Stanford Survives Fourth-Quarter Scare, Holds Off Hawaii 37-27 in Tavita Pritchard’s Debut.

STANFORD, Calif. — Stanford appeared to have control of its season opener Saturday night. Then Hawaii nearly turned the game completely upside down. The Cardinal surrendered 20 fourth-quarter points after building a 16-point advantage, but Micah Ford's third touchdown of the night with 1:41 remaining helped Stanford escape with a 37-27 victory over Hawaii in the first game of Tavita Pritchard's tenure as head coach. Stanford led 23-7 entering the final quarter before Hawaii erupted offensively. Quarterback Micah Alejado guided three touchdown drives, including a 29-yard touchdown pass to DeVon Rice that put the Rainbow Warriors ahead 27-23 with just over four minutes remaining. The comeback, however, stopped there. Davis Warren responded with a composed final drive, completing all five of his passes for 58 yards. The Michigan transfer capped the possession by helping set up Ford's 2-yard touchdown run, giving Stanford the lead for good with 1:41 left. Ford finished the night with three rushing touchdowns and provided the Cardinal with a reliable option in the red zone when the game was on the line. “I’m just happy that we have a quarterback that can lead us through that and stay poised in that type of situation because it’s definitely not easy,” Ford said. Stanford then put the game away defensively. On Hawaii's final possession, Alejado fumbled, and Stanford linebacker Tevarua Tafiti recovered the ball and raced 31 yards for a touchdown. The defensive score turned a tense finish into a 10-point victory for the Cardinal.

Warren Makes Strong Stanford Debut

Warren provided plenty of encouragement in his first start for Stanford. The quarterback completed 22 of 34 passes for 310 yards and a touchdown without committing a turnover. It was his first start since the end of the 2024 season at Michigan, when he helped the Wolverines defeat Ohio State and Alabama. Warren missed the 2025 season because of a knee injury before transferring to Stanford. After winning the starting job during the summer, he delivered a strong performance in his Cardinal debut. His biggest plays came down the field. Warren connected with JonAnthony Hall for a 57-yard completion and later found freshman Zion Robinson for a 48-yard gain that brought Stanford down to the Hawaii 4-yard line. Both plays helped set up Ford touchdown runs. Warren also found Atticus Joseph for a 6-yard touchdown during the game. Stanford's passing attack consistently created opportunities, with five different Cardinal receivers finishing with at least 40 yards.

Hawaii Nearly Completes the Rally

For much of the night, Hawaii struggled to keep pace with Stanford. That changed dramatically in the fourth quarter. Alejado completed 30 of 50 passes for 269 yards and two touchdowns, with both scoring passes coming during Hawaii's comeback attempt. The Rainbow Warriors took advantage of Stanford mistakes and momentum swings to erase what had been a 23-7 deficit. Special teams also played a major role. A botched fair catch on the opening kickoff of the second half left Hawaii starting a possession at its own 6-yard line. After the Rainbow Warriors failed to pick up a first down, Charlie Eckhardt blocked the ensuing punt, resulting in a safety. Despite those mistakes, Hawaii continued fighting and eventually grabbed the lead before Stanford regained control. Pritchard, who took over the Cardinal program this offseason, said finishing games has been a major emphasis since the team's spring work. “It’s been a theme throughout our entire early goings together through the offseason, in the spring, up until training camp is how we finished,” Pritchard said. “We finished tonight.” Stanford ultimately did just that. The Cardinal avoided what would have been a historic fourth-quarter collapse and opened the Pritchard era with a victory.

What’s Next

Hawaii returns home next Saturday to host UNLV.

Stanford faces a much bigger challenge in its next game, hosting No. 7 Miami on Friday.