Some people will tell you Nick Rolovich's eight-touchdown performance against Brigham Young in 2001 was his finest moment with the University of Hawai'i football team.

Or, perhaps the time he out-dueled David Carr. Maybe the game in which he bested Ben Roethlisberger.

But if the Warriors somehow scramble their way to the postseason, this year won't be a bad one for Rolovich to hang his hat on, either.

For a guy eight seasons removed from his last pass as a Warrior, Rolovich is making his mark as an assistant coach and molder of quarterbacks and, gosh knows it has been a sudden growth industry with UH needing an assembly line of ready-to-play ones this year.

Last night it was the fourth one, sophomore Shane Austin, coming off the sideline to lead a fourth-quarter touchdown drive that helped the Warriors put away a 24-6 victory over New Mexico State.

That pushed the Warriors to a 4-6 record with three games remaining to keep alive flickering hopes of winning out to gain a berth in the Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl.

When a pained starting quarterback Bryant Moniz took himself out of the game after the first play of the fourth quarter with what is believed to be bruised ribs, those hopes were placed in Austin's tender hands on not much more than a moment's notice. "I think I threw, maybe, one warm-up toss," Austin said afterward.

With the Warriors' offense having gone without a score for five possessions and the Aggies showing signs of breathing down their necks, closing to 17-6, the last thing UH needed was to lose Moniz with 14 minutes and 31 seconds left in a game far from decided.

But, then, it has been that kind of a year for the Warriors, who saw returning starting QB Greg Alexander go down for the season six games ago, two weeks after his immediate backup, Brent Rausch, was sidelined for more than half the season.

That Austin calmly came in, inheriting a third-and-2 situation and adroitly completing five passes in succession for 48 yards, the last one a 12-yard touchdown strike to Greg Salas, said plenty.

Both about Austin, who was playing in only his third college game, and about his mentor, Rolovich, who had helped prepare him for the possibility of it.

"He does so many things to help get you ready in case that time comes," Austin said. "And this year, especially, you never know if you'll have to go in."

Say what you will about the 30-year-old Rolovich's play calling, a role he was thrust into early in the season, but his preparation of the Warriors' quarterbacks has been spot-on, if not masterful.

The growth curve of Moniz has been amazing, a tribute to both the gutty walk-on who has made things happen in a hurry and to the young coach behind him.

With Austin, Rolovich says, "I'm pretty hard on him, always telling him to be ready. He's a fun-loving kid, so I stay on him to be ready at a moment's notice."

"He helps us is so many ways, so many little things that keep you sharp and get you ready for something like this where you have to be ready right away and think," Austin said. "He encourages you."

"Last week," Austin said, "he showed us film of his very first start, which was, shall we say, very rough (a 45-20 loss to Portland State in the 2000 opener). When you see that tape and know he was the guy who went on to set all kinds of records, you kind of think maybe you can do it, too."

Last night, Austin got the much-deserved "save" for the Warriors. If UH, somehow, makes it to a bowl, his coach might just deserve one for the season.