VIDEO: UH-Fresno 1st quarter highlights
VIDEO: UH-Fresno 2nd quarter highlights
VIDEO: UH-Fresno 3rd quarter highlights
VIDEO: UH-Fresno 4th quarter highlights

And then it was sauna-like humid.

But for the Hawai'i football team, the most maddening element was Fresno State's ball-control offense.

Staked to a comfortable early lead because of the Warriors' unforced errors, the Bulldogs mixed a feisty running attack with a rat-a-tat controlled passing scheme to cruise to a 42-17 victory.

The gritty effort did not match the production for the Warriors, who lost their third in a row in falling to 2-3 overall and 0-2 in the Western Athletic Conference. The Bulldogs are 2-3 and 1-1.

"It's embarrassing to get beat like this at home," wideout Rodney Bradley said. "I can't put it any other way. It's a tough loss. More so, because it was at home. It's embarrassing."

Slotback Greg Salas said; "We couldn't put together drives. We'd get a couple of plays here and there. Once we got into the red zone, we fizzed. ... When it's 35-3, that's the offense's fault."

After three consecutive road games, the Warriors were in Aloha Stadium for the first time in 36 days.

They also wore all green for the first time since 1998.

Still, they were not dressed to thrill.

Not after two breakdowns on special teams — a blocked field-goal attempt and a muffed punt return — set up two touchdowns.

Not when the four-wide offense bent the Bulldogs' defense, but then broke in the red zone when the outcome was still in suspense. One drive ended with an end-zone interception; another imploded because of five penalties, including two holding violations.

The Warriors had hoped to back the Bulldogs into pass coverage, then peck away with runs off trap blocks or passes into the flat.

But after the Bulldogs raced to a 28-3 halftime lead, UH head coach Greg McMackin conceded, "that sort of changes your game plan."

"We had great effort and great attitude," McMackin said. "Our guys never quit. They fought until the end. But you can't turn the ball over like that. We gave away two touchdowns."

Center John Estes said: "It was execution. I thought we played pretty good. We played hard. We didn't make the plays. We made so many mistakes. We gave them points. We're not good enough of a team to give up points and still win."

Sophomore Bryant Moniz made his first UH start at quarterback in place of Greg Alexander, who underwent season-ending knee surgery last week. Moniz, a walk-on, was the fourth-string quarterback entering training camp.

Moniz was at the controls when the Warriors' first possession advanced to the FS 25. From there, Scott Enos was summoned for a field-goal attempt from 43 yards.

But the kick was low, and Andrew Jackson's arms were high. That combination resulted in a block. Fresno State's Ben Jacobs recovered the ball, and ran 48 yards before being tackled by Enos at the UH 8.

"I had enough time," Enos said of the field-goal attempt. "It was just a low kick, and they came in and blocked it."

It was the 81st block in Pat Hill's 13 seasons as Fresno State head coach.

Two plays later, Lonyae Miller scored on a 3-yard run.

On their next possession, the Bulldogs moved to the UH 19. After a timeout, quarterback Ryan Colburn remained on the FS sideline, and running back Ryan Mathews moved behind the center in a wildcat formation.

Mathews took the direct snap, faked a handoff to a receiver heading right, then sprinted around the left side for a touchdown to make it 14-0.

"I have to give credit to my boys on the o-line," Mathews said. "They opened the way."

It was 21-3 late in the second quarter, when the Warriors forced the Bulldogs to punt for the first time in the game. Robert Malone launched a punt into the Halawa rain.

UH's Ryan Henry ran up, then tried to make a diving catch. The ball bounced off the cradle of his arms, and was recovered by the Bulldogs at the UH 30 with 1:39 to play.

Eighty-eight seconds later, wideout Chastin West found a crease in the two-deep coverage, a yard from the left pylon, and scored the momentum-changing touchdown.

"I made a bad decision," Henry said of the dropped punt. "I thought I could catch the ball, attack the ball, and give us good field position. I should have let it bounce. ... I wanted to catch it, and get down. It just slipped through, and caused the turnover, which led to the score. That score was my fault."

The Bulldogs were able to milk the clock with their rotation of running backs.

Mathews ran 24 times for 149 yards.

Freshman Robbie Rouse gained 73 yards and scored two touchdowns.

In all, the Bulldogs gained 277 rushing yards.

"(Mathews) is quick," UH defensive end Elliott Purcell. "He's probably going to the (National Football) League. He's a legit running back. I think he's the best we're going to face all year."

Mathews entered as the nation's No. 2 rusher. He averaged nearly 7 yards per carry. Last night, he averaged 6.2 yards per rush; his 19-yard scoring run was his shortest of the season.

Most of Mathews' rushes came on inside-zone plays or lead draws, often with extra blockers bunched in front.

"Hawai'i plays hard on the island," Mathews said. "Their players did a good job of making the right reads. I have to give them a lot of credit. There's a lot of good hope for them. I think the next game they're going to get it."

McMackin said it was beneficial for Moniz to play the entire game. Moniz completed 24 of 52 passes for 283 yards. The Warriors dropped four passes, and a potential touchdown pass to Salas was nullified because of a holding penalty.

Of his interception in the end zone, after the Warriors drove to the 10, Moniz said he had noticed slotback Kealoha Pilares racing across.

"I didn't see (safety Moses Harris), that's for sure," Moniz said. "I saw Kealoha get open. I threw to a spot he was going to go to. There was another guy waiting."

McMackin said: "We were going in, and then all of a sudden we were going out. ... We moved the ball, but we weren't consistent. We have a young quarterback. He needs more experience. He did some good things, and he's going to do more good things. He's mobile, and he's a good quarterback. We're going to give him the experience. We're going to give him the time he needs."

Visit Tsai's blog at http://warriorbeat.honadvblogs.com.