1. Collie Dogs Cats
>> Situation: Hawaii 0, Western Carolina 0, 2:50 remaining first quarter, Hawaii ball, second-and-15 at own 15
>> The Play: QB Dru Brown finds SB Dylan Collie open across the middle. Collie stumbles, but keeps his balance and goes for a 50-yard gain.
>> Impact: RB Diocemy Saint Juste then carried five straight times, with the final run going for a 1-yard touchdown and the first score of the game. Collie finished with seven catches for 104 yards and a touchdown.
>> Collie: “It was a matter of staying on my feet and trying to make a play. And that’s what I did. I wish I could have scored, but you know, we made it happen and it set up a good touchdown.”
2. Big Hole
>> Situation: Hawaii 14, Western Carolina 7, 6:05 remaining second quarter, Hawaii ball, first-and-14 at own 38
>> The Play: Saint Juste bursts through a huge hole created by the right side of the Hawaii offensive line and runs for a 57-yard gain.
>> Impact: Three plays later, RB Ryan Tuiasoa completed the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run and Western Carolina never got closer than 11 points. Saint Juste carried 25 times for 202 yards and became the first player in Hawaii history to rush for 200 or more yards in two games.
>> Saint Juste: “I felt great. It’s probably the best shape I’ve been in a while. It felt great to be out there.”
3. Red Zone Stand
>> Situation: Hawaii 21, Western Carolina 10, 0:12 remaining second quarter, Western Carolina ball, third-and-goal at Hawaii 3
>> The Play: QB Ray Smith fakes a handoff left, rolls right, and is sacked for a 9-yard loss by LB Russell Williams Jr.
>> Impact: K Ian Berryman missed a 29-yard field goal. For the game, Hawaii stopped Western Carolina for no points three times out of six red zone chances.
>> Hawaii coach Nick Rolovich: “I think we did some great things when they got to the red zone, especially before half. … Our guys stepped up and got a stop.”
4. Block Party
>> Situation: Hawaii 21, Western Carolina 10, 11:24 remaining third quarter, Western Carolina ball, fourth-and-14 at Hawaii 20
>> The Play: Aided by pressure up the middle from DT Viane Moala, DE Meffy Koloamatangi blocks his second Western Carolina field-goal try of the game. S Trayvon Henderson picks up the ball and runs 89 yards for a Hawaii touchdown.
>> Impact: Hawaii ended up with a 27-12 lead after K Alex Trifonovitch’s PAT try was blocked by CB Keion Crossen, who recovered the ball and ran it all the way back for two points. Moala also blocked a kick for Hawaii.
>> Henderson: “The ball came right to me. I had no choice but to take off. They did a great job of getting back there.”
5. Clincher
>> Situation: Hawaii 34, Western Carolina 18, 7:31 remaining fourth quarter, Hawaii ball, first-and-goal at Western Carolina 1
>> The Play: Tuiasoa rushes 1 yard for his second touchdown of the game.
>> Impact: The touchdown capped a 98-yard drive in which Tuiasoa accounted for 66 of the yards, making it a three-score game with time running down. Tuiasoa finished with 82 yards on 16 carries.
>> Hawaii center Asotui Eli: “Ryan is a good power back. He did his job. He found some holes.”
