GAMEDAY BLOG: University of Hawaii wins home opener against Portland State

The University of Hawaii football team hosts its first game on campus without any fans in attendance against Portland State at the Clarence T.C. Ching Complex tonight.

The Rainbow Warriors scored touchdowns on their first four drives and overcame some costly mistakes later in the game to win 49-35.

Read our breaking news story on the game here.

Follow along for live updates of the game:

Hawaii 49, Portland State 35, FINAL

9:23 p.m.: Hugh Nelson with the pick for UH and that will do it.

9:21 p.m.: Portland State gets the ball back after recovering an onsides kick.

9:20 p.m.: Bennett hauls in a 11-yard TD pass from Alexander with 1:13 to go. Vikings hung tough after getting blitzed early.

9:09 p.m.: Darius Muasau forces a fumble on PSU’s next drive and Hawaii recovers. The Vikings again have a drive deep into UH territory end with a turnover.

8:57 p.m.: Hawaii manages to hold as PSU fails to convert a fourth-and-13 from the UH 41. On the very next play, Dae Dae Hunter goes 59 yards for a touchdown and that should just about do it.

8:48 p.m.: Cordeiro is sacked on back-to-back plays but then runs for 22 yards to set up a fourth-and-2 at the PSU 49. After a Hawaii timeout, the Rainbows go for it and Turner is stuffed for no gain. Portland State ball.

8:33 p.m.: Calvin Turner has had problems catching the ball all night. He muffed two punts and now can’t receive the kickoff as the ball bounces between his legs. PSU wins the race to the end zone to recover it and that’s two touchdowns in eight seconds for the Vikings. 42-28, :12, Q3, and we have a game.

8:31 p.m.: PSU goes 82 yards in eight plays after a quick UH punt. The Vikings had four of the eight plays on the drive go for at least 12 yards as Alexander hits Beau Kelly for a 23-yard TD.

8:20 p.m.: Portland State comes right back and takes advantage of a blown defense as Alexander finds Bennett wide open near the UH sideline just before Alexander got clobbered by the oncoming rush. Bennett just sneaks it past the pylon for a 41-yard TD but he’s ruled down at the 1 after a review. During the review, Hawaii’s Cameron Lockridge is called for targeting and ejected from the game, meaning he will miss the first half of next week’s game against Oregon State. After a UH timeout, DJuan Matthews strips Alexander of the ball on the keeper and recovers it for UH as PSU squanders a golden opportunity to score.

8:05 p.m.: Cordeiro injects some life into the UH offense with a perfect deep ball to Mardner for 46 yards. A pass interference call sets up a 2-yard TD run for Parson. A quick 5-play, 60-yard drive. Hawaii’s 42 points are the most in a game in the Todd Graham era.

7:56 p.m.: The Vikings take advantage of the interception. Alexander throws a beautiful ball to Nate Bennett for 24 yards to the 2 and Malik Walker punches it in from the 1 for the second TD of the game for PSU.

7:49 p.m.: Cordeiro remains in at QB to start the second half for UH. Cordeiro has a ball go right through the receiver’s hands and into the arms of Adams for an INT. That one was on the receiver.

7:46 p.m.: The second half is underway. Vikings ball first and they quickly go three-and-out.

7:24 p.m.: Cordeiro leads an impressive drive to end the first half, going 84 yards in 10 plays. Cordeiro had a nice scramble for 21 yards and then capped it off with a nice little touch throw fade to Aaron Cephus, who scores his first career TD on a 4-yard catch.

7:06 p.m.: Turner drops another punt but is able to recover. Smart gets wide open over the middle and hauls in a 67-yard reception to push Cordeiro over 200 yards passing. Parson with five straight carries to get the ball to the 1 but Cordeiro fumbles trying to keep the ball and Portland State’s Anthony Adams recovers for the Vikings on their 9-yard line.

6:52 p.m.: Turner drops a ball that was slightly low, but catchable, over the middle that could have gone 58 yards to the house. Instead it’s Hawaii’s first punt. Turner trots off to the sideline and starts doing pushups.

6:48 p.m.: Portland State gets its first points on the first play of the second quarter. Senior quarterback Davis Alexander hits a wide open Mataio Talalemotu, who got behind the defense, for a 38-yard touchdown.

6:40 p.m.: Four drives, four first-quarter touchdowns for the Rainbow Warriors. Dedrick Parson gets in on the fun with a 17-yard TD run. UH has a 246-43 advantage in total yards and has stayed balanced (139 passing yards, 107 rushing). Turner at 102 all-purpose yards.

6:31 p.m.: On the second play of the drive, Cordeiro finds Jared Smart for a 20-yard TD and Hawaii is rolling against the Vikings.

6:28 p.m.: Pita Tonga with the interception off the edge and UH is quickly in business again at the PSU 20. First INT as a Rainbow Warrior for Tonga.

6:25 p.m.: Calvin Turner’s first official “carry” of the season is a backward pass out to the flat. Turner reverses field and adds another highlight to his resume with a 38-yard TD to put Hawaii ahead 14-0. Turner muffed the punt but Hawaii recovered to start the drive and he caught a 23-yard pass before his TD run. Cordeiro kept the drive alive running for 13 yards on a fourth-and-2 at the PSU 48 to set up the score.

6:20 p.m.: Portland State goes three-and-out on its first drive as Hawaii’s Jonah Laulu bats down a pass on third-and-1. Vikings punt.

6:15 p.m.: Hawaii received the opening kickoff and quarterback Chevan Cordeiro engineered an 11-play, 75-yard drive to put UH in front 7-0. Cordeiro was 4-for-4 on the drive and hit a wide-open Nick Mardner for a 23-yard touchdown in the corner of the end zone. It’s the third time UH has scored a touchdown on its opening drive in the Todd Graham era.

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