It wasn't just the touchdowns. Or the 405 yards of total offense the University of Hawai'i football team amassed in its 24-0 blanking of Idaho that should have caught your eye.

It was the ways the Warriors went about this by-the-numbers Western Athletic Conference-opening victory Saturday that spoke the most eloquently. And, it was who did the talking.

It was freshman slotback Devone Bess batting a pass out of bounds rather than take a 10-yard loss by making the catch. Or, allowing a defender a shot at the ball. It was another freshman slot, Ryan Grice-Mullen, who had helped extend a Bess catch with a block. And, it was quarterback Colt Brennan and his receivers working together with a growing familiarity and, at times, even ease.

The Warrior receivers, a unit surrounded by question marks just a month ago, supplied some exclamation points. A corps long on potential began paying some immediate dividends.

"We're getting better every week and a lot of guys have begun to step up," said receivers coach. "They're catching the ball better, dropping fewer balls and doing more after the catch."

Of course, Idaho wasn't Southern California or Michigan State by the longest of shots. There were no Darnell Bings to be found roaming the secondary. But just as surely, these Warriors aren't the same as the ones who appeared in the opener, wide-eyed and tentative.

They were more comfortable and confident. They were sharper in their route running, sure-handed in their receiving and crisper in their blocking. With 36 catches spread among eight receivers, it was also a group effort.

"We're showing people what we're made of (as a unit)," said Bess, who had 10 catches, two of them for touchdowns, and 106 yards in receiving.

Bess, Michael Washington, Ian Sample and Andre Taylor had personal bests in a game where the only setback was a knee injury to Sample.

"What you find is that after one or two start to get on the same page, soon it will become three or four guys," said quarterbacks coach Dan Morrison.

As they become more familiar with the offense and each other, the Warriors are spending less time thinking about what they have to do and where they have to be and are reacting instinctively.

"We can play with more speed and intensity now," Brennan said. "We're getting more comfortable with each other and our roles."

For one week, at least, the Warriors in the passing lane against Idaho were proof of that.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.