Hawaii scores late, leads by 6 at halftime

Hawaii leads at the half

The game has gone to the locker room at the end of the first half with Hawaii holding a 20-14 lead over UNLV at Sam Boyd Stadium. Scott Enos kicked a 47-yard field goal as time expired to extend the Warriors lead. UNLV fell behind by ten points on a 39-yard touchdown pass from Greg Alexander to Rodney Bradley, but the Rebels answered impressively.

Omar Clayton rolled right and heaved a throw down the right sideline just out of the reach of Hawaii’s Lametrius Davis and into the hands of the waiting Jerriman Robinson for a touchdown with less than two minutes remaining in the half. The score could have given UNLV momentum going to the second half, but the Warriors found a way to get back into field goal range.

The Rebels will get the ball first in the second half, but if they want to win they will have to find a way to at least slow down the Hawaii passing attack. Alexander threw for 341 yards and two touchdowns in the first half. Kealoha Pilhares has been the primary beneficiary. The junior receiver already has 12 catches for 143 yards.

Clayton was inconsistent for UNLV, completing 9 of 17 passes for 119 yards and a touchdown. He also uncharacteristically threw two interceptions. Jerriman Robinson led UNLV with three catches for 69 yards and a score. Channing Trotter ran for 36 yards on just four carries.

Big Penalty

UNLV was called for having just six men on the line of scrimmage for the second time midway through the second quarter. It proved to be a huge call. Jordan Barrett caught a 7-yard touchdown pass on the play, but the score was wiped out by the penalty. On the next play, Omar Clayton was intercepted and Hawaii had the ball back inside its own 10-yard line. The touchdown would have given UNLV the lead. Instead, Hawaii retained the lead and went the length of the field to extend it.

Turnabout is fair play

Mike Grant made a questionable decision to intercept a Greg Alexander pass at UNLV’s 8-yard line early in the second quarter. It was a fourth down play, so had he just knocked the ball down, UNLV would have had much better field position. The offense made it even worse as Clayton was intercepted by Mana Silva at the UNLV 38-yard line on the very next play.

All of that action essentially meant that Hawaii had the ball in the same place with first-and-10 instead of fourth-and-10. In the end, it really didn’t matter. The Warriors turned the ball over on downs without gaining a first down and UNLV had the ball at its own 33-yard line.

Playing their game

UNLV is getting too caught up in the throw every down style that Hawaii plays. The Rebels are running the ball effectively, but are not doing it enough. Channing Trotter had three carries for 32 yards in the first quarter, but got just one carry in the second quarter.