Hawai'i offensive coordinator Ron Lee said he is committed to improving a football offense that struggled in the second half of Friday's 27-7 loss to nationally ranked Boise State.

"Honestly, I don't feel any pressure," said Lee, who has endured scrutiny from critics this season. "I wish we could be doing better for the team's sake."

The Warriors have been shut out in the fourth quarter of five consecutive games. After a strong start against Boise State, the Warriors imploded in a four-interception second half. Inoke Funaki was intercepted five times in the nationally televised game.

Lee said Funaki made "some great throws and he made some bad ones," but that not all of the interceptions could be blamed solely on the junior quarterback.

"There was basically some miscommunication and some pressure," Lee said. "One of the interceptions, (Funaki) got hit in the arm as he released the ball."

Lee said the Warriors are supportive of Funaki, who will remain as the No. 1 quarterback for Saturday's game against Nevada.

Lee said Funaki has the best grasp of the Warriors' version of the run-in-shoot offense, which employs more rushing plays than in past seasons.

"No question, he's further along in what we're trying to do," Lee said. "We evaluate everything (the quarterbacks) do in practice. It's not just what they did in games last year. It's what they do in practice. Funaki is the guy who does the best in practice, or else we'd go with somebody else."

Lee praised the progress of top backup Greg Alexander, who transferred from Santa Rosa College in May. Against Boise State's second-team defense, Alexander was 3 of 4 for 44 yards. He was sacked twice.

Lee said Alexander has a strong arm and, at 6 feet 4, has a clear view of most of the passing lanes. But Alexander, according to Lee, is not as advanced in the running phase as Funaki.

Lee said Tyler Graunke, who is at least fourth on the depth chart, is trying to catch up for missing most of the team conditioning drills in the winter and summer, and all of training camp. Because Graunke was working on clearing up academic issues, he did not spend as much time in weight training as he had in past years.

The Warriors opted to incorporate more running plays into the offense to keep opponents from either dropping eight defenders into coverage or blitzing every down.

Lee said Funaki's mobility has put the pressure on defenses. "He can move around," Lee said.

Lee said Funaki played well in the first half against Boise State. A sure touchdown pass was dropped. A reception that would have given UH a first-and-goal was nullified because an offensive lineman was aligned too far off the line of scrimmage.

"I think Funaki is getting better every week with his throwing," Lee said. "No question about that."

But Lee said Funaki still is in the learn-as-he-plays phase of his career. "Colt (Brennan) went through the same thing his first year (at UH)," Lee said.

Lee noted that Funaki played in mostly "clean-up" roles the past two seasons. As the No. 3 quarterback last year, he received only a few reps every day in 7-on-7 and team drills.

"The good things he's doing are still outweighing the interceptions," Lee said.

The Warriors might be even further hindered this week. Kealoha Pilares, the team's best rusher and a capable slotback, suffered an injury to the top part of his right foot against Boise State. Pilares did not play the final three quarters. He was wearing a medical boot after the game, and is scheduled to undergo medical tests this week.