Vandals football (1-5, 1-2) wasn’t quite able to replicate last week’s late-game heroics, and a fourth-quarter rally fell short Saturday in Ogden with a 38-27 defeat to Weber State.
Lightning storms in the Ogden area delayed kickoff by about 20 minutes, and weather would force play to be stopped again for nearly an hour near the end of the first quarter.
Gusty winds would continue to impact the game the rest of the way. Weber State had built a quick 14-0 lead before the unplanned break, including a 75-yard rushing score on its first offensive play.
The Vandals’ offense surely talked some things over during the break and came out with a solid drive to respond to the Wildcats’ fast start. Choosing to go for it on a fourth-and-5 from the Weber 45, quarterback Joshua Wood connected with tight end Gus Donnerberg up near the 35 to keep the drive alive.
Idaho would then dive a little deeper into the playbook, as Wood found tight end Noah West-Baranco for Idaho’s first score off a reverse flea-flicker trick play.
A poor decision from WSU quarterback Nate Dahle then led to an easy first career interception for Vandal safety Luca Moore, giving Idaho great field position. The subsequent drive would stall in the red zone, however, after an unsuccessful fourth-down conversion.
Another quick three-and-out forced by Lee Stalker’s defense gave the Vandals the football right back from their own 41-yard line, but Idaho was unable to capitalize before halftime. WSU led 14-7 at the break.
Idaho opened the second half with a three-and-out, but another strong defensive effort held the Wildcats to only a field goal on their next drive.
Wide receiver Nolan McWilliams was the focal point of the Vandals’ next drive, catching passes on three straight plays for a big chunk of 41 yards. Yet another Idaho drive would stall, however, after a missed field goal, as gusty winds continued to play a factor.
Idaho’s defense continued its strong play on the next WSU drive, as defensive lineman Mason Krahn forced a sack-fumble, which was recovered by his linemate Junior Maile in Weber territory.
The Vandals would make no mistake this time, as Wood connected with Tony Harste up the left sideline to cut the deficit to 17-14.
After forcing another three-and-out, a very much wind-favored punt would pin Idaho deep inside its own 10-yard line. An ill-advised sideline shot from Wood was undercut and intercepted by WSU’s Trevian Tribble, leading to another Wildcat score to widen its lead.
Idaho would respond again with a well-executed drive, ending in Ryan Jezioro coming down with a contested catch in the end zone to cut the deficit once again at 24-21 with just over eight minutes to play.
But the Wildcats had found their spark offensively, and back-to-back long runs propelled them to another score and another 10-point lead.
The Vandals would look to respond yet again. From midfield, Wood would have a shot over the middle deflected and then intercepted by Trevian Tribble once again, setting up the Wildcats in good field position. Capitalizing again on the ground, WSU was now comfortably ahead 38-21.
A second touchdown catch of the day from Tony Harste would cut into the deficit again, but the two-point attempt was unsuccessful. The Wildcats would recover the subsequent onside kick to close out the contest, with the final score 38-27.
“Collectively, we did not do good enough,” head coach Thomas Ford Jr. said after the game. “Our coaches didn’t coach well enough, and our players did not play well enough to win this football game. Last week was a great team win. Well, this was a team loss.”
Next up for Idaho is a trip to Missoula to face the Montana Grizzlies (5-2, 3-1) on Saturday, Oct. 17, before returning to the P1FCU Kibbie Dome for Homecoming on Oct. 24 against Southern Utah.