Dee Maggitt helped bring Willis Wilson to Hawaii. Maggitt did his part to send his good friend out with a smile.

Maggitt, the Hawaii junior cornerback, was credited with a fumble recovery and three tackles in the Rainbow Warriors’ season-ending 49-42 victory over Army on Saturday night at Aloha Stadium. The emotional win prevented the second 0-12 season in program history.

Wilson, 21, a UH reserve running back, died early Saturday morning of apparent drowning off Sandy Beach, news that rocked the team to its core.

Few were affected more than Maggitt, a teammate and friend of Wilson’s going back to their days at Lakes High in Lakewood, Wash.

"I just wanted to do something big for him, big for Willis," Maggitt said. "Anything to make him smile down on me."

Maggitt said he helped force the fourth-quarter fumble on Army’s Terry Baggett in addition to the recovery, though linebacker Brenden Daley was officially credited with forcing it. No matter.

UH did not score on the quick change of possession at midfield, but it drained nearly two more minutes off the clock by the time the Black Knights took over again at 8:52 trailing 49-35. Every second consumed was precious by the end as Army’s desperate, potential game-tying drive in the final minute concluded with no time remaining deep in its own territory.

The game ended when Knights QB A.J. Schurr’s Hail Mary heave fell harmless to the stadium’s turf.

So ended an emotional day that started for Maggitt when Wilson’s father, Jack (a former UH football player), called him to give him some terrible information.

Maggitt kept an even-keeled demeanor talking about the day’s events while the team’s 22 seniors were honored at midfield.

"It was shocking, of course," Maggitt said. "But Willis would have wanted us to play this game and of course we dedicated this win to him."

Maggitt and Wilson took the same recruiting trip out to Hawaii when Greg McMackin was still head coach. Maggitt committed to UH and Wilson, seeking an offense with a bigger role for running backs, ended up at Washington for three seasons.

"We worked out together, we grew up together," Maggitt said. "His dad and my dad are best friends. When I found out he wanted to make a change (out of Washington), I put in a good word with him for Coach (Norm) Chow."

Which had to make it all the harder hearing his friend’s fate.

"My teammates are actually the ones who helped me through it the most," Maggitt said. "My family couldn’t be here, being all the way in Washington. (The team is) my family away from home, so I really leaned on them, they really helped me."

Senior safety John Hardy-Tuliau notched nine tackles in his final game. Junior linebacker Tevita Lataimua added eight tackles, a sack and a quarterback hurry in his first career start. Freshman lineman Kennedy Tulimasealii had some jarring hits among his four stops, including a tackle for loss.

"You know what, they all fought through, man," defensive coordinator Thom Kaumeyer said. "This group, no matter what happens, we were 0-11. They never stopped believing in each other. They’re a tight-knit group. It brought everybody close together. That kid (Wilson) was a wonderful boy, man. He would make people smile. So it was hard. Everybody, coaches, players took it hard. I was just proud of them that they could regroup. Great senior leadership to get them going to finish it out."