Hawai'i beats Cal, wins wild Hawai'i Bowl

Hawaii Rainbow Warriors head coach Timmy Chang. Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Hawai'i completes largest comeback in school history to win Hawai'i Bowl

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated Dec 25, 2025 11:24 AM ET

Over the course of a single football game, the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors managed to get blown out, come back, nearly found a way to lose in heartbreaking fashion and then won on a wild touchdown pass with 10 seconds to go.

Cal got out to a 21-0 lead in the second quarter before Hawai'i stormed back and took a 28-24 lead in the fourth. But the Golden Bears scored on a touchdown run from Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele with 1:57 to go, giving Cal the lead back and putting all the pressure on Hawai'i.

That was when Hawai'i backup QB Luke Weaver made a throw that will forever be remembered in Honolulu.

Hawai'i starting QB Micah Alejado was injured on Hawai'i's second-to-last offensive play of the game, putting the Rainbow Warriors in an interesting position — an opportunity to play it safe and kick a game-tying field goal, or an opportunity to go for a go-ahead touchdown.

YOU CAN'T MAKE THIS STUFF UP#BRADDAHHOOD x #GoBows pic.twitter.com/Z4yLxaEgqP
— Hawaii Football (@HawaiiFootball) December 25, 2025

Hawai'i chose the latter.

Weaver threw a dime to Nick Cenacle for the go-ahead score with 10 seconds to play, giving Hawai'i a 35-31 lead. After a failed Cal lateral and subsequent scrum between the two benches, the Rainbow Warriors walked away with a huge win.

Alejado also found plenty of success through the air, throwing for 274 yards and three touchdowns. Sagapolutele threw for 323 yards and a touchdown for Cal.

The win is the largest comeback in school history for Hawai'i and tied for the largest comeback in Hawai'i Bowl history.

2025 at a glance for Cal, Hawai'i

The Rainbow Warriors (9-4) finished the 2025 season with three wins over their last four games and two wins over ACC teams. In addition to their win over Cal (7-6) on Wednesday, they also beat Stanford to open their 2025 campaign.

Cal, meanwhile, lost four of their final six games.

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

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