UW Football | Hawaii's Brennan making most of second chance

Speaking via phone roughly 2,600 miles away, the voice of Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan comes through as rapid-fire as the run-and-shoot offense he operates so well, seemingly breathless.

He's talking about the excitement level in Hawaii this week as the Warriors prepare to host the Washington Huskies on Saturday night in what many are calling the biggest game in school history.

Win it, and Hawaii will finish the season 12-0 and almost certainly qualify for a BCS bowl for the first time, a berth that would give the school a chance to validate itself as a legitimate college football power.

It's everything Brennan said he hoped for when he decided to return to Hawaii for his senior season after a junior year in which he led the nation in touchdown passes (58) and passing yards (5,549) and briefly entertained thoughts of entering the NFL draft.

"I set out to be undefeated," he said this week. "I came back to be a winner my senior year. It wasn't about records but just about getting 12 victories in the regular season. I'm one week away from that. So it can be what I hoped for if I can get one more victory."

But maybe Brennan also didn't want to leave Hawaii because it's the place where he started over after his college football career was almost derailed before it could get started.

Brennan, a graduate of perennial prep power Mater Dei High in Southern California, signed with Colorado, where he redshirted in 2003. In January 2004, he was accused of entering a female student's room uninvited (while allegedly drunk) and failing to leave, earning several charges, including sexual assault.

He was convicted of first-degree criminal trespass and second-degree burglary (sexual assault was dropped) and sentenced to seven days in jail and four years probation. He was kicked off the team at Colorado, and after spending the following season at Saddleback (Calif.) Community College, found that his past was hard to escape.

A number of schools that would have been interested in him were scared off by his conviction.

Hawaii coach June Jones offered Brennan a chance to walk on and prove himself, holding out the carrot of leading what has become one of the most prolific passing offenses in college football — the Warriors have been ranked in the top five nationally in passing eight straight seasons.

Brennan took the challenge, as well as the starting job. His 126 touchdown passes are the most in NCAA history.

He has said he has no one to blame but himself for what happened at Colorado, but also that his discretions were exaggerated and shouldn't have resulted in almost being banished.

"There's a lot of ways you could look at it," said Brennan. "It was really weird what I went through at Colorado. It wasn't until after I went through that and I [came] to Hawaii that every dream I ever had as a kid has come true."

Brennan's stats aren't quite as staggering this season, due in part to missing one game and almost all of another due to injury. He has passed for 33 touchdowns and 3,732 yards, completing 69.9 percent of his passes. He says his ankle is still a little sore following Friday's win over Boise State, but should be fine by Saturday.

Washington coach Tyrone Willingham said the 6-foot-3, 196-pound Brennan "has a wonderful knack for knowing where his people are and he has a unique release that he can almost release it underhand and get it to people, which you don't really see a lot of."

Brennan also is aided greatly by a talented group of receivers, led by senior Davone Bess, an Oakland, Calif., native who signed with Oregon State but was let go after being sentenced to a juvenile facility for 15 months for allowing friends to put stolen merchandise in his car. He came to Hawaii in 2005, the same year as Brennan, and Bess has tied an NCAA record with three straight 1,000-yard receiving seasons.

NFL scouts remain somewhat mixed on Brennan, wondering how much of his success is due to the system and team, and how much is him. College coaches know he's almost impossible to stop.

"The passing game is all about timing and spacing, and their timing and spacing is excellent," said Fresno State coach Pat Hill, whose team lost to Hawaii 37-30 three weeks ago and also lost to Oregon earlier this year. "And don't ever underestimate the speed of their receivers. Oregon's a good football team with very good receivers and Hawaii's may not be as big ... but I felt they were a lot faster, and they could really run. They know what they are doing and Colt has a great release, and it's very hard to get to them because they get the ball out of there so quickly."

Just as suddenly as his time in Hawaii has come up, as well. Brennan is hoping now for the perfect ending.

"It's kind of a crazy story, and I'm sure there's a lot to be learned from it," he said of his path to Hawaii. "I'm just trying not to mess things up."

Bob Condotta: 206-515-5699 or bcondotta@seattletimes.com

A look at Heisman Trophy candidate Colt Brennan's three seasons as starting quarterback for Hawaii: