Stanford’s defense made some nice plays, including on Hawaii’s first offensive play, when Patterson strip-sacked Alejado, with Wilfredo Aybar recovering the loose ball in the end zone, which gave Stanford a 10-0 lead after the extra point.

Stanford started its season under interim head coach Frank Reich by falling to the Rainbow Warriors 23-20 in Hawaii to start a 2025 season playing with a record number of transfers.

Hawaii ended up answering the call, taking down the Cardinal 23-20. Early on, Stanford looked dominant, kicking an early field goal after marching down the field, followed by a strip sack that was recovered in the end zone. However, a poor performance on both sides of the ball blew the lead and led to a Cardinal loss.

Stanford and Hawaii will open the college football season on CBS at 7:30 p.m. ET from Honolulu, with Stanford having won all four previous meetings.

HONOLULU (Island News) -- Hawaii opened 2025 with a dramatic 23-20 win over Stanford on Saturday. Hawaii kicker Kansei Matsuzawa nailed a 38-yard field goal with no time remaining to give the Rainbow Warriors their first win over a Power Four team since 2019.