30

New Mexico
UNM

5-7, 3-4

38

winner

Hawaii
HAW

5-7, 3-4

30

38

winner

Points by quarters

team	1	2	3	4	F
UNM New Mexico	0	9	7	14	30
HAW Hawaii	7	14	10	7	38

Match Review: Football | November 30, 2024

HONOLULU – At Senior Night, it was an underclassman who stole the show. True freshman quarterback Micah Alejado broke out in his first career start, leading the University of Hawai’i football team to a 38-30 victory over the New Mexico Lobos in Saturday night’s season finale at the Clarence TC Ching Athletic Complex.

Alejado broke the UH starting debut records for passing yards and passing touchdowns with 469 yards and five touchdowns. He did this on 37 of 57 passes, both of which are also UH records for a debut start. Alejado broke head coach Timmy ChangNick Rolovich’s record for completions (37) and Nick Rolovich’s record for attempts (57) in a starting debut. Alejado added 54 yards on the ground, giving him 523 total yards of offense and breaking Cole McDonald’s record of 514. Alejado’s 469 passing yards and five passing touchdowns are both UH freshman records.

Through Week 14, Alejado has the most passing yards by an FBS rookie in a game this season, and he is tied for the most passing touchdowns by an FBS rookie in a game this year.

Senior receiver Spencer Curtis finished his first 100-yard game of his career and led a group of five UH receivers to finish with over 50 yards receiving. Nick Cenacle added 93 yards while Jonah Panoke And Pofele Ashlock totaled 86 and 79 yards, respectively. Dekel Crowdus recorded a 52-yard touchdown catch, his only catch of the game, while Ashlock and Cenacle each caught a touchdown pass. senior Tamatoa Mokiao-Atimalala caught two touchdown passes in his final game as a Rainbow Warrior.

It didn’t take long for Alejado to start the night of his career. Wedged deep at his own 6-yard line, Alejado faced a tough test on his first drive as the starting quarterback. He passed that test with flying colors, completing seven of his first nine passes and leading the Rainbow Warriors on a 94-yard opening rush. Alejado finished the drive with a short pass to the left to Ashlock for the three-yard score.

After New Mexico tied the opening score with a three-yard touchdown from Devon Dampier, the Bows offense went back to work. The first scoring drive lasted 12 plays. This one only needed three. On the third play of the drive, Alejado found Crowdus deep down the field for a 52-yard score.

The Lobos countered with a 36-yard field goal to cut the deficit to 14-9. Hawaii responded with two unanswered shots on goal. Alejado connected with Mokiao-Atimalala for the duo’s first touchdown, a 15-yard catch-and-run, in the final minutes of the second quarter. He led UH with another scoring drive early in the third quarter, hitting Cenacle at the right pylon for a three-yard touchdown that gave UH a 28-9 lead. New Mexico scored again on another touchdown by Dampier Kansei Matsuzawa added a 19-yard field goal as UH led 31-16 in the final quarter.

The Lobos threatened with two points late in the fourth quarter. Dampier scored his third rushing touchdown of the game while NaQuari Rogers added another rushing touchdown. But Alejado’s three-yard touchdown pass to Mokiao-Atimalala between those two Lobos scores gave the Rainbow Warriors the cushion they needed.

The Bows invented clutch plays on the final drive of the game. Alejado completed an 11-yard pass to Curtis on a crucial 3rd^approx-and-10 followed by a Cam Barfield 13-yard rush. Alejado sealed the win with a 19-yard rush to the 2nd^nd-and-6 to set up two knee fights for the win.

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