The Hawaii Bowl ended in dramatic fashion on Christmas Eve, as Hawaii came back from a 21-point fourth-quarter deficit against Cal to win 35-31, even after losing its starting quarterback.
With 15 seconds left in the game, Hawaii’s backup quarterback, Luke Weaver, threw a 21-yard touchdown on his third pass of the day to Nick Cenacle to take the lead. Cenacle finished with eight catches for 59 yards and a touchdown.
Cal’s comeback attempt fell short after a series of laterals led to a fumble and a postgame fight between the two teams. Shoves from each teams led to both benches getting cleared, which led to the majority of the players on the field.
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This is the second consecutive day that a Bowl Game has ended with a post game fight after Louisville and Toledo ended in a scuffle the night before in the Boca Raton Bowl.
Despite going down late in the game, Hawaii freshman quarterback Micah Alejado was part of the comeback as much as anyone. Alejado was 32-of-46 for 274 yards and three touchdowns.
Alejado wasn’t the only prolific freshman quarterback in the game. Cal’s Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele finished 28-of-39 for 343 yards and a touchdown.
Hawaii receiver Pofele Ashlock finished with 14 catches for 123 yards and 2 touchdowns. Cal receiver Jacob De Jesus added 9 catches for 137 yards and a touchdown, while running back Kendrick Raphael rushed for 91 yards and a touchdown.
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Hawaii finished 9-4 in its fourth year under head coach and former Rainbow Warriors quarterback Timmy Chang. This was Hawaii’s first winning season since 2019, when Cal’s current interim coach and Chang’s former teammate, Nick Rolovich, led Hawaii to a 10-5 record.
Cal finished the year 7-6. Next year, it will be led by a new head coach after firing Justin Wilcox with one game remaining in the season. Cal hired former Oregon defensive coordinator and Cal defensive lineman Tosh Lupoi as its next head coach.
This news was originally published on this post .
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