Honolulu, Hawai'i - The New Mexico State Aggies fell to the Hawai'i Warriors 24-6 in Honolulu, Hawai'i, Saturday night. NM State moves to 3-7 overall and 1-4 in conference play, while the Warriors improve to 4-6 on the season and 2-5 in conference.
As a team the Aggies tallied 244 yards of total offense on the night, while allowing 485 yards to the Warriors, just 184 in the second half. Jeff Fleming threw for 111 yards on 12-of-21 passing and two interceptions, while Marcus Allen led the receiving corps with four catches for 42 yards. Tonny Glynn led the running attack with 74 yards, while Chris Buckner tallied a career-high 16 tackles on the night.
Defensive back Davon House recorded his second touchdown of the season with a 58-yard interception return, breaking the school record for interception return yardage in the process. House also tied the school record for most interception touchdown returns for a career. He now had two in his career.
The Warriors started with the ball in the second half and the Aggies defense forced a Hawai'i punt, giving the ball back to the offense. But the Aggie offense was stopped by the Warriors and forced to punt, as the score remained 17-0 with 10:22 to go in the third quarter.
Donyae Coleman's first career sack and a false start on Hawai'i made it third and long for the Warriors. Hawai'i could not convert and were forced to punt. The Aggies would muff the punt and recover back at their own 6-yard line. The Aggies would move the ball into Hawai'i territory on a Tonny Glynn, 20-yard line run. A holding penalty forced the Aggies into a throwing situation. Fleming would then throw his second interception of the game, giving the Warriors the ball back with just over two minutes to play in the third quarter.
On the Warriors second play of their next drive, Davon House recorded his third interception of the season, returning the ball 58 yards for a touchdown, pulling the Aggies with nine points at 17-6, after a missed extra point attempt. House's 58 yard return for a touchdown is the second of his career. It also broke the school record for interception return yardage in a career. He now has 271 interception return yards for his career.
On the ensuring kick off, Hawai'i marched the ball down the field in nine plays, scoring on a 12-yard pass play, giving the Warriors a 24-6 lead with 11:08 left in the game.
Neither the Aggies nor the Warriors could put anymore points on the board over the last 11 minutes of the game as Hawai'i was on top 24-6 as time expired.
The Aggies took the ball to start the game and quickly moved the ball down the field, on a 24-yard reverse by Marcus Anderson. NM State would get one more first down on the drive before having to punt the ball away to the Warriors.
Hawaii's passing game helped move the Warriors into NM State territory quickly. Hawai'i would covert on a fourth-and-three to keep their drive alive and put the Warriors inside the Aggies' 10-yard line. Two plays later the Warriors punched the ball in on 3-yard run up the middle to give Hawai'i a 7-0 lead with 7:03 to go in the first quarter.
The Aggies would go three-and-out on their next possession and after a short punt, the Warriors started with the ball at the NM State 48-yard line. Hawai'i moved the ball straight down the field on five plays, scoring on their second running touchdown of the game, extending their lead to 14-0 with 3:39 left in the first.
The Aggies next possession was highlighted by a 26-yard pass to Marcus Allen from Jeff Flaming, moving the ball into Hawai'i territory. The NM State offense would stall after a holding penalty and were forced to punt the ball away for the third time in the quarter.
Hawai'i got the ball back to begin the second quarter. The Warrior marched down the field, even converting on a third-and-long to move deep into the Aggies' side of the field. The Aggie defense tightened up and forced the Warriors to kick a field goal, making it 17-0 with 12:13 left in the half.
The Aggie offense again moved the ball into Warrior territory but on a second-and-10, Fleming threw an interception, giving the ball back to Hawai'i at its own 5-yard line. The Warriors converted on two third down plays to keep its drive alive, moving the ball inside the Aggies' 10-yard line. Again, the Aggie defense held the Warriors, this time forcing a missed field, as the score remained 17-0 with 4:13 to go in the half.
The next possession was a three-and-out for the Aggies, forcing another punt with just under three minutes to go in the half. Hawai'i took the ball into Aggie territory but failed to convert on fourth-and-12, giving the ball back to NM State. The Aggies would kneel on the ball, ending the half, trailing 17-0.
Fleming passed for 88 yards on 8-of-14 and an interception, while Marcus Allen led the receiving corps with three catches for 39 yards. Marcus Anderson led the rushing attack with 24 yards, while Chris Buckner tallied eight tackles to lead the defense in the first half. As a team, the Aggies tallied 141 yards of total offense, while giving up 310 yards of total offense to the Warriors.
Courtesy: Tim Barnett-Queen
