Fresno State wasn't expecting to squash Hawaii on Saturday night, but that sure changed in a hurry thanks to a game-changing play on special teams.
Just three minutes into the game, Andrew Jackson and Kenny Wiggins crashed through the middle of the Hawaii line on a 43-yard field goal attempt and Jackson got his massive paws on the ball, giving Fresno State its first blocked field goal or PAT since Jackson blocked a kick against Boise State in November 2008.
Ben Jacobs scooped it up and returned it 48 yards to the Hawaii 8-yard line to set up a Lonyae Miller touchdown run.
Fresno State cruised to a 42-17 victory from there for its first victory at Aloha Stadium since 2005, and only the Bulldogs' third on the island since 1965.
"It set the tone for the whole game," Jacobs said of the block. "We were going to come at them full steam and shut down anything they got."
Fresno State quarterback Ryan Colburn tries to break away from Hawaii linebacker Blaze Soares in the first quarter of the Bulldogs' victory Saturday night.
That's what the Bulldogs did, repeatedly halting the Warriors' offense, intercepting two passes and making two key plays in the kicking game to snap its three-game losing streak and keep hopes of a Western Athletic Conference crown alive heading into this week's home game against San Jose State.
"The last couple games, we'd given up a lot of yards," Jacobs said. "We felt like we're not doing our part. The offense had kept us in these games and we felt like we had to come to the show and step up, and we did."
As rain poured down before halftime, the Bulldogs punted to Hawaii returner Ryan Henry, who ran up to catch the ball, but couldn't field it cleanly. Long snapper Bobby Shepard recovered, giving the Bulldogs the ball at the 30 with 1:39 to play in the half.
The Bulldogs once again took advantage, scoring on a Ryan Colburn pass to Chastin West for a 28-3 halftime lead.
On defense, the Bulldogs got an end zone interception from safety Moses Harris (the Bulldogs' second pick of the season and the second of Harris' career) early in the second quarter and a nice diving break-up by Desia Dunn to help force a field goal.
Jacobs added a third-quarter interception to further stifle the Warriors' offense.
Harris' interception was perhaps the most important defensive stop of the night.
Trailing 14-0, the Warriors had the ball at the Fresno State 44-yard line after a Lonyae Miller fumble.
On first-and-goal from the 10, quarterback Bryant Moniz thought he found receiver Kealoha Pilares open on the right side of the field. He didn't see Harris lurking, and the senior snuck between Pilares and the ball to snuff out the drive and the Warriors building momentum. It was the Bulldogs' third defensive turnover of the season.
"At that point, things were a little bit on eggshells," said defensive end Chris Carter. "But we had faith in our DBs, and they came through for us."
Fresno State didn't allow a touchdown until the fourth quarter, after reserves began to trickle onto the field.
It was a big change after the Bulldogs' pass defense got exposed in their previous game by Cincinnati, which had three passing touchdowns on lightning-quick scoring drives.
Carter credited the team's work ethic during practices for the improved play.
Said Carter: "[The defensive backs] held their guys up and gave us a chance to get a pass rush on him, and we were able to affect the throws a lot."
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