University of Hawai'i sophomore quarterback Colt Brennan led the Warriors to two field goals on their first three possessions, sat one out and threw an interception on his first pass upon re-entering.

Then he caught fire.

Brennan led Hawai'i to four consecutive touchdown drives over the final 9:25 of the first half as the Warriors routed Utah State, 50-23, last night at Aloha Stadium.

Brennan finished 24 of 36 for 386 yards and two touchdowns.

By design, freshman Tyler Graunke came in for Brennan on the final drive of the first quarter, but UH was forced to punt after one first down.

Brennan took over on the next possession and was picked off by Josh Taylor on the first play.

"We were just struggling early on and most of it was me," Brennan said. "I didn't have the confidence behind my throws. I was just messing around out there and not doing anything right.

"Once I threw the interception I kind of got mad at myself and the team was right there to say, 'Don't worry about it.' So we bounced back, no more messing around, no more screwing up, let's go win this football game and we rolled from there on out."

Freshman receiver Ryan Grice-Mullen said: "Colt does a real good job of taking one play and then clearing it after that. So he was OK after (the interception)."

Brennan's 6-yard scoring pass to freshman Davone Bess capped a 7-play, 73-yard drive and made it 13-3.

After the Warriors recovered a fumble by Aggies quarterback Leon Jackson at the Utah State 21, Brennan didn't complete a pass, but the Warriors were aided by two defensive pass interference penalties and scored on a 1-yard run by David Farmer with 5:55 left before halftime.

Utah State went three-and-out on its next possession, and UH needed just two plays to score. Brennan completed a 57-yard pass to junior Ross Dickerson to the Aggies' 3. On the next play, Nate Ilaoa rushed in to make it 27-3 with 3:09 left.

After another three-and-out, the Warriors took over at their 36. Brennan completed five consecutive passes for 59 yards, scrambled for four yards and scored on a 1-yard sneak with six seconds left before intermission.

Dickerson had six catches for 112 yards, Bess had five receptions for 110 yards and two touchdowns, and Grice-Mullen made five catches for 88 yards.

"The receivers did a great job today and they've been doing a great job for me all year," Brennan said. "They got open and did all the right things."

Empty feeling: The announced turnstile crowd of 22,456 was the lowest in five home games this season. The previous low was 28,196 for a nationally televised game against Fresno State on Oct. 29. The home attendance has decreased with each game this season.

Taking a stand: The Warriors' defense allowed only three first downs in the first half — all on the same drive. On eight first-half possessions, the Aggies gained 81 yards on 30 plays.

Kicking it up notch: UH freshman Daniel Kelly, who has had a number of kicks blocked this season, booted a career-best 46-yard field goal to cap the game's opening possession. His previous best was a 44-yarder against Idaho on Sept 24.

Military's best: Armed Forces Services Awards were presented to Enrique F. Johnson Jr. (U.S Army), Irvine R. Rash III (U.S. Navy), Zhi-Cheng Chen (U.S. Marines), Stephen Hueftle (U.S. Air Force), E.H. Nunley (U.S. Coast Guard), Mark Coulbourne (Hawaii Air National Guard) and John Ala (U.S. Army Reserves) prior to the game.

Reach Kyle Sakamoto at ksakamoto@honoluluadvertiser.com.