In Idaho’s first game of its conference schedule, the Vandals were able to win a thriller against the #4 ranked Sacramento State Hornets 36-27, snapping Sac State’s 22 regular season game winning streak.
The Vandals dominated the ground game, tallying 178 rushing yards as a team. Sophomore running back Anthony Woods led with 117 yards and a touchdown. The run defense was also fantastic, only allowing 69 rushing yards to a Sacramento State offense that was averaging 221.6 rushing yards per game prior to Saturday’s matchup.
“I thought our D line was great,” Head Coach Jason Eck said. “It was really a reversal from last year… (when) they ran for 200 yards in the first half. So, to hold them to 2 yards in the first half was quite the reversal.”
There was a great quarterback duel between the Vandals and Hornets. Redshirt sophomore quarterback Gevani McCoy completed 15 passes for 234 yards and two touchdowns while adding 32 yards on the ground. Sacramento State’s quarterback, junior Kaiden Bennett had almost the exact same stat line, completing 15 passes for 236 yards and two touchdowns.
The defense was able to cause some pressure on Bennett, sacking him twice on the day. Kaiden Bennett had never been sacked prior to the game. The defense was able to break up many passes, tallying nine pass break-ups.
Idaho took a 13-10 lead into the locker room at halftime but expanded it to a 10-point lead heading into the fourth quarter because of two big play touchdowns. Graduate student tight end Turon Ivy Jr took in the first for 52 yards before redshirt junior wider receiver Terez Traynor added another with a 60-yard reception.
The Hornets were able to come back and tie it at 27 with 4:54 remaining from a Bennett passing touchdown to senior running back Marcus Fulcher. However, the Sacramento State offense would not see the field for the rest of the game after that.
The Vandals then got to start their final drive in Hornet territory because of a costly personal foul penalty on Sac State. The offense marched into field goal range thanks to Woods, who had 36 yards in the final drive to set up a Ricardo Chavez 30-yard field goal with 1 second remaining to ice the game.
“I felt nervous. I care about this team,” Ricardo Chavez said when asked about how he dealt with the pressure of the kick. “I just want the best for this team. And all I do is just take my deep breath and kick the ball.”
On the final play of the game, the Vandals were able to force a fumble on Sacramento State’s final chance to win off a kickoff return. Redshirt freshman defensive back Ormanie Arnold recovered the fumble for a touchdown to add on the Vandals lead, ending the game with a 36-27 win.
Idaho’s next opponent is Eastern Washington, who they beat in dominant fashion 48-16 last season. The Eagles are 2-2 this season, but also won their conference opener against UC Davis on Saturday.
The Idaho Vandals and Eastern Washington Eagles will face off at Roos Field on Sept. 30 at 1 p.m. Idaho looks to retain the Che-Scow Cup, originally known as the Governor’s Cup, and advance to 2-0 in Big Sky Conference play.
Bryce Norwood can be reached at [email protected]