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Jeremy Higgins heard the roar of the crowd. Not long after, a beleaguered team and stadium finally had something to cheer about.
The backup quarterback Higgins, a Saint Louis School alum and Utah State transfer, came on in relief of starter Sean Schroeder and led the Warriors to their only scoring drive of the game in an otherwise miserable 49-14 loss to Boise State on Saturday.
Higgins, like Schroeder, took some licks in a fragile pocket. Nevertheless, he led a 10-play, 72-yard drive in the fourth quarter for UH’s only offensive touchdown, a 1-yard run by John Lister with 5:35 to play.
"It’s relieving. We’d been struggling the whole game," said Higgins, a 6-1, 200-pound redshirt sophomore. "To put that together shows that we won’t stop fighting. We can get it done."
That successful fourth-quarter sequence is apparently enough to merit Higgins consideration as UH’s starting quarterback going into next week’s game at Air Force. After weeks of sticking with Schroeder, coach Norm Chow hinted at opening up the position.
"We’ll have to see," Chow said. "(Higgins) played well. You have to remember that he was playing against their second group of guys, but nevertheless he did play well.
"We’ll look at the tapes, and make some decisions. Make some hard-look decisions."
Higgins said he’s hopeful that he can get into games sooner, but that he trusts the coaching staff’s judgment.
He finished 11-for-17 for 154 yards. He also was intercepted once and fumbled once.
But in this nightmarish season — and in a game in which UH was held to minus 14 yards rushing — that still counts as progress. Schroeder was 10-for-19 for 100 yards, sacked four times with a pick and two fumbles (one lost) before he was pulled.
"I feel like I can give us a chance to win," said Higgins. "I know my stuff. I can get the job done. But it’s all going to depend on the team, how we all rally with each other. I don’t want to take all the credit because the O-line was working their butts off today."
Higgins went 4-for-5 for 56 yards in UH’s 45-10 loss at Fresno State the week prior, and had the only Warriors touchdown in that game, a 5-yard carry.
He got an ovation from those left at Aloha Stadium when he came in for a battered and bruised Schroeder late in the third quarter.
"Awesome, awesome," Higgins said of that reception. His only previous appearance at home was in the blowout win over Lamar.
Junior tight end Clark Evans, making his first career start with UH, had four catches for 67 yards — including difficult grabs of 22 and 23 yards on the scoring drive that started with 9:13 showing in the fourth.
"A bunch of guys bailed me out on that drive," Higgins said. "Scott (Harding), and Clark especially had a couple of big ones."
Duke transfer Ryan Hall, another tight end, had career highs of five catches for 70 yards.