To be chronologically accurate, they have to first beat Fresno State this weekend, then Nevada, then Boise State, and finish by defeating Washington.

And as much as coach June Junes preaches the "one game at a time" mantra, the Warriors know what a 12-0 record could bring them.

A perfect season gives them a shot at a spot in a Bowl Championship Series game and a boost to the Heisman Trophy chances of quarterback Colt Brennan.

A victory — a la Boise State's against Oklahoma in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl — would give the Warriors the respect they feel has been missing from their detractors who point to their weak schedule.

"I would be lying to you if I said it wasn't talked about or mentioned, but we've done a good job all year of just concentrating on our team and blocking out the outside stuff," says wide receiver Ryan Grice-Mullins, who has 66 catches and nine touchdowns in eight games.

One of three unbeatens in Division I-A, Hawaii, averaging 52 points, is No. 12 in the USA Today Coaches' Poll and No. 16 in the BCS standings.

Still many don't rate the Warriors among the top teams. The Maxwell Award, which honors a top coach and player, put out its 15 semifinalists this week. Neither Jones nor Brennan made the list.

Jerry Palm, who analyzes the BCS standings at collegebcs.com, believes that if Hawai'i runs the table, it will finish in the top 12, which is what it takes to qualify for a BCS game.

He adds, though, that Hawai'i is "lucky nobody (voters) is paying attention to their schedule yet" and that if Hawai'i finishes high enough, it will signal schools that "they can play the worst schedule ever and still get there."

Hawai'i's victories came against two I-AA teams plus six I-A teams with a combined 14-42 record.

But Fresno State is 6-3, followed by Nevada (5-4), Boise State (8-1) and Washington (3-6). Those games will be on national television, and the Warriors think they can change some opinions.

"We can't control how the voters vote," says linebacker Adam Leonard. "We win the games we are supposed to win. At the end of the season, we'll look and see if a BCS game is there for us, and that will give us the opportunity to show the country that we are one of the best teams in the nation this year. We just want the opportunity and not have them shut the door on us."

And not to shut the door on Brennan, either.

In seven games, Brennan who has been nagged by an ankle injury, has thrown for 2,820 yards and 26 touchdowns. But the schedule and the fact many of Hawai'i's games end well after midnight on the East Coast have limited Brennan's hopes for Heisman hardware.

He knows victories late in the season against better competition will elevate everyone.

"I think these nationally televised games will really give us a chance to show how good our defense is and the talent around me, my receivers and linemen," Brennan says.

Jones, who says he is concerned only with Saturday's game against Fresno State, does say, "These kids are not being given the credit they deserve," pointing out the 18 victories in the last 19 games include wins against Purdue and Arizona State last season.

As Boise State pointed out last season, a non-BCS affiliated team making a major bowl game has added meaning.

Hawai'i athletics director Herman Frazier spent 21 years at Arizona State and was president of the Fiesta Bowl, which in 1999 crowned the first BCS champion.

"So I've seen what the BCS does for schools and conferences," he says. "For the University of Hawai'i to be at this point of where we are is a tribute to the student-athletes and June Jones and his coaching staff. What (a major bowl) would mean for our state and our people, you can't imagine."

Brennan believes a perfect season also might help change the cosmic balance of college football.

"If you continue to have these mid-majors rise up and win these football games," he says, "maybe you even the playing field as to how teams get ranked and how we go in and look at who the best teams in college are."

Besides, it would just be nice to say he told you so.