2005 Hawaii Warriors football team

The 2005 Hawaii Warriors football team represented the University of Hawaii at Manoa in the 2005 NCAA Division I-A football season. Hawaii finished the 2005 season with a 5–7 record, going 4–4 in WAC play. The losing record was the first for Hawaii since 2000 and the team did not play in a bowl game for the first time since 2002.

The 2005 season saw the addition of former Atlanta Falcons and Houston Oilers head coach Jerry Glanville as the team's defensive coordinator. The season began with a blowout road loss at Michigan State and a blowout home loss to Southern California. The season also included heartbreaking defeats at home to Boise State, Fresno State and Wisconsin, but concluded with a win against San Diego State.

Schedule
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Southern California
Matt Leinart threw for 332 yards and three touchdowns as top-ranked Southern California started its quest for a third straight national championship with a 63–17 victory over Hawaii.

The Warriors (0–1) kept it respectable until the Trojans erupted for four touchdowns in the third quarter, including two scores in 10 seconds, to take a 49–10 lead.

Reggie Bush, a Heisman finalist, rushed 12 times for 86 yards and two touchdowns, including a 41-yard score that put the Trojans up 21–3 at the break.

Hawaii used two untested quarterbacks in Colt Brennan, a junior college transfer and the backup to Leinart at Mater Dei High School in Orange County, CA, and second-year freshman Tyler Graunke. Both made their Division I debut.

Brennan went 21-for-32 for 250 yards and a touchdown. Graunke had 127 yards passing and led the Warriors with 43 rushing yards on seven carries.

With the loss, Hawaii's eight-game winning streak at Aloha Stadium came to an end.

Michigan State
Drew Stanton completed 21 of 26 passes for 301 yards and three touchdowns to lead Michigan State to a 42–14 win over Hawaii.

It was the second straight dominant offensive performance for Michigan State (2–0), which rolled up 499 yards of offense against the Warriors (0–2).

Hawaii, which traveled more than 4,000 miles to East Lansing, has lost its last six road openers.

Michigan State scored 35 straight points before Colt Brennan connected with Davone Bess on a 3-yard TD pass late in the third quarter for Hawaii. The Warriors moved the ball, collecting 359 yards in total offense, but it didn't translate to points.

Brennan completed 23 of 31 passes for 219 yards and two TDs for Hawaii. He got the majority of playing time over Tyler Graunke.

Michigan State has won four of five meetings between the two programs. The Spartans' only loss in the series was last year, 41–38, at Hawaii.

Idaho
Colt Brennan completed 34 of 44 passes for 347 yards and three touchdowns, leading the Warriors to a 24–0 victory over Idaho in the Western Athletic Conference opener for both teams.

Brennan completed at least four passes to six different receivers, and his first-half scoring throws to Ross Dickerson and Davone Bess covered 11 and 17 yards, respectively. He added a 7-yard touchdown pass to Bess in the fourth quarter.

Hawaii (1–2) also performed well defensively, holding Idaho (0–4) to 153 total yards, 112 of which came through the air.

The game was Idaho's first as a member of the WAC. The Vandals spent the previous four years in the Sun Belt Conference.

Boise State
Orlando Scandrick returned two blocked kicks, including the game-tying extra-point attempt with three minutes left, in a wild 44–41 Boise State win over Hawaii.

The Broncos (2–2, 1–0 Western Athletic Conference) scored 37 second half points, including two special teams touchdowns, to extend their conference winning streak to 27 games.

Hawaii (1–3, 1–1) was led by Colt Brennan, who threw for 426 yards and four touchdowns.

After Hawaii's game-tying extra point attempt was blocked, Scandrick scooped up the ball and sprinted the length of the field to seal the win for Boise State. He also returned a blocked field goal 69 yards to give Boise State a 35–28 lead early in the fourth quarter.

The Warriors' aggressive defense, installed by new defensive coordinator Jerry Glanville, shut down the Broncos in the first half, forcing five punts and three turnovers in the Broncos' eight possessions. But the Broncos offense warmed up in the second half.

Boise State hasn't lost a conference game since Nov. 3, 2001.

Louisiana Tech
Mark Dillard rushed for 155 yards and two touchdowns to help Louisiana Tech to a 46–14 win over Hawaii.

Running back Freddie Franklin had two touchdown runs of four yards each for Tech (2–2, 2–0), which stacked up 476 yards total offense, including 327 on the ground. Patrick Jackson ran for 75 yards on 14 carries.

Tech beat Western Athletic Conference rival Hawaii (1–4, 1–2) for the first time in four meetings.

Colt Brennan finished 23-of-33 for 236 yards and wideout Devone Bess had eight receptions for 79 yards for the Warriors.

Tech trailed just once in the game, after Hawaii went up 7–3 on a 28-yard touchdown pass from Brennan to Bess in the first. After Dillard sprinted past several Hawaii defenders for his 59-yard touchdown, Tech never trailed again.

New Mexico State
Colt Brennan threw for a career-best 515 yards and seven touchdowns, and Ryan Grice-Mullen had four touchdown receptions to lead Hawaii to a 49–28 victory over winless New Mexico State.

Brennan tossed touchdown passes of 3, 15, 17, 4, 9, 2 and 44 yards for the Warriors (2–4, 2–2 Western Athletic Conference), who put on an aerial display and didn't call a running play until the fourth quarter.

Grice-Mullen finished the night with nine catches for 137 yards. He was one of three Hawaii receivers with more than 100 receiving yards.

The 28 points was the most scored this season by New Mexico State (0–7, 0–3), which averaged just 12 points in its first six games.

Both teams moved the ball effectively in the first half in the battle of two of the nation's worst defenses. Each team entered the game allowing nearly 40 points per contest.

San Jose State
Colt Brennan passed for 457 yards and three touchdowns and Nate Ilaoa's 7-yard touchdown run with just more than five minutes left put Hawaii ahead for good in a 45–38 victory over San Jose State.

Hawaii (3–4 overall, 3–2 Western Athletic Conference) beat the Spartans for the fifth straight time and sent San Jose State (1–6, 0–4) to its sixth straight loss and 10th straight conference defeat.

San Jose State trailed by as many as 17 points before Al Guidry tied it at 38 with 8:57 remaining in the game with a 25-yard touchdown run on a reverse.

But the Spartans couldn't hold off the pass-happy Warriors and Brennan, who threw for 66 yards during an 80-yard scoring drive that ended with Ilaoa's TD with 5:26 to go. Then, Warriors safety Dane Porlas ended San Jose State's hopes with an interception against Spartans quarterback Adam Tafralis with 55 seconds left.

Fresno State
Wendell Mathis ran for career-best 229 yards and three touchdowns, including a 78-yarder late in the fourth quarter, to lead No. 22 Fresno State to a 27–13 victory over Hawaii.

The victory was the first at Aloha Stadium for Fresno State since 1994 and kept the Bulldogs (6–1, 4–0 Western Athletic Conference) atop the WAC standings with Boise State.

Brennan was 35-of-54 for 327 yards and a TD pass, and freshman receiver Davone Bess caught 14 passes for 158 yards. It was the fifth consecutive 100-yard receiving game in the past six games for Bess.

With only a few minutes remaining in the game, the Warriors (3–5, 3–3) easily drove to the Bulldogs' 6 and threatened to tie the game. But Colt Brennan's fourth-and-goal pass was tipped away near the goal line with 2:46 left.

Trying to run out the clock, Mathis burst through the line of scrimmage and sprinted 78 yards to seal FSU's fifth-straight win.

The Warriors' run-and-shoot offense racked up 456 yards of offense against the Bulldogs, who entered the game allowing a WAC-best 290.2 yards a game.

With the victory, Fresno State improved its record at Aloha Stadium to 2–11 since 1965.

Nevada
Jeff Rowe passed for 204 yards and two touchdowns and ran for a third while B.J. Mitchell ran for a career-high 150 yards and two scores as Nevada beat Hawaii 38–28.

Kamehameha Schools graduate Caleb Spencer caught two touchdown passes and Robert Hubbard added 88 yards rushing for the Wolf Pack (5–3, 4–1 in the WAC), who are bidding for their first winning season since 1998.

Colt Brennan completed 29-of-43 passes for 409 yards and three touchdowns, but he was sacked five times and intercepted once. Davone Bess had 12 catches for 171 yards and a touchdown for the Warriors (3–6, 3–4 in the WAC), who needed a victory to keep alive any hopes for a bowl berth.

The Wolf Pack's 4–1 league mark is their best since they finished 4–1 in the Big West Conference in 1997.

Utah State
Colt Brennan threw two touchdowns and ran for another to lead Hawaii to a 50–23 victory over Utah State.

Brennan was 24-of-36 for 386 yards for the Warriors (4–6, 4–4 Western Athletic Conference) before sitting out most of the final quarter. He has thrown for 3,572 yards and 27 TDs this season.

Hawaii erupted for four unanswered touchdowns in the decisive second quarter, including a 1-yard plunge by Brennan that gave the Warriors a 34–3 halftime lead. The 28 points were the most given up in a quarter by Utah State since 2001.

The loss was the fifth straight this season for the Aggies (2–7, 1–5). Utah State has lost 10 consecutive games on the road since defeating Nevada-Las Vegas on Sept. 25, 2004.

It was the first meeting between the schools since Utah State defeated Hawaii 48–0 in 1966.

Wisconsin
Brian Calhoun ran for 149 yards, including 133 in the first half, and a touchdown to lead No. 24 Wisconsin to a 41–24 victory over Hawaii in Barry Alvarez's final regular-season game with the Badgers.

Wisconsin (9–3) snapped a two-game skid and are headed to the Capital One Bowl on Jan. 2nd.

Badgers quarterback John Stocco was nearly flawless, going 12-of-16 for 191 yards passing and two touchdowns. He also had a 1-yard scoring run on fourth-and-goal late in the third quarter to put the Badgers up by 17.

Colt Brennan was 33-of-53 for 403 yards and three touchdowns, but had problems with Wisconsin's aggressive defense. He has now thrown for 3,975 yards and 32 TDs in his first year with the Warriors.

The Badgers sacked Brennan five times, intercepted a pass in the fourth quarter and forced him to fumble on Hawaii's 9, which was converted to a 24-yard field goal by Taylor Mehlhaff, giving Wisconsin a 27–10 lead.

Hawaii wideout Ryan Grice-Mullen had 11 receptions for 140 yards and joined Davone Bess in the 1,000-yard receiving club. Grice-Mullen has 1,062 yards this season.

The Warriors (4–7), who have one more regular-season game next weekend, couldn't get their high-powered offense fully going. Hawaii has failed to reach the postseason for the first time in four years.

San Diego State
Colt Brennan threw for 326 yards and five touchdowns as Hawaii put on an offensive show and defeated San Diego State 49–38 in the season finale for both teams.

Ryan Grice-Mullen had 10 catches for 167 yards and three TDs for the Warriors (5–7) who racked up 588 total yards of offense and ended their season on a winning note, but failed to reach the postseason for the first time in four years.

Down 21–7, the Warriors scored three touchdowns in the final 2:50 of the first half, including two scores in 13 seconds, to take a 28–21 lead at the break. The last two TDs, catches of 13 and 10 yards by Grice-Mullen, came off of San Diego State turnovers.

The Aztecs (5–7) not only had a difficult time keeping up with Hawaii's short and speedy receivers, but also Hawaii's running attack.

Nate Ilaoa rushed 15 times for 151 yards and became the first player this season to break 100 yards rushing for Hawaii. He caught an 11-yard touchdown pass and ran 25 yards for another score to give the Warriors a 49–24 lead in the fourth quarter.

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Statistics

 * QB Colt Brennan: 350/515 (68.0%) for 4,301 yards and 35 TD vs. 13 INT. 99 carries for 154 yards and 2 TD.
 * RB Nate Ilaoa: 85 carries for 643 yards and 6 TD. 36 catches for 274 yards and 1 TD.
 * WR Ryan Grice-Mullen: 85 catches for 1,228 yards and 12 TD.
 * WR Davone Bess: 89 catches for 1,124 yards and 14 TD.
 * WR Ross Dickerson: 51 catches for 725 yards and 4 TD.
 * WR Chad Mock: 42 catches for 502 yards and 1 TD.
 * WR Ian Sample: 12 catches for 172 yards and 1 TD.
 * K Dan Kelly: 10/14 on field goals and 42/42 on extra points.