Trevor Delaney
Sports Editor
The lights were shining bright in the Holt on Saturday night when the Idaho State Bengals took on the Weber State Bobcats in their first football game of the season, and the Bengal’s first game played back in the Holt Arena since pandemic gathering restrictions have permitted for limited tickets to be sold at sporting event. With the seating assigned for ticketholders to enable the crowd of masked spectators to watch the game while socially distanced, the spirit of the fans cheering on their home team was enough to make anyone remember simpler times and even start to forget about the pandemic altogether. The steel beams of the Holt take on a different meaning, with their sturdiness giving an immemorial permanence not only to the stadium itself but to the deeply rooted traditions that have grown up here in our humble hometown.
As the teams prepared for the game to start, the line of fans were queued up going out the door in the balmy late February air. Inside the Holt Arena an ambulance with waiting crew stood by on the access ramp in preparation for any potential injuries, coaches and assistants hurriedly darted about the sidelines, and the cheer teams from ISU and Weber State were both standing by to cheer on their respective teams. Benny the Bengal was out on the prowl, adding to the ISU team-spirit that was already present. As kickoff commenced with the fans in their seats, the unmistakable sensation of the true college football experience was felt again in Pocatello. Coming into the spring season from a long fall without a season, both the team and the fans were eager to be out there doing what they love best.
One fan jeered at a call from the referee, another holding up an orange and black ISU flag with unwavering gusto, but both gave the game the feeling that things were coming back to a semblance of normality again. Weber State’s defense stood like a wall against ISU, and neither team managed to score in the first quarter. By the end of the second, the Bobcats were on the scoreboard with 14 points, with the Bengals offense still unable to make a scoring play. The prerecorded halftime show from the ISU Marching Band punctuated the playing with an upbeat performance that sounded nearly like the band was really there playing. The third quarter of the game saw a 28 point jump by Weber State, with ISU at 7 points for the game.
Quickly swigging down a gulp of water before putting his mask back over his mouth, an enthusiastic Bengal fan rose to his feet and cheered with a passionate booming voice that rang out and melded with the growing thunder as ISU made another successful play. The game was in the fourth quarter, and the crowd still held out hope that by some miracle ISU could push past the Weber State defense and rack up enough points to win the game before the clock ran out. The game ended with a win for Weber State and a final winning score of 49-21.
ISU Coach Rob Phenice in a post-game interview said he felt that his team “never gave up”, and is looking forward to playing Weber State again in their upcoming rematch to see his team’s improvement. Phenice noted that the game came down to Weber State being a veteran team and Idaho State being made up of less experienced players. He credits Weber State’s coaching for the exceptional defense that was seen in the game. Coach Phenice said that he was “glad to see the people there” at the game on Saturday. Phenice added that “the biggest win of the day was the fact that we played a football game after being told that supposedly that we wouldn’t be able to breathe on each other again.”
