RUSTON, La. — His 48-yard field-goal attempt had been blocked in the second quarter and he had missed at 41 yards in the third quarter, but when University of Hawai'i placekicker Dan Kelly took the field to try a game-tying 49 yarder with 1 minute, 34 seconds remaining in regulation last night, he had no fears.

"None," Kelly maintained after UH's 45-44 overtime victory over Louisiana Tech.

"When I step on the field and go kick I just go blank," Kelly said. " I don't feel anything, I really mean it. God gave me the ability to shut off my emotions when I go out to kick. From the time I step on the field until the time I kick the ball, I really don't feel anything. At least I don't remember anything."

Good thing, too, because UH's season might have been riding on the 49-yarder that helped force overtime where the Warriors, 28-point favorites, finally managed to hold off Louisiana Tech.

"Of course if you want to ask me what my stomach felt like before I went out to kick, it was in a ball. I felt like my stomach was up to my throat," Kelly said. "I was nervous. But, for some reason as soon as I hit that field, it quit."

UH coach June Jones said, "maybe we should just put him in pressure situations where he has to make the kicks."

Said Kelly: "I screwed up more times than I succeeded (last night), that's for sure. To tell you the truth, I want to make all of them because if we would have lost by one point — and we gave up six points in the kicking game — that's just unacceptable in my book. I'm irritated by my performance and I'm definitely going to be looking at it and working on it."

But the telling one "was a big-time kick — a huge kick," Jones said.

One that Jones said, by force of habit — and maybe a little superstition, too — didn't watch.

"I don't like to watch those type of kicks," Jones said. "I never watch. Morten Andersen (former NFL All-Pro kicker) I used to watch, but that's about it."

Said Kelly: "I'm just glad I was in a position to help us win it. I always want to be there to help us win when it is necessary."

"That was really intense. Now all I want to do is go (to the hotel) and sleep now."

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com.