First-year coach John Zamberlin and his staff used a bold, but risky, defensive scheme in guiding the Bengals over the much more heralded Portland State Vikings by a 38-20 score at Holt Arena in Pocatello, Idaho.
Idaho State did what no other defense in the Big Sky was brave enough to do against Portland State, the nation's top passing attack. Despite injuries to their own secondary, the Bengals bottled up the Vikings' run-and-gun offense by bringing pressure and letting their defensive backs play one-on-one with Portland State's receivers.
“It's awful nice to get this when nobody picked us to win,” said Zamberlin to the Idaho State Journal. “We're gonna be a tough team, and a team that plays hard.”
The Bengals defense more than just played hard; it kept the Orange and Black in the game. Idaho State (2-3 in league, 3-4 overall) trailed 13-3 at halftime, but got back into the game with two defensive scores on back-to-back possessions.
Portland State, which has been unpredictable this year to say the least, fumbled inside Bengals' territory and ISU defensive tackle Micah Cloward scooped up the loose ball and rumbled 65 yards for a touchdown.
Seven plays later, with the Vikings nearing the red zone, PSU fumbled again. This time Idaho State senior DB Sterling Mennear picked up the pigskin and rolled 76 yards for a score and a 17-13 lead.
“We didn't stuff them all the time, but we bent and we never broke,” said Mennear in the State Journal. “To come up with key interceptions and key fumbles in critical situations is huge for us.”
The Bengals finished with one interception, five fumble recoveries and nine sacks of Portland State senior QB Brian White. The Vikings (2-2, 2-5) were held to just 87 yards passing in the first half.
“They're defense did a good job the whole game,” Portland State coach Jerry Glanville said. “They gave us more problems than anyone we've played, with a lot of blitzes and straight man-to-man coverage. We didn't expect that.”
Snow surprise
The biggest shock in Eastern Washington's 42-7 loss to Brigham Young was not the power running game by BYU's Harvey Unga or the gang-tackling Cougar defense, but rather it was the wicked weather.
“I'm originally from Northern California and I definitely have not played in a game like that,” Eastern Washington QB Matt Nichols said in the Provo Daily Herald. “I have only played in a couple of rain games in my life, so in a way it was kind of neat, but it sucked to be behind 42-7 during it.”
The game started in the cold, but by the time blizzard-like conditions enveloped LaVell Edwards Stadium, BYU was firmly leading thanks to its special teams and defense, which produced three turnovers.
“It was a game where we made some real critical mistakes and we gave them opportunities to score points,” EWU coach Paul Wulff told the Daily Herald. “Obviously our interceptions, a kickoff return, and a couple of punt situations where they had great field position gave them opportunities to score a lot of easy points. I surely didn't feel like the score was indicative of the quality of the game.”
Of all the BYU players Wulff was impressed with Unga the most, at least what he could see of the running back through the wintry conditions. Unga had 141 yards and two scores.
“He is not only a big guy but he is a running back that has got good vision and he has got great timing when looking for the blocks,” Wulff said. “He is a great back.”
Unga is an example of the difference between Football Bowl Subdivision teams and Football Championship Subdivision teams.
“The kids are a little bit bigger and sometimes speed plays a part,” Wulff said. “Although I feel that our team speed is pretty good, so I don't think that was much of a factor. But when you play BYU you are also playing older kids, more mature kids because of missions, and there is a maturity factor that goes on there.”
Big-time Barnhart
Montana State tight end Elliott Barnhart doesn't fit the prototypical mold of a “playmaker,” but that's exactly what the senior co-captain has been.
And on Saturday, Barnhart showed why.
The 231-pound Broadus native chugged 39 yards down the sideline in the fourth quarter of the Bobcats' 20-9 victory over Sacramento State last Saturday in Bozeman.
The play gave MSU a 10-9 lead in the early stages of the fourth quarter, but it was a game-buster considering the Cats had been able to muster just a single field goal after three drives inside the Hornets' 10-yard line.
“There wasn't a bigger play,” MSU coach Rob Ash said to the Bozeman Daily Chronicle. “It was a great catch by Elliott, with that much traffic right in front of him.”
The catch, one of two on the day, was the longest of Barnhart's career. The grab wasn't that impressive, but shaking one tackler and then racing the rest of the distance was. Afterward, Barnhart played it low-key.
“I was basically doing my job,” he said. “Cory (Carpenter) put it right where it needed to be. I just turned and there was the end zone.”
Barnhart caught the go-ahead touchdown a few weeks back when the Bobcats went for it on fourth-and-goal against Idaho State.
Players of the week
Offense: Cole Bergquist, Montana. The junior from San Clemente, Calif., completed 26 of 35 passes for 293 yards and four touchdowns in Montana's 52-7 win over Northern Colorado. The completions, yards and touchdowns were all career highs. Defense: Cyrus Igono, Northern Arizona. The junior from Phoenix recorded 14 tackles, recovered a fumble and returned an interception for a third-quarter touchdown in NAU's 29-20 win at Weber State. Sterling Mennear Idaho State. The senior from Pocatello, Idaho, tallied seven tackles, a sack, forced a fumble, and returned a fumble 76 yards for a TD in ISU's 38-20 win over Portland State. Special teams: Eric Fisher, Montana State. The sophomore from Billings hit a pair of key second-half field goals and averaged 39.7 yards per punt in poor weather conditions as MSU rallied for a 20-9 win over Sac State.
Quote of the week
‘He may never have coached in the NFL, but he just beat an NFL coach.'
- Mary Ellen Zamberlin, wife of ISU coach John Zamberlin, after his Bengals beat PSU
Game to watch
Montana at Northern Arizona: The league's top two teams square off in the high altitude of Flagstaff, Ariz. The third-ranked Grizzlies broke out of an offensive funk in a big way by blasting league doormat Northern Colorado. The Lumberjacks are the next hottest thing in the league, having won their last three in a row.
Rankings
1 Montana (7-0): The best gets a test this weekend.
2 Montana State (5-2): Banged-up Bobcats get break this week with winless UNC Bears.
3 Northern Arizona (5-3): Jacks felling everything in their path. Put 3-0 streak on the line.
4Eastern Washington (4-3): After snow loss, back to Big Sky play with trip to sunny California.
5 Portland State (2-5): Could be the most dangerous 2-5 team in all the FCS.
6 Weber State (2-5): Still playing tough. No surprise if Cats double their wins here on out.
7 Idaho State (3-4): A big win deserves another, right? Cal Poly's 2-0 vs. Big Sky this fall.
8 Sacramento State (1-6): Lost three straight since NAU win. Not looking good.
9 Northern Colorado (0-7): Not much movement on offense, not much movement on this poll.
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