Arizona Football: 3 takeaways from shootout loss to Hawaii
By Zach Bigalke
3. Cole McDonald was hot and cold in the win over Arizona
It certainly wasn’t a perfect game for Hawaii quarterback Cole McDonald, who threw three interceptions in the first half against the Wildcats. But McDonald also went off for 287 yards and four touchdowns on 25-of-32 passing in the first two quarters of play, and the Rainbow Warriors went into the locker room at halftime up 28-21 on their Pac-12 visitors.
His favorite target on the day, Cedric Byrd II, already had 10 receptions for 128 yards and three scores through the air by the intermission. At the start of the second half, it looked like McDonald and the Rainbow Warriors were about to pull away and turn a tight contest into a blowout. Byrd hauled in a few more passes, and the hosts went up by multiple scores.
But the turnover issues persisted in the third quarter, as McDonald threw across his body for a fourth interception. At that point, McDonald was 29-of-41 for 378 yards with four touchdowns and four interceptions. Head coach Nick Rolovich made a tough call at that point, benching McDonald in favor of redshirt freshman Chevan Cordeiro.
As Cordeiro drove the Hawaii offense downfield and helped put the hosts back ahead, it spelled the end of the night for McDonald. But if the Rainbow Warriors are going to make waves this year, they need McDonald to figure out how to stay hot more consistently with fewer gaffes like he displayed on Saturday in the season opener. A potential New Year’s Six run depends on their starter playing a full 60 minutes to that potential in every remaining outing.