Warriors get creative vs. Broncos
BOISE, IDAHO >> The Boise State football team is known for motions, shifts and gimmick plays.
But it was Hawaii that broke out innovative plays during Saturday’s Mountain West championship game at Albertsons Stadium.
On fourth-and-1 in the second quarter, the Rainbow Warriors’ unveiled their big-back package. Hekili Keli‘ilki was aligned as the fullback with 5-foot-11, 250-pound Dayton Furuta as the wildcat quarterback.
The Broncos looked at that formation, then immediately called a timeout.
>> Click here to see photos of the game between Hawaii and Boise State.
“We put it in for this game,” Furuta said. “Unfortunately, they called a timeout before we could get the snap off.”
Keli‘iliki declined to elaborate who would end up carrying the ball or whether Furuta would pass.
“We wanted to see how they would react,” Keli‘iliki said, “and they ended up calling a timeout. But we have a real play.”
Offensive coordinator Brian Smith said: “It was a good short-yardage play for us. Getting creative in the goal line, I think those things are good for the players, good for the team.”
On another play, right-handed quarterback Cole McDonald faked a handoff to running back Miles Reed. McDonald then slipped the football into his left hand, and hid the ball behind his back. McDonald moved the football back into his right hand, but threw incomplete.
Kaneshiro gets third interception
Nickelback Kai Kaneshiro’s fourth-quarter interception was his third pick of the season, matching safety Ikem Okeke’s total.
That eclipsed Kaneshiro’s output as a Saint Louis School senior in 2017.
“I had only one interception my senior year,” Kaneshiro said. “That was in the first game. I have three this year.”
Kaneshiro credits coaching, 20/20 vision and reading offenses.
“Being in position to have my eyes on the quarterback has really helped me,” said Kaneshiro, adding that for Saturday’s pick, “I kind of used my speed to jump on the ball.”
Warriors will fly home on charter
A little more than an hour after the final whistle, the Warriors were on buses heading to Boise International Airport. As a title-game participant, the Warriors were provided with round-trip charter flights. The Warriors traveled with 74 players.
This was only the second time in four years the Warriors were on charter flights between Hawaii and the mainland. The Warriors usually travel on a commercial flight across the ocean. They often use charter flights between mainland points.
