Hawaii football routed out of bowl contention by Wyoming

In a game it needed to keep its bowl hopes alive, the University of Hawaii football team was routed by Wyoming 42-9 on Saturday.

Hawaii lost the battle for the Paniolo Trophy and fell out of bowl contention in the process, falling to 4-8 overall for the 2023 season, including 2-5 in Mountain West Conference play.

Wyoming, on the other hand, solidified its bowl status, improving to 7-4 overall and 4-3 in Mountain West play.

For Wyoming, the game was won in the first half, as the Cowboys sprinted to a 35-0 halftime lead.

Wyoming got the scoring started early, needing just one minute of game time to go 75 yards on its opening drive, capped off by a 44-yard pass from Andrew Peasley to Ryan Marquez.

The Cowboys doubled their lead on an 89-yard touchdown reception by John Michael Gyllenborg on the first play of their next drive, leading 14-0 with just 10:58 remaining in the first quarter. Hawaii was unable to score on fourth-and-goal at the Wyoming 2 on its next possession, and the floodgates opened from there.

Peasley was masterful for Wyoming, completing 14 of his 17 passes for 319 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. Defensively, Easton Gibbs had a game-high 11 tackles.

For Hawaii, Brayden Schager completed 25 of his 44 passes for 278 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.

The Cowboys ran for 154 yards on 32 carries and three touchdowns, while Hawaii rushed 34 times for a total of 67 yards and no scores.

Next up for Hawaii is its regular season finale against Colorado State, which will also double as UH’s senior night. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at the Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex.