University of Hawai'i quarterback Colt Brennan got David Klingler's NCAA single season record for touchdown passes — and his predecessor's hearty congratulations yesterday.

Brennan broke Klingler's mark of 54 early in the third quarter of the Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl with the second of five second-half touchdowns passes — 16 years after the University of Houston quarterback set it.

Speaking from Texas, where he is finishing up his doctorate at a theological seminary, Klingler said, "it (breaking the record) is quite an accomplishment and I congratulate him."

Klingler, who had hoped to watch much of the game, arrived home just after Brennan hit Ryan Grice-Mullins for a 7-yard TD pass to break the record with 8:46 left in the third quarter. "We just got home," Klingler said. "But I'm happy for him."

Earlier, Klingler had e-mailed The Advertiser asking that his "good luck" wishes be passed on to Brennan.

Klingler held the record since Dec. 1, 1990 when he threw for seven TDs and 716 yards in a 62-45 regular-season finale victory over Arizona State to break the mark of 47 set by Brigham Young's Jim McMahon.

Klingler's record survived four major challenges in the past five years.

Klingler said he wasn't very familiar with Brennan until the end of this season. "I don't get to watch many games these days but I know what it takes to set a record like that," Klingler said. "I know how good of an offense you have to be to put up those kind of numbers. So, congratulations are certainly in order."

Klingler said he expected his record to "fall eventually. It was just a matter of time before it was broken. Teams are throwing a lot more than they used to. They're playing more games."

Klingler set the mark in 11 games and did not play in a bowl game because the Cougars were on bowl probation but required 101 more passes than Brennan.

Klingler said he knew UH head coach June Jones in passing and was glad one of Jones' players got the record, "because they run an offense like ours."

With Brennan entering the game needing one TD to tie his mark, Klingler said, "in this kind of an offense if you don't throw for three or four touchdowns, the defense has done quite a job on you."

Klingler, now 37, was a first-round draft choice of the Cincinnati Bengals in 1992 and played six years in the NFL with Cincinnati and Oakland.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com.