Texas State came into the Kibbie Dome with a chance to become bowl eligible during only its second full season in the FBS. Idaho’s goal was to start a home winning streak and garner a win in front of a large home audience during Dads’ Weekend. But it was the Bobcats whose goal came through as they beat the Vandals 37-21 Saturday at the Kibbie Dome.
Philip Vukelich | Argonaut
Wide receiver Najee Lovett attempts to spin out of a tackle during the Dads’ Weekend game on Saturday against Texas State. Lovett, a senior, will play his last home game Saturday against Old Dominion.
“I thought we really worked hard all week, I thought we had good preparation,” Idaho coach Paul Petrino said. “I fully expected us to play really well and I thought at times we did play well. We’re just not quite there yet. It’s still a process.”
Texas State (6-3) beat Idaho (1-8) primarily with its passing attack — a surprising feat considering the Bobcats are normally a run-oriented team. Texas State came into the game averaging 192.3 yards per game on the ground with only 139.8 yards per game through the air. Its passing game was one of the worst in the nation at No. 116 in the FBS. But as Idaho focused on stopping the run, Texas State hurt the Vandals through the air.
“We committed to saying they’re not going to beat us with the run,” Petrino said. “We didn’t want to let them run the ball right down our throats. We wanted to make them beat us throwing — and they did.”
Texas State freshman quarterback Tyler Jones finished the game 19-23 for 228 yards passing and two touchdowns. His first incompletion of the game came on a dropped touchdown pass to wide receiver Isaiah Battle late in the second quarter.
Texas State scored the first touchdown of the game after a backward pass was recovered by the Bobcats on Idaho’s first drive, but the Vandals stuck with them early. Idaho’s first touchdown came midway through the first quarter when quarterback Taylor Davis’ pass to Najee Lovett was tipped and came down in the hands of Deon Watson in the end zone.
The Bobcats broke away again with a touchdown and a field goal in the second quarter before Idaho brought it back within three points on a 7-yard James Baker run. Three Vandal running backs played a role in the scoring drive as well. Freshman Richard Montgomery showed his speed with two rushes for 21 yards and sophomore Kris Olugbode had a pivotal 23-yard reception to get inside the 10-yard line before Baker’s touchdown run.
Texas State scored again in the second quarter before pulling away with two touchdowns in the second half to Idaho’s one.
Baker saw the most success offensively on the day for the Vandals. In addition to his touchdown run, he netted 114 rushing yards on 24 attempts for 4.8 yards per carry. He was often seen running over defenders for extra yards and had a one-handed catch for a first down on a key fourth-down play in the fourth quarter.
“I think we came out and battled hard,” Baker said. “I think the o-line did a great job of blocking and making holes for me. For the most part, I just tried to run as hard as I can and get downhill and put points on the board.”
Davis and the passing game struggled Saturday for Idaho. Dropped balls were a problem for the Vandals as they only garnered 176 yards through the air on the day although Davis had two touchdown passes.
“Taylor (Davis) I thought, for being the third string quarterback and not having a bunch of reps, I thought competed hard and did some good things for us,” Petrino said on his quarterback’s performance.
On the defensive side, linebacker Marc Millan led the team with 10 tackles and Millan and defensive tackle QuayShawne Buckley each recorded a sack for Idaho. Despite allowing 228 yards through the air, the Vandals shutdown the Bobcats running game holding them to 104 yards compared to their usual 192.3.
The Vandals round out their home schedule against Old Dominion next Saturday for Senior Day before closing out the season at No. 3 Florida State and New Mexico State.
Stephan Wiebe can be reached at [email protected]