HONOLULU — Colt Brennan expected a big night from his offense and got one.
Brennan threw for 296 yards and two touchdowns while running in another score as Hawaii defeated UNLV 42-13 on Saturday night.
Davone Bess caught 10 passes for 124 yards and a touchdown and Nate Ilaoa ran for 104 yards and two scores for the Warriors (1-1), who racked up 583 yards of total offense, including 359 in the first half.
"We expected to battle for four quarters, but we knew there was an opportunity to let it fly and go nuts out there," Brennan said.
The Warriors raced to a 42-0 lead behind Brennan's hot hand. He was 24-of-35 before coming out of the game, along with the rest of Hawaii's offensive starters, late in the third quarter.
Brennan completed his first nine attempts for 106 yards and two touchdowns as Hawaii scored on its first two drives. Bess and Ryan Grice-Mullen each caught 7-yard touchdown passes to put Hawaii up 14-0.
"It helped a lot that we got off to a good start early on," Brennan said. "That got them out of the game early, and it kind of opened up the gates for us to do whatever we want."
Brennan later scored on a 1-yard sneak, capping an eight-play, 93-yard drive that gave Hawaii a 28-0 lead at the half.
Grice-Mullen had seven catches for 111 yards — his second-straight 100-yard receiving game.
An 8-yard scoring run by Ilaoa pushed the Warriors' lead to three-touchdowns. He also had a 7-yard TD run in the third that made it 42-0.
The Rebels (1-2) finally got on the scoreboard with 3:51 left in the third quarter on David Peeples' 1-yard run, making it 42-7.
UNLV also scored late in the game on a 15-yard pass from backup Shane Steichen to Rodelin Anthony. The extra point was blocked.
The loss was UNLV's 11th straight on the road. The Rebels haven't won an away game since beating Brigham Young 24-20 on Oct. 8, 2004.
"We're going to keep fighting. We're going to keep working. And we're going to work to make a big comeback," UNLV coach Mike Sanford said.
UNLV quarterback Rocky Hinds, who sprained his right knee in last week's game, struggled to find his targets. He was 13-of-37 for 166 yards with one interception. The transfer from Southern California was harassed all night by Hawaii's defense.
Sanford said Hinds didn't play like he's capable of.
The Rebels passing woes, also limited their ground attack. They were held to just 39 yards on the ground.
The Warriors, who had just 22 rushing yards in its season opener against Alabama, ran for 214 yards.
On UNLV's first play of the second half, Hinds threw an errant pass that was intercepted by safety Leonard Peters, who took it 33 yards for a touchdown that gave Hawaii a 35-0 lead.
Instead of punting or attempting a long field goal, UNLV failed to convert four fourth-down attempts in the first half.