Hawaii Warriors vs Nevada Wolf Pack

November 1st, 2009 kNuke Posted in NCAA Football | No Comments »

The Nevada Wolf Pack defeated the Hawaii Warriors 31-21 behind the nation’s best rushing attack, which ended the game with 312 yards. Nevada quickly fell behind 14-0, but scored 28 unanswered points. Colin Kaepernick threw two TD passes and rushed for two more while Vai Taua added 127 rushing yards and a TD.

Offense: Bryant Moniz was 29-49 for 374 yards with 3 TDs and 2 INTs. Moniz played okay; he goes through his reads well, but he’s not accurate enough on most throws. Most importantly, unlike Alexander, he just doesn’t make enough plays. I’m willing to concede that Moniz is probably the best QB right now, but I really hope the coaches truly re-evaluate the QB situation next year.

Jovonte Taylor was explosive on his 71-yard TD catch, but he drops too many passes; regarless, he needs to move to slot. Kealoha Pilares needs to move back to RB. It’s sad to say, but Jon Medeiros is the most reliable WR. Greg Salas had a good game, no fumbles. The LWJ project didn’t pay off, it’s time to give Alex Green the RB job full-time to see if he can handle the duties without fumbling. The offensive line didn’t play very well and I’m tired of hearing Aaron Kia’s name.

The offense was able to move the ball and put up some yardage, but weren’t able to score points; 21 points is not going to get it done.

Defense: It’s the same story each week. This week was no different, but at least all Hawaii fans can take solace in the fact that Nevada leads the nation in rushing. Coach Mack has some heavy recruiting ahead of him to help this unit, which needs help at every spot.

Special Teams: Jovonte Taylor looked good again at KR. The punting turnover was great, but the rest of the punts were not very good; it’s a recurring theme. Scott Enos deserves a poor grade as well with a missed FG and an OB kickoff. Those directional kicks need to go.

Coaching: I really really really didn’t like kicking the FG or punting on 4th and 1. I still don’t understand why the defense didn’t force Nevada to throw the ball more. I understand that Hawaii doesn’t have a player capable of spying Kaepernick, but he should have been forced to throw more often. Again I have to ask, where is the creativity of offense/defense? Coach Mack will definitely have to make some changes to his staff at year’s end.

Final Word: Hawaii played better, but it wasn’t good enough. The effort looked good, but the talent of the coaching and players are just not enough.

Helmet Stickers:
Halloween Costumes – There weren’t too many sexy angels or devils, but the sexy bunnies, police, pirates, and Dorothy’s made up the slack. The Ghostbusters car was sweet and the Duck Tours pirate boat was ingenious, but the Best Costume goes to Cloud. I was surprised that there were no Coach Mack costumes; maybe next year?