It was a cool evening in Honolulu as the Black Knights of Army took the field against the Rainbow Warriors of Hawaii. Army needed a win to even their season record at 6-6 and keep their hopes for a bowl bid alive.
The first half of the game was a see saw battle, and the game remained close until Hawaii returned an interception for a 100 yard touchdown in the 4th quarter to put the game out of reach. Hawaii converted two Army turnovers into scores that proved to be the difference in the game.
First Quarter - Army and Hawaii trade scores for a 10-10 tie
Army received the opening kickoff to start from their own 25. Quarterback Kelvin Hopkins rolled out and found slotback Artice Hobbs wide open for a 69 yard pass to the Hawaii 6 yard line. Hawaii held the Black Knights to 3 yards on the next two running plays, but on third down, fullback Sandon McCoy took a pitch and ran the ball in to give Army an early 7-0 lead.
Hawaii called a fair catch to start their first possession on their own 25. Hawaii QB, Cordiero began by completing 3 straight passes to midfield, and Miles Reed found a hole in the Army defense for a 30 yard gain to the Army 25, but Cordiero’s next two passes fell incomplete and a rush attempt was held to no gain; so Hawaii settled for a 42 yard field goal to close the lead to 7-3.
Army started again on their own 25. The Black Knights drove the ball on the ground to the Hawaii 19, but the Rainbow Warriors held them there, and David Cooper came in to kick a 32 yard field goal to increase Army’s lead to 10-3.
Hawaii returned the kickoff to the 44 to start their second possession of the game. Reed found an opening off tackle to carry the ball to the Army 26, and then Cordeiro found Byrd open over the middle for a two play touchdown to tie the score at 10-10.
Army started their third possession on the 25 with 2:33 left in the quarter and ran the ball out to midfield before time ended in the quarter.
Second Quarter - Army scores to retake the lead, but Hawaii converts an interception into a score and takes a 24-17 lead at the half
McCoy took a pitch from Hopkins for a 40 yard gain to start the quarter. Hopkiins gained 4 yards to the 6 and McCoy carried the ball in from there to regain the lead 17-10.
Hawaii started on their own _ and reached their own 41 before the Army defense forced them to punt to the Army 18, where the Black Knights stated their 4th possession.
Army picked up a first down in 2 plays, but the next two runs were dropped for losses, and Hopkins dropped back to pass on third down and threw a pass that Hawaii intercepted and returned to the Army 25. Cordeiro took advantage with a 25 yard touchdown pass to tie the score at 17-17.
Army started at the 25 and were held to 9 yards in their first three carries. Monken called a pass play on fourth down and Hopkins failed to connect with Cam Harrison and Army turned the ball over on downs at the 33.
A holding call on Hawaii moved the ball back to the Army 43, and Cordeiro lofted a long pass to the end zone that fell incomplete. His next pass was caught for a 23 yard gain to the 20. A running play was held for 1 yard, and Cordeiro’s pass to the end zone was incomplete bringing up a third and 9 at the 19. Cordeiro dropped back to pass and was flushed from the pocket, but he scrambled for a first down and goal at the 7. Cordeiro was injured on the play and Colt McDonald came in at QB. A running play picked up 2 and then McDonald found a receiver wide open for a touchdown to give Hawaii their first lead at 24-17.
Army started on the 25 and Kell Walker ran for 9 to the 34. On the next play, Hopkins cut loose for a 32 yard gain to the Hawaii 34, but he was injured on the play, and Christian Andersen came in to replace Hopkins. Three running plays gained 9 yards and Monken went for the conversion. It appeared that Andersen had the first down, but Army was called for a chop block and Zach Potter came in to punt it into the end zone with 41 seconds left in the half.
McDonald completed a couple of passes to the Army 49, but Arek Smith sacked McDonald for a 4 yard loss with 2 seconds left and time ran out on the next play.
Third Quarter - Both teams score twice as Hawaii holds onto it’s 7 point lead at 38-31.
Hawaii returned the opening kickoff to the 24 to start the half. Two complete passes moved the ball into Army territory at the 35. McDonald’s next pass fell incomplete, but his next pass was good for 16 yards to the 19. Reed gained 18 to the Army 1 and then finished the drive to extend Hawaii’s lead to 31-17.
Christian Anderson opened Army’s first drive of the half with three long rushes to pick up 3 quick first downs to the Hawaii 30; and Connor Slomka ran it in from there to narrow Hawaii’s lead to 31-24.
Hawaii started their next possession on their 27. McDonald completed 9 of his 11 pass attempts and Reed ran twice for 18 yards as Hawaii marched 73 yards in 11 plays for another touchdown to extend their lead to 38-24.
Anderson launched the next drive with a 40 yard run to the Hawaii 35. Three more running plays gave Army another first down at the 22. Another 2 running plays reached the Hawaii 10 and Malek Hancock took a pitch from Christiansen to run it in from their and close the gap to 7 points again at 38-31.
McDonald passed Hawaii to the Army 47 before time ran out in the quarter.
Fourth Quarter - Hawaii scores 14 unanswered points to seal the win
The defense came alive to force a punt by Hawaii, but the punt coverage team downed the ball on the Army 1 yard line, and Army had to start the fourth quarter deep in their own territory
McCoy plunged for 4 yards to give Army some breathing room, but Walker was dropped for a three yard loss to put Army back in a deep hole with 3d and 9 at the 2. Christiansen lofted a pass to Cam Harrison who was wide open, but the pass was just beyond Harrison’s reach and Army was forced to punt from their end zone. Zach Harding got off a 67 yard punt all the way to the Hawaii 31.
McDonald’s next three passes fell incomplete, and Hawaii was forced to punt the ball back to Army. Akyah Miranda fielded the punt on the Army 17 and returned it 12 yards to the 29.
McCoy started the drive with a two carries to the 41. Slomka came in at FB and gained 6 yards in 2 carries before Christiansen ran for 5 and another first down. Walker spun his way to another first down at the Hawaii 35. Two FB drives gained 5 yards to the 30, but Christiansen was stopped for no gain on third down, and Monken went for the conversion, calling ford a pass play. Christiansen lofted a soft pass to the end zone that was almost picked off by Hawaii, but instead the Rainbow Warriors took over on downs at their own 30.
Hawaii gained 6 yards on two plays, and on third and 4, McDonald completed a short pass to Byrd who ran 45 yards to the Army 20. Army held for 2 downs, but then McDonald connected with Smart in the end zone for another Hawaii TD to regain their 14 point lead at 45-31.
Army attempted a lateral on the kickoff, but it turned out to be a forward pass, and Army had to start from their own 7. Andersen ran for 5 yards and completed a 15 yard pass to Harrison for a first down, but then a holding penalty on offensive lineman Dean Powell set Army back to the 17. Andersen took a hard hit on his next run but stayed in the game. On the next play he attempted a pass on the run and toppled over from the injury he took on the previous play. That brought freshman Jamel Jones in as the third Army QB of the game. Jones took the offense to the Hawaii 4 yard line, but on the next play Hawaii intercepted his pass to the end zone that was picked off and returned 100 yards for the final touchdown that increased Hawaii’s lead to 52-31.
Brandon Walters attempted to run the ball out of the end zone on the ensuing kickoff, but was dropped inside the 15. Fortunately for Army, Hawaii was off-sides on the kickoff and had to kick over. This time Walters returned the ball to the 40, but the offense was unable to move the ball, and time ran out in the game.
Quickie Stats
- Army rushed for 411 yards and the three Army QBs passed for another 127 for a total of 538 yards.
- Hawaii intercepted two of Army’s 11 pass attempts.
- Hawaii had 133 yards rushing and 359 yards passing for a total of 492 yards.
More to Come in our Monday Morning Quarterback Analysis
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