"It feels good," senior cornerback Abraham Elimimian said. "There's no better way that we could have drawn it up."

Hawai'i fans prepared to say aloha to the seniors with a festive Senior Night against Michigan State on Dec. 4. But the team found a way to make the season last one more game, defeating the Spartans, 41-38, to become bowl eligible.

"Nobody believed in us, but we made it through," senior linebacker Chad Kapanui said. "Having an extra game meant a lot for us."

Yesterday, the Warriors finally said good-bye to their 25 seniors, including six starters on offense and five on defense.

"I'm gonna miss all the playmakers. I mean Abraham, Lui (Fuga), all those guys, the list goes on and on," Hawai'i secondary coach Rich Miano said. "How are you gonna replace all those guys? But you have to reload eventually, and there's talent there."

Senior quarterback Tim Chang and senior slotback Chad Owens spoke about going through tough times and sticking together.

"It was a special class," Chang said.

Owens added: "I'm happy to be a part of that class and the way we finished."

While Chang and Owens led the way offensively, it was a "great all-around performance by the D-line, linebackers, and secondary," Elimimian said.

Seniors came up big defensively, with linebacker Watson Ho'ohuli leading the way with 9.5 tackles, and lineman Darrell Tautofi recording two sacks for a loss of eight yards.

"We already knew people thought we weren't going to make it," Tautofi said. "Sometimes you just feel like you don't want the season to end."

"We got a present, and this was it," Kapanui said. "I'm just happy I got to play one more game with my teammates, the coaches, and the fans."