In the cold of a mid-November night in the high Sierras on national TV, Nevada attempted to “ice” Dan Kelly, making him kick the game-winning 45-yard field goal twice for the University of Hawaii in the final 11.7 seconds.

After securing a 28-26 victory that kept UH on the road to the Sugar Bowl in 2007, Kelly looked around for the Wolf Pack’s coach. “I don’t even know the guy’s name, but whomever the coach is for Nevada, thank you,” Kelly said.

After that, no longer would Nevada’s Chris Ault be anonymous to the Warriors or their fans.

The episode has helped make Ault the coach Warriors fans most enjoy seeing lose and, if at all possible, tormented.

And recent history shows they have had frequent opportunities in which to delight. Ault, whose Wolf Pack provides the opposition Saturday in the Mountain West Conference debut for both schools, is 0-4 against UH here and, thanks to three Sheraton Hawaii Bowl appearances, just 1-6 at Aloha Stadium against all comers.

It amounts to one of the few hiccups in a remarkable 28-year career (228-104-1) that had already earned Ault, the widely respected innovator of the pistol offense, a place in the College Hall of Fame in South Bend, Ind.

That anomaly of what has taken place at Aloha Stadium in this, Ault’s third go-round as his alma mater’s head coach, is a large part of what has made his struggles so enjoyable for the UH faithful. The satisfaction of a 45-10 pummeling by Southern Methodist and June Jones in the 2009 Hawaii Bowl being exceeded only by the Warriors’ 27-21 upset of the then-19th-ranked Wolf Pack in 2010.

It was Nevada’s only loss in a 13-1 season, effectively taking the Wolf Pack out of any shot at a Bowl Championship Series bid. And almost as much as what happened, it was celebrated for how it unfolded. The Warriors literally took it away from Nevada when linebacker Corey Paredes swatted the ball loose on the 1-yard line after Paredes said quarterback Colin Kaepernick tried to “Hollywood” it into the end zone.

Ault was fit to be tied that night, but the coach they call “the Little General” rarely lacks for animation at any time. He can wind up fans just by the gale force of his often blustery personality and the way he struts the sidelines and barks at officials.

In his younger days, Ault did more than bark. Jones used to tell stories about his first wide-eyed remembrance of Ault in the 1970s, when Jones was quarterbacking Portland State and Ault, a former Nevada quarterback, was a 29-year-old head coach of the Wolf Pack. “At halftime the gun goes off and I look up and there were the two coaches, Mouse (Davis of Portland State) and Ault, throwing blows in the middle of the field when we were headed toward the locker room,” Jones said.

Today, at age 65, Ault is more likely to throw his hat, but there is no doubt the Wolf Pack get their scrappy “Nevada-tude” from their head coach. Part of the proof being the seven consecutive bowls Ault has guided them to.

But if the Warriors could somehow find a way to painfully thwart Ault again, Kelly and a lot of UH fans wouldn’t mind a bit.

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Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.