Warriors roll to first win of season
By Stephen Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer
In a defiant response to its critics and its 0-2 start, the University of Hawai'i football team surged to a statement-making 44-16 victory over Tulsa last night at Aloha Stadium.
Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser
Before an optimistically announced crowd of 41,295, the Warriors left no doubts in improving to 1-2 overall and 1-1 in the Western Athletic Conference. The Hurricane fell to 1-5 — its only victory against a Division I-AA opponent — and 0-1.
Hawai'i slotback Chad Owens leaves a trio of Tulsa defenders in his wake as he heads for the end zone to complete a 75-yard pass play.
"Came through?" defensive tackle Lui Fuga yelled in the jubilant UH locker room. "We busted through."
The Warriors found gold in every area.
Tim Chang, who became the second-most prolific passer in NCAA history with his first completion, finished 22 of 43 for 378 yards and three touchdowns. Entering 5 yards behind North Carolina State quarterback Philip Rivers' 13,484 yards, Chang now has 13,857 passing yards in his NCAA career.
He also has not been intercepted in 181 passes, dating to the third quarter of last year's Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl, to break Raphel Cherry's school record of 174 passes without an interception.
"That's nice to know," said Chang, when told of the record, "but I'm just trying to do my part."
Slotback Chad Owens contributed three touchdowns — all crafted the hard way. He made a reach-for-the-shoestrings catch of Chang's screen pass, then sprinted the rest of the way to complete a 75-yard scoring play in the second quarter. With the scored tied at 13 in the third quarter, Owens fielded a punt at the 34 on the right hashmark and, freed by several blocks — the last two administered by Chad Kapanui and C.J. Allen — bobbed, weaved and then jetted for a touchdown.
"Mighty Mouse is back," Kapanui said, referring to Owens' nickname.
Owens said: "It was a team effort. I couldn't do it without the 10 other guys."
But Mouse Davis, who coaches UH's special teams, said: "What makes a great return is a great returner. That's the key. He had some blocks, but he found the crease, and it was over."
Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser
Owens' acrobatic 7-yard reception among three defenders made it 37-16, all but ending the suspense with 5:59 to play.
Hawai'i quarterback Tim Chang scans the secondary for a receiver in the first quarter. Chang threw three TD passes.
Justin Ayat, who has finally recovered from a groin injury, converted three field goals, including a school-record-tying 56-yarder in the second quarter. Jason Elam, now a Denver Bronco, booted a 56-yarder in 1992.
Before Ayat's kick, UH coach June Jones called a timeout — a move that proved to work like antifreeze.
"It kind of settled me down," Ayat said. "Coach (Davis) told me not to over-swing, and stroke it through. That's what I did."
UH's rejuvenated defense did the rest. To counter Tulsa's motion offense featuring two tight ends, the Warriors traded their playbook for a history book.
"We went back to the basics," said Rich Miano, who coordinates UH's pass defense. "We went back to blitzing and being more aggressive and attacking. The guys responded. They played fast. Tulsa made plays, but that's because we blitzed so much — that put pressure on our corners — but we made more plays."
Even without their best defensive player — left end Melila Purcell missed the second half because of a stinger — the Warriors repeatedly stormed the eye of the Hurricane's offense. Kilian was sacked five times and hurried on nearly every passing play. Six times he threw out of bounds to avoid a sack.
Tulsa likes to mix it up — draw plays, end-arounds and play-action passes to the tight ends. But UH counter-attacked by blitzing cornerbacks, nickelbacks and safeties. Twice, officials ruled Kilian threw incomplete, although television replays indicated he had fumbled, including a first-quarter play that should have resulted in a Purcell fumble recovery for a touchdown.
"That definitely was a fumble," safety Leonard Peters said. "There were some calls that went our way and some that didn't. But the main thing is the 'W' ended up going our way."
Fuga, UH's co-captain, said the blueprints called for stalking Kilian. In last year's meeting, Kilian was Tulsa's leading rusher, passer and receiver.
"We were physical," Fuga said. "We blitzed. We dominated that (offensive) line. We used our regular (defensive) package. Maybe we were holding back in the first two games. This time, we let the dogs loose, and it worked. We went after (Kilian). If he wasn't fast, he would have been dead. But he's a great quarterback."
Kilian said: "They were able to bring some pressure and take us out of our game plan. They did a good job on our tight ends. Give them a lot of credit."
Reach Stephen Tsai at stsai@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8051.
