — Tre Smith, Noah Lavulo, and Bryan Parhum — that has at least ten quarterback hurries (Boise State, Colorado State, and UNLV are the others), so it may be up to them to frustrate the Warriors offense enough and enable Cordeiro and company to put the game out of reach.

Prediction

Hawaii hasn’t seen much improvement on defense in 2023, as they currently rank 131st in available yards percentage allowed per drive and 132nd in points per drive allowed. The Spartans haven’t exactly been great on that side of the ball, either, but they should have enough offensive firepower to approximate their performance against Utah State last Saturday.

San Jose State 42, Hawaii 28

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