From the Savannah Morning News:

NEW ORLEANS – A TV reporter asked Colt Brennan for his signature as the quarterback sat down to answer questions from the media here Saturday. Brennan also obliged when a stranger wanted to pose with him in front of camcorder this week on Bourbon Street.

The guy’s name was Geno Atkins. Yes, the Georgia defensive tackle who will try to put Brennan on his backside Tuesday in the Sugar Bowl stopped to meet Brennan when both were with some of their teammates one night this week.

“He was like acting like a groupie,” said defensive end Marcus Howard: “All of us gave him grief for that.”

“Geno wanted to just meet him,” defensive tackle Jeff Owens said. “He was taking pictures of everything we saw. He got Colt Brennan.”

Linebacker Dannell Ellerbe wasn’t thrilled when he heard the news.

“I’m going to have to get him about that,” Ellerbe said. “You don’t take pictures with the enemy.”

I’m here in New Orleans, and one thing that hits you right away:  the number one shirt here is a Colt Brennan jersey.  The area around the airport, and downtown New Orleans is filled with Hawaii fans wearing black, green and white.

Whatever happens with the outcome of January 1’s game, Hawaii fans should be proud of themselves that they’ve traveled so far, in such good numbers.

Hon. Advertiser: Georgia backup QB doing Colt impersonation

AJC: Brennan has put conviction behind him

AP: Brennan believes Hawaii’s “Dreadheads” are the best supporting cast in the nation

From their 29th edition:

Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan said he and Florida quarterback Tim Tebow compared notes on Georgia when the two were at the Heisman Trophy ceremonies in New York City earlier this month.

“He said [Georgia's was] the best defense he played and they gave him the most trouble,” Brennan said.

Tebow was sacked six times by the Bulldogs in a 42-30 loss in Jacksonville. Tebow’s advice?

“He said just get rid of it because they’re coming,” Brennan said. “They’re a very physical and very fast defense. They’re Georgia. They live up to their reputation and they’re just as good as they are any year.”

From STsai’s Advertiser Blog:

Colt Brennan and Davone Bess arrived in stormy New Orleans today.
“It’s great to be here,” said Brennan, who spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in Colorado.
Brennan’s sister gave birth to a daughter, Tea.
“I’m officially an uncle,” Brennan said.
Bess, who spent the past two days in Californa, Tyson Kafentzis and Brennan were on the same flight from Denver to New Orleans.
They arrived to a thunder storm.
Robert Kekaula said visibility was about eight feet.

Honolulu Star-Bulletin.

Honolulu Advertiser:

There have been hundreds of college graduation ceremonies across the nation this past week.

But only the University of Hawai’i’s fall ceremony featured a 2007 Heisman Trophy finalist, a commencement speaker wearing a replica of the star quarterback’s jersey, and a rousing 27-second ovation for the last College of Arts and Sciences graduate announced.

Then again, UH quarterback Colt Brennan is not an ordinary student, ensuring that yesterday’s commencement ceremony in the Stan Sheriff Center would not be an ordinary event.

The AP has an early preview of the Sugar Bowl matchup.

Colt was named the MVP of the team at an award ceremony last night. 

NY Times has its Heisman watch and writes this about Brennan:  “Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan: An invitation to New York for the Heisman ceremony will be the equivalent of winning the award.”  ESPN, meanwhile, has Colt at 5th.

The NY Times also writes on Colt and his 4 receivers being named Offensive Unit of the Year:

So in an unprecedented move, the W.A.C. is naming Hawaii’s offense the “Offensive Unit of the Year” in recognition of a group that racked up 6,351 yards this season and leads the country in scoring with 46.2 points per game. Brennan’s receivers — Jason Rivers, Davone Bess, Ryan Grice-Mullen and C.J. Hawthorne — distinguished themselves as one of the country’s top units.

Here’s the skinny from Benson: “Colt asked me in the locker room after the Washington game on Saturday night that if he was selected the player of the year, was there a way the W.A.C. could share the award with his boys. Once again, Colt impressed me with his unselfishness, and I told him I would do what I could. On the flight back to the mainland, I thought of this way to pay tribute to Colt and these four great receivers for the season each had and how they each contributed to the Warriors’ perfect 12-0 regular season.”

Hawaii will play Georgia on January 1 in New Orleans at the Sugar Bowl.

It is a BCS game, meaning Hawaii will likely receive a bowl payout that’s roughly double the size of its football program budget.

Obviously, I’ll post more on the game and the hype around the team and Colt Brennan as the biggest game in Hawaii history approaches.

Ferd Lewis:  Brennan’s performance once again spoke volumes

Honolulu Advertiser:  Brennan never doubted outcome

StarBulletin:  Seniors get perfect ending for the season

“If you were thinking about putting Brennan 1, 2 or 3 on your Heisman ballot, this is what you needed to see.”  ESPN

Barring unforeseen surprises, Hawaii will play in the BCS.

Hawaii’s defense, after a shaky first half, held strong against the Huskies in the second.

In a season marked by losses and upsets, Hawaii did something no other team in Division 1A football can claim:  go undefeated.

Colt Brennan, meanwhile, put together arguably his best game ever as a Hawaii player — completing an unreal 84% (42-50), 442 yards, and 5 TDs.  He did not throw a single pick.  Whether or not you believe Colt deserves to win the Heisman, how can he not get an invite to New York with a 84% completion performance in guiding his team to a 12-0 finish?  We’ll see how the Heisman voters answer.

As anyone in the state of Hawaii will tell you, no other sports season has ever captivated the state like this season has.  And tonight, Hawaii wrote the second to last chapter in its Cinderella storybook.  The date of its last chapter will be announced tomorrow.

Colt is preparing to play his final regular season game.  Honolulu Advertiser on the journey.  Stephen Tsai also notes that Colt and the Warriors are “on the brink of history” with a BCS game invite and perfect season on the line.

Can Washington slow down Brennan and No. 11 Hawaii’s passing attack?  asks the Seattle PI.

The NY Times profiles college QBs, including Matt Ryan, Oregon’s Dennis Dixon, and Colt, and their academic side.  The Times also has  a brief preview of the game, noting that “Things could get ugly for the Huskies, as they have the nation’s 85th-ranked pass defense.”