This date in UW football history: Wyoming 28, Hawaii 21 OT
LARAMIE -- Cassh Maluia played with just one hand in this one.
Well, that, and some other body parts.
With a bandaged up club on his right hand, Maluia turned a Garrett Crall tipped ball into a dagger on the Rainbow Warriors' first possession of overtime. He told the media he used his left hand. He joked that he also snagged the interception with his knees as he dove to the turf.
"I put my eyes on the prize," Maluia joked with the press postgame after picking off that Dru Brown pass to move the Pokes to 2-2 on the early season with the 28-21 victory on Sept. 23, 2017.
The Paniolo Trophy was staying in Laramie.
Wyoming struck quickly in the extra frame when Josh Allen hit James Price on a 25-yard scoring strike. Allen finished the day 9 of 19 for just 92 yards passing.
The Cowboys were led by running back Trey Woods, who carried the ball 15 times for 135 yards and a score. That touchdown came on a 34-yard jaunt to the end zone to open the scoring in the second quarter.
The guys from the islands weren't going down without a fight.
The 'Bows scored the next two touchdowns and added another in the fourth quarter on a 50-yard pass from Brown to John Ursua.
Hawaii (2-2) outgained the Cowboys 450 yards to 269. The first downs were lopsided, too. Like 24-11 lopsided.
The X-factor for the home team came in the form of one of its fastest players -- Tyler Hall.
With just :39 left in the third quarter, the Pokes' speedster flew threw Hawaii's return defense, taking a kick back 97 yards for a touchdown.
"The kickoff return hurt," Hawaii coach Nick Rolovich told the media. "Kudos to them, but that's going to hurt you in a close game."
An opportunistic Wyoming defense also played a major role, snagging a pair of Brown interceptions. Andrew Wingard caught the first one. Maluia's ended it.
"They put up a lot of yards tonight, but we made one more play than they did," Wyoming coach Craig Bohl said. "...The takeaway is the two interceptions, and they came at critical times."
Logan Wilson led the Cowboys' defense with 14 tackles and Wingard added nine. Rico Gafford tallied eight tackles and Youhanna Ghaifan, Jalen Ortiz and Maluia each racked up seven.
Watch the full highlights here:
Wyoming finished the season 8-5 overall, including a 37-14 win over Central Michigan in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. It was on the podium postgame, with snow falling from the Boise sky, that Allen announced he would be declaring for the upcoming NFL Draft.
Seven players on that Wyoming team are on current NFL rosters: Allen, Gafford, Maluia, Wingard, Wilson, Marcus Epps and Carl Granderson.
Other games on this date
Way back in 1961, Bob Devaney's Cowboys pulled off the 15-14 home upset of North Carolina State. Wyoming quarterback Chuck Lamson gave the Wolfpack fits on the ground all afternoon in front of 17,301 fans inside War Memorial Stadium.
Lloyd Eaton's 1967 squad hammered rival Air Force 37-10 in Week 2 of the season in Laramie. That was just one of 10 wins for a Wyoming team that punched its ticket to the Sugar Bowl and a date with the LSU Tigers.
In 1978, Wyoming traveled to Austin to take on the sixth-ranked Texas Longhorns. Though the Cowboys fell short, 17-3, they gave former head coach Fred Akers all he could handle in his second season in burnt orange. Texas finished the season 9-3 and knocked off Maryland in the Sun Bowl. Bill Lewis' squad went 5-7.
Paul Roach's team hosted the No. 19 Washington State Cougars in 1989. Wyoming was coming of back-to-back Holiday Bowl appearances and beginning to rebuild. Though the Cougars won 29-23, Wyoming gained confidence and Wazzu lost five of its next seven.
R.W. McQuarters and the Oklahoma State Cowboys paid a visit to the high plains in 1995. It was a rematch of the 1988 Holiday Bowl. A game in which future Heisman Trophy winner Barry Sanders led the Cowboys from Stillwater to a 62-14 blowout victory. There wasn't as much on the line for Joe Tiller's team this time around, but the outcome sure looked different. Wyoming rolled to a 45-25 win in Laramie, handing OSU its third loss in four games.