NORTHERN COLORADO | SEPT. 1

Feeding an appetite for destruction, the 23rd-ranked University of Hawai'i football team feasted on lower-division Northern Colorado for a 63-6 rout in Saturday night's season opener.

A gore-gawking crowd of 36,845 watched the Warriors dominate in every which way.

Colt Brennan launched his Heisman Trophy candidacy by completing 34 of 40 passes for 416 yards and six touchdowns - all in the first half. Brennan was out of uniform for the second half.

The Warriors' defense, under coordinator Greg McMackin, forced three turnovers — two of which abbreviated the Bears' first two drives and led to UH touchdowns.

And punt returner Michael Washington and kick returner Malcolm Lane broke away for long touchdown returns to finish off what was decided in the game's first 15 minutes.

"We didn't want to come out and be like Michigan," said Washington, referring to the fifth-ranked team's loss to Division I-AA Appalachian State earlier in the day. "We wanted to make a statement. We wanted to come out and blow them out."

Brennan said the tone was set in the five practices leading to last night's game.

"We knew we had to take care of business," Brennan said. "That's what we focused on. We were very businesslike in our approach in this week's practices."

Of Brennan's six scoring passes, five were to different receivers.

His 19 first-quarter completions were a school record. So, too, were his 34 first-half completions.

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