When you are the University of Hawai'i football program and nearly 2,500 miles of ocean makes the term "road game" an impossibility for even your closest contest, travel is more Odyssey than mere trip.

When you rack up more air miles in a season than most NFL teams and are burdened by the reputation of having great difficulty winning away from home, you remember and cherish the victories you do earn.

Which is why, after the Warriors upset then-22nd-ranked Fresno State Saturday, UH's first road win over a nationally ranked team was not only celebrated but embraced as a landmark moment.

To give it historical perspective, we offer a Top 10 list of all-time UH "road" wins. Not included are games such as the 1992 Holiday Bowl victory in San Diego, Calif., against Illinois that were played at neutral sites.

1. UH 6, Nebraska 0, 1955. Less than 10 months after getting blown out 50-0 by the Cornhuskers in Honolulu Stadium, UH went into Lincoln as 30-plus point underdogs for what was heralded there as the Big Red "scrimmage" before Ohio State. Never letting Nebraska get inside the 30-yard line, UH stunned a Huskers team coming off an Orange Bowl appearance.

2. UH 32, Fresno State 29 (OT), 2008. The Warriors forced six turnovers and benefitted from quarterback Inoke Funaki's steady hand to get their first road victory over a ranked opponent in dramatic fashion with Dan Kelly's 33-yard field goal in overtime.

3. UH 28, Nevada 26, 2007. It was the night Kelly certified the "Iceman" nickname and helped the Warriors hang on to an unbeaten regular season, nailing a 45-yard field goal with 11 seconds remaining at a site where UH had not won before. Tyler Graunke passed for two touchdowns and ran for another in relief of injured Colt Brennan to beat bowl-bound Nevada.

4. UH 10, Washington 7, 1973. UH, then considered a "(small) college division" program, went into Husky Stadium where the defense stuffed UW on five crucial fourth-down situations — three times inside the UH 10. Then-UH defensive coordinator Larry Price was moved to call it "a spiritual landmark."

5. UH 24, Oregon 21, 1992. UH's road to the Holiday Bowl and an 11-2 season began with a season-opening upset of the Ducks at Autzen Stadium. Michael Carter and Ivin Jasper each threw touchdown passes and the defense, led by tackle Ma'a Tanuvasa, came up with big stops at the end. It remains UH's only road victory over a bowl-bound Pac-10 team.

6. UH 20, Southern Methodist 0, 1999. Dan Robinson passed for two touchdowns and the defense forced three turnovers as the Warriors ended one of the most ignominious streaks in school history — a seven-year, 24-game Western Athletic Conference road losing string.

7. UH 6, Air Force 3, 1992. The week after knocking off Oregon — and as Hurricane Iniki was preparing to hit Hawai'i — UH pulled out what is its only win in seven tries at the Air Force Academy. Jason Elam kicked two field goals and a career-long 78-yard punt and the defense forced two fumbles. Third-string quarterback Rodney Glover came off the bench in the first half in relief of Michael Carter and Ivin Jasper to help manage the victory.

8. UH 68, Fresno State 37, 2006. The Warriors slapped the worse loss in Bulldog Stadium history on the rival Bulldogs, nearly emptying the place before the fourth quarter in a six-touchdown (five by Colt Brennan) air assault. It remains the most points put up by the Warriors on the road.

9. UH 45, San Jose State 35 (OT), 2007. On national TV, UH scored twice in the final 3 minutes, 53 seconds of overtime, the game-tying score set up by Michael Lafaele's forced fumble, and then won it in overtime with a 9-yard pass from Brennan to Jason Rivers.

10. UH 21, California 7, 1994. UH scored twice on special teams and held the Bears scoreless for the final three quarters to spring the upset.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.