There is no place like home.
Playing on campus for the first time in school history, a hot start drove the University of Hawaii football team to a 49:35 win over Portland State on Saturday night. Nick Mardner “put the arcs on the board less than five minutes after the opening start at the Clarence TC Ching Complex and brought a 23-yard rainbow from junior quarterback Chevan Cordeiro to the far left corner of the end zone to give Hawaii the early” Momentum
The ‘Bows scored three more touchdowns in the first quarter to build an early 28-0 lead. As Portland State finally got their offensive underway, a pattern of errors – Hawaii flipped the ball three times during the night – helped the Vikings close the gap to 14 points. Hawaii’s secondary school struggled to contain the Viking air strike, allowing Portland State quarterback Davis to throw Alexander 400 yards.
Cordeiro recovered from a tough game in last week’s season opener against UCLA, throwing 305 yards and three touchdowns on 18 of 25 passes and adding 66 yards on the ground. Hawaii’s second running back Dae Dae Hunter led all rushers on the night by 126 yards, 59 of which came on a touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
Hawaii’s offense benefited from a series of big plays highlighted by a dazzling 34-yard scoring run by Calvin Turner Jr. in which the senior ran backwards nearly 20 yards behind the line of scrimmage and overtook Portland State’s defense to reach the end zone.
The 49 points marked the most points Hawaii has scored in a game under head coach Todd Graham, beating last year’s high of 39.
The ‘Bows (1-1) will take to the streets next Saturday when they travel to Corvallis, Oregon to take on the Beavers of Oregon State. Kick-off is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. HST in the Reser Stadium.
