Seiji Wood
Sports Editor
ISU’s football team won its second consecutive game Saturday on Homecoming against NAU, 56-42. The win snapped a 10-game losing streak against the Lumberjacks and the Bengals are now 3-1 overall and 2-0 in conference play, which is the first time they’ve started 2-0 in the Big Sky since 1995.
ISU’s only loss so far this season is to Cal, who dropped out of the AP top 25 this week after a loss to Oregon.
I’ve been impressed so far watching the Bengals play. More specifically, I’ve been impressed with ISU’s defense.
The Lumberjacks only put together two complete drives on Saturday that ended in touchdowns. There were two turnovers on offense and one shanked punt that forced the Bengals to play with their backs against the wall, but other than that, NAU couldn’t do much offensively. To me, the final score against NAU didn’t do the defense justice for how well they played.
The Bengal defense forced four turnovers, three fumble recoveries and one interception, one of which was recovered for a touchdown.
“Anytime the defense scores, it’s a shot in the arm to everybody,” said Rob Phenicie, ISU head coach. “It’s so fun when that happens.”
The Bengals led the Big Sky in total defense heading into last week. Now, ISU is second in total defense, right behind Weber State.
That’s quite a juxtaposition from last year, but I’m convinced that ISU’s defense is here to stay and will continue to play at a high level.
“Our coaches put us in good positions to make plays and we just execute it,” said senior linebacker, Christian Holland.
On the offensive side of the ball, the Bengals picked up from where they left off. Aside from the two turnovers, the offense moved the ball with ease. The ground game had extreme success. The Bengals rushed for over 300 yards with carries balanced out between James Madison, Ty Flanagan and even quarterback, Tanner Gueller. Each one scored a pair of touchdowns.
“It’s our offensive line…” Madison said. “Me and Ty run it hard but it’s honestly just the o-line…the o-line are making these holes that we can run through. You know, that’s what’s giving us these yards and making us look good.”
At the end of the day, I feel the same way Coach Phenicie felt after the game, “a win’s a win,” but now it’s on to Idaho.
This will be the first time since 2008 that ISU has played Idaho and the first time Idaho has come to Holt Arena since 1995. The Vandals are currently 2-2 and 1-1 in conference play and they’re coming off a conference win of their own against Portland State.
This game is going to be a defensive battle. I mentioned the Bengals being second in total defense in the conference, but the Vandals are right behind ISU. Whoever wins the defensive battle will probably win the game.
Idaho’s weak spot in their defense is their run defense. They give up an average of 186 yards per game, so I’m expecting Madison and Flanagan to carry a heavy load for this game.
ISU’s pass offense will be important, but it may be difficult with Idaho’s pass defense. Despite having no interceptions, the Vandals are third in the conference in pass defense, only giving up an average of 205 yards per game. However, I’m confident ISU will find a way to continue to see success on offense. I just hope Idaho doesn’t get their first interception of the year against the Bengals.
The defense will have an interesting challenge. The Vandals run a two-quarterback system with sophomore, Colton Richardson and junior, Mason Petrino. That might explain why the Vandals have one of the worst offenses in the conference, but it may also mean creating two separate game plans for both quarterbacks.
But Petrino started and played the whole game last week against Portland State, so who knows what the Bengals could face this week.
Regardless of who’s playing the position, as long as ISU can create turnovers like they have been doing, they’ll have a solid chance to win this game.
If the Bengals win this game, they’ll be 3-0 in the conference.
The offense is in a rhythm and the defense is playing great. Idaho is 0-2 on the road, so home field advantage may play a factor in this game.
Overall, I think ISU will win this game and keep their win streak alive.
