Boise State survives test from Hawai’i behind another big night from Jeanty

HONOLULU – They were able to survive the Hawai’i test. 

Hawai’i (2-4, 0-2 Mountain West) fought hard but came up short on Saturday, falling to nationally-ranked Boise State (5-1, 2-0 MWC) inside Clarence T.C. Ching Complex, 28-7. Despite holding the 17th-ranked Broncos to a season low in points, the Rainbow Warriors struggled again offensively as Brayden Schager was sacked eight times and the rushing attack stalled out for a season-worst 15 yards. 

Heisman-hopeful Ashton Jeanty totaled 217 yards rushing, scoring a pair of touchdowns in the win over UH as the back set a new program record with his fifth career game with 200+ yards on the ground and third-such game this season. 

Things got off to an auspicious start for Hawai’i, seeing three catchable balls hit the turf to go three-and-out after receiving the opening kickoff. To make matters worse, starting safety Peter Manuma was injured on punt coverage and was sidelined for the rest of the game before the defense had taken a snap. 

Jeanty then ripped off a 13-yard run on the first play for the Broncos and quarterback Maddux Madsen found tight end Cam Camper down the field for a 32-yard gain a few plays later to convert on third down and enter Rainbow Warriors’ territory. After UH defensive tackle Dion Washington got home for a sack, Boise State was forced to settle for a 24-yard field goal for the game’s first points at the 10:14 mark of the opening quarter. 

The Broncos added during the next drive, seeing Jeanty glide for a 54-yard touchdown run and make it 10-0 immediately after Hawai’i captain and defensive tackle Ezra Evaimalo was ejected for targeting after a hit on Madsen. The 50-plus yard score was the longest touchdown Hawai’i has allowed this season and was Jeanty’s eighth touchdown from 50+ yards out this year. 

The Rainbow Warriors looked like the offense had a response cooking on the ensuing drive, marching down the field into Boise State territory as Schager connected on a pair of long passes to Nick Cenacle and Pofele Ashlock. The drive fizzled out on the BSU 13 when Schager took a sack and Kansei Matsuzawa’s 39-yard field goal attempt went wide to begin the 2nd quarter, keeping Hawai’i scoreless. 

Boise State added another field goal with seven minutes remaining in the first half, converting on multiple third and fourth downs and short to keep the drive rolling before the Hawai’i defense got off the field with a stand inside their own 10. 

UH lost Ashlock on the next drive after the sophomore was blasted high by BSU safety Alex Tuebner, who was ejected for targeting after the play was reviewed. The Hawai’i offense made the most of the 15-yard penalty as Landon Sims took a screen 52 yards to get into Broncos’ territory and Schager found Tylan Hines for a 27-yard touchdown a few plays later to make it a one-score game before halftime. 

The sides traded stops in the 3rd quarter, holding the Boise State advantage at 13-7 with only 15 minutes left to play. Despite the Broncos driving into the red zone, the Hawai’i defense looked to stand tall as Jamih Otis broke a ball free from Jeanty’s hands for UH to recover at their own 8 – or so it was called on the field. 

After a lengthy review, Jeanty would be ruled down by contact and the Broncos retained possession as Hawai’i saw what would have been a game-changing turnover overturned with just over 12 minutes remaining in regulation. Boise State found Jeanty on the very next play for the running back’s first receiving score of the year, a five-yard touchdown catch that was followed by a two-point conversion to make it a 21-7 lead for the Broncos. 

It looked like Hawai’i would respond after the score, marching inside the Boise State 10-yard line with a five-minute long drive before penalties and another sack forced a 4th-and-goal try from 19 yards out for the Rainbow Warriors. Despite a leaping effort by Jonah Panoke, UH turned it over on downs with just over five minutes left in regulation.  

Boise State quickly delivered the dagger as a 13-yard Jeanty run had a facemask penalty added to put the Broncos out near midfield. Hawai’i was able to push BSU to a 4th-and-1, but a play-action strike to Austin Bolt for a 44-yard touchdown broke the backs of the Rainbow Warriors and made it 28-7 with under four minutes to play. 

Schager was taken down two more times on the final drive for Hawai’i, giving Boise State a total of eight sacks throughout the night against the Rainbow Warriors. The eight sacks by the Broncos are the most by a UH opponent since Louisiana Tech tallied nine in the 2018 Hawaii Bowl. 

Heisman-hopeful Ashton Jeanty totaled 217 rushing yards on 31 carries, cashing in on a pair of touchdowns (1 rushing, 1 receiving) in the win for Boise State. It was Jeanty’s sixth game of over 100 yards rushing this season and third outing over 200 yards on the ground. 

BSU quarterback Maddux Madsen finished the night completing 17-of-25 passes for 217 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Cameron Camper enjoyed his best game of the year with a season-high 111 yards on seven receptions, becoming the first Boise State receiver to eclipse 100 yards this season. 

Brayden Schager finished the night 21-of-36 passing the ball for 264 yards and a touchdown. The senior quarterback passed Cole McDonald for 4th all-time in career passing yards for the University of Hawai’i football program with 8,097 yards through the air while becoming the fifth player in program history to eclipse more than 8,000 total yards of offense. 

Nick Cenacle led UH with 59 yards on seven catches while Alex Perry enjoyed his best game of the year with six receptions for 57 yards in the loss. Hawai’i was without the services of Dekel Crowdus while Pofele Ashlock left the game with an injury in the opening half.  

Hawai’i will look to snap a two-game losing streak next Saturday as the Rainbow Warriors travel to Pullman to take on Washington State. Boise State heads into a bye week before returning to action on October 25 for a massive road game with conference title implications at UNLV.