Fresno State's offense and much-talked about running game put up 42 points in last night's Western Athletic Conference win over Hawai'i at Aloha Stadium, but it was the Bulldogs' defensive effort that earned the praise of their coach Pat Hill.

Despite gaining 368 yards of total offense, the Warriors were held under 300 passing yards for the first time this season. Fresno State also picked off UH quarterback Bryant Moniz twice in his first career start.

"I thought our defense played well tonight, very solid for three quarters," Hill said. "The pass rush was intense tonight, the pressure was very, very good."

After a blocked field goal on its opening drive, UH punted on its next two before Moses Harris' interception early in the second quarter. Fresno State capitalized on the error, scoring on a 17-yard TD pass to end the drive.

Junior linebacker Ben Jacobs kept busy against the Warriors. Jacob blocked Scott Enos' 43-yard attempt in the first quarter and returned it 48 yards to the Hawai'i 8-yard line. On the Warriors' second possession of the second half, Jacobs stepped in front of a Moniz pass and the Bulldogs again recycled the turnover into a score to make it 42-3.

"He's the glue to our defense," Fresno State defensive coordinator Randy Stewart said. "He's a guy who does a lot of things for us — like he showed tonight."

ROUSE MAKES IT HARD TO STOP BULLDOGS' RUN

There is no doubt that Ryan Mathews is the go-to back for the Fresno State offense, but freshman Robbie Rouse did his share of damage against the Warriors, as well.

Rouse, a 5-foot-7, 185-pounder, carried just six times, but gained 73 yards and scored twice — on runs of 34 and 16 yards.

"That's just a glimpse of what he can do," said Mathews, who entered last night's game second in the nation in rushing. "He's been putting in a lot of good work and he's a real tough, hard-nosed runner."

The Bulldogs finished with 277 yards on the ground and four touchdowns. Mathews carried 24 times for 149 yards — both game-highs.

"We've run the ball well all year, we haven't played against I-AA teams, we've run the ball against Wisconsin, Cincinnati, Boise for 300 yards," Hill said. "If we can run the ball we're a tough team to beat."

WARRIORS GET FLAGGED DOWN WHILE ON MOVE

The Warriors' woes on the offensive line continued last night. UH gave up just one sack for a loss of 9-yards, but the unit committed several costly penalties in the second half.

After Fresno State took a 42-3 lead late in the third quarter, the Warriors were flagged for five penalties on their ensuing drive.

A false start on first-and-10 was followed by a holding penalty on the next play. Three plays later, the Warriors were caught holding again and later in the drive, another false start cost UH five more yards. There was also a delay-of-game penalty later in the drive, which ended with a Bryant Moniz incompletion on fourth down.

"It was late in the game and anytime you struggle like this, it's just a breakdown mentally and physically," Warriors' guard Ray Hisatake said. "When we put together good drives like we were able to do tonight and we can't finish, it takes a toll on you and your mind."

NOTES

Last night's game was UH's first home game since the Sept. 4 season-opener against Central Arkansas — a span of 36 days ... The Warriors wore all-green jerseys for the first time since 1998 last night ... Blaze Soares was a game captain against Fresno State, along with team captains Rocky Savaiigaea, R.J. Kiesel-Kauhane and John Estes ... Fresno State now leads the all-time series 21-20-1 between the teams, UH is 14-10 in Honolulu ... The Bulldogs snapped a three-game losing streak to UH ... The Warriors lost back-to-back WAC games for the first time since 2005, when they lost at home against Fresno State and at Nevada.