FORT COLLINS, COLO. >> Avery Morrow scored on a spinning 10-yard run with 1:28 left to deliver Colorado State to a 17-13 victory over Hawaii today at Canvas Stadium.
The Rainbow Warriors’ final drive ended when Ayden Hector intercepted Brayden Schager at the UH 45 with 39 seconds to play.
“It’s tough to lose,” said Schager as the Warriors fell to 2-6 overall and 1-2 in the Mountain West. “We keep doing it. It’s tough. We have to swallow this one and keep playing. But I know this is a game we could have won, but couldn’t get rolling in the second half. We have to play better offensively.”
After amassing 219 yards in the first half (6.3 yards per play), the Warriors managed 38 yards after the intermission (2.2 yards per snap). They gained only nine yards on six third-quarter plays.
“It was a tale of two halves,” UH coach Timmy Chang said. “In the second half, we hurt ourselves offensively. Drop a snap, penalty, the ball gets out. On the offensive side, I thought we could have kept us on the field and kept moving. And, really, what happened was defense stayed on the field (22 minutes, 16 seconds in the second half). It is what it is.”
Morrow was a reserve running back until today. He ran for 147 yards, his third consecutive triple-digiit rushing performance in a row.
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And the Rams, who failed three times on fourth-down plays, turned to Morrow to complete their comeback from a 13-3 deficit. Morrow’s decisive touchdown came after he spun his way out of two would-be tackles.
The Warriors barely beat the whistle in extending their lead to 13-3 at the intermission.
Schager completed a 3-yard pass to running back Dedrick Parson, who was tackled at the CSU 7 with under 10 seconds left. Without a timeout, UH’s field-goal unit raced onto the field, with Matthew Shipley launching the 23-yard field goal before the clock struck “0:00.”
The final drive was set up when the Warriors made another fourth-down stand. On fourth-and-10 from the UH 33, CSU’s Clay Millen misfired. The Rams’ opening drive also ended on an incomplete fourth-down pass.
The Warriors received two breaks in a touchdown drive that broke a 3-all tie. After former Warrior Michael Boyle connected on a 38-yard field goal, UH’s Jalen Perdue took the ensuing field goal. Perdue appeared to have fumbled near the end of the return, but a review determined the loose ball came after the referee’s whistle.
Schager then led the Warriors to the CSU 1. UH head coach Timmy Chang tried to call a timeout, but his request was ignored. Schager then threw to tight end Caleb Phillips on an out route. Draped by safety Henry Blackburn, Phillips reached with the football touching the right pylon for a touchdown and a 10-3 UH lead with 7:15 left in the first half.
