University of Hawaii kicker Rigo Sanchez did not have time for the pain.

Not during Wednesday’s practice, the next-to-last in Manoa ahead of Saturday’s football game at Nevada. Not after practice, when he will study videos of his punting, place-kicking and kick-off techniques. And not the rest of the day, when he will use any free time to stretch, a way to keep his right leg strong and flexible.

“It’s definitely a test for me to see if I can come back on top, and keep looking forward, and kind of forget about it even though it was really tough,” said Sanchez, referring to his missed field-goal attempt from 22 yards the past Saturday. New Mexico then went 80 yards for what proved to be the decisive touchdown drive in a 28-27 victory.

“I felt so bad,” Sanchez said. “I felt the whole team was counting on me, including the coaches, everybody. I felt it had a lot to do with the kick I shanked. I felt terrible. An apology won’t matter because we still got the loss. It won’t fix anything. I’m going to try to do way better than I did last week.”

Head coach Norm Chow became emotional in supporting Sanchez.

“I think he feels he’s shouldering the blame for us not winning, and that’s not the truth,” Chow said. “He’s a tremendous young man. … He’s a team guy. He’s a wonderful young man. People can say what they want to say, but I feel for this guy. He didn’t try to miss the field goal.”

Sanchez had connected from 49 and 47 yards earlier in the game. The 22-yard attempt, which followed a broken third-down play, was launched from the right hash. It was a difficult angle, but Sanchez said: “I’m always practicing (kicking from) everywhere. I don’t know what happened on that play. I was trying to be as focused as I could.”

Sanchez said he was using the same technique for the 22-yarder as he did for the 49-yarder. “I felt like I killed the ball too much, like I wanted to hit it too hard, when I shouldn’t have,” he said.

Sanchez should have been awarded a re-kick. A New Mexico defender landed on top of short-snapper Brodie Nakama, an action that is a penalty.

“From what I know, it’s against the rules,” Nakama said. “You can’t do anything about it now.”

After the game, defensive end Makani Kema-Kaleiwahea told Sanchez: “If we were to pick any kicker in the nation, we’d pick you. You can do it all.”

Later, Kema-Kaleiwahea said: “In that kind of situation, it’s unfortunate for him. It wasn’t his fault. The offense had a chance to score. The defense had a chance to stop them. We told him to keep his head up. It’s not his fault. It’s everyone’s loss. It’s a team loss.”

Sanchez said: “I got a lot of support from everyone. They said it wasn’t my fault. I appreciate that. I appreciate them. But it just sucks. I feel like it’s my fault.”

He said several family members will make the three-hour drive from California to attend Saturday’s game.

“I’m excited,” he said. “I need to do my best in every aspect — field goals, punting. I definitely need to come out there with a more positive mind-set and forget about what happened and keep looking forward. I’m pretty confident in my abilities. I’m not perfect every week, but I try to get better.”