Hawaii hosted No. 17 Boise State in front of a sellout crowd at the Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex on Saturday evening.
Opportunity once again slipped away for the University of Hawaii football team in a 28-7 loss to No. 17 Boise State on Saturday night.
Hawaii fell to 2-4, while Boise State improved to 5-1.
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In front of a turnstile crowd of 13,467 at a sold-out Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex, Hawaii trailed just 13-7 in the fourth quarter.
In what was possibly the last conference meeting between the ‘Bows and the Broncos before Boise State departs for the Pac-12 in 2026, Heisman Trophy candidate Ashton Jeanty ran for 217 yards on 31 carries and a touchdown.
After Boise State took an early 3-0 lead, the star running back exploded for a 54-yard touchdown with 5:48 left in the first quarter, extending the advantage to 10-0.
Hawaii had a chance to score to begin the second quarter, but Kansei Matsuzawa’s 40-yard field goal was off the mark.
The Rainbow Warriors were determined on defense, holding the Broncos to another field goal.
Down 13-0, Hawaii cut into the deficit with a 27-yard Brayden Schager touchdown pass to Tylan Hines, trimming the Boise advantage to 13-7 with 3:24 in the first half, a score that led into the break.
After a scoreless third quarter for both teams, Hawaii appeared to force a Jeanty fumble on its own 8. Following a lengthy review, the call was reversed and Boise State scored on the next play on a 5-yard touchdown pass from Maddux Madsen to Jeanty and converted the ensuing 2-point try to go up 21-7 with 12 minutes left.
Boise State’s final dagger came on a fourth-and-1 at the Hawaii 44 in which Austin Bolt caught a play-action pass from Maddux Madsen for a touchdown with 3:39 left in the contest.
Jamih Otis had a game-high seven tackles for Hawaii, while Elijah Robinson had five, including a sack. Meanwhile, Boise State’s Jayden Virgin-Morgan had a team-high six tackles and 2.5 sacks.
Schager completed 21 of his 36 passes for 264 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions. He also ran for a net gain of five yards despite getting sacked eight times.
During the second quarter, a 14-minute delay occurred when an official had an apparent medical emergency and left in an ambulance after standing up on his own.
Hawaii will next hit the road for a contest at Washington State, which kicks off at 9:30 a.m. HST on Oct. 19. It will be televised live on the CW Network.