Vandals hold off NIU
DEKALB, Ill. – Quarterback Nathan Enderle threw three first-half touchdown passes, but his biggest contribution came late when he helped run down the clock as Idaho slammed the door on a late Northern Illinois comeback to claim a 34-31 non-conference victory Saturday.
The Huskies (2-2) scored twice in less than 3 minutes to cut the margin to 34-31 with 5:51 to play. But Idaho marched back from its 20 to inside the Northern Illinois 10 to run out the final minutes.
NIU cut the margin to 34-23 with 8:25 to play on Chandler Harnish’s 4-yard touchdown pass to Landon Cox.
The Huskies got the ball back four plays later when they blocked a punt inside the Idaho 5-yard line and recovered at the 1. One play later, running back MeCo Brown ran in for a score and added a two-point conversion.
Enderle then guided the Vandals on an 11-play drive to finish the game. The drive included a key 25-yard third-down conversion pass to Eric Greenwood deep into NIU’s territory. The Huskies called the final timeouts of the game as Idaho continued to push forward – largely on the bullish runs of senior back DeMaundray Woolridge.
“It ended up all right,” Idaho coach Robb Akey said moments after his team improved to 3-1 for its best start since 1994. “I don’t like it going from a three-score ballgame to what it was. … Our kids responded. We’re growing up a little bit.”
Idaho’s offense sputtered some on its first possession and wound up with a 53-yard field-goal attempt by Trey Farquhar. He had the distance, but the ball drifted to the right and NIU regained possession with 3:32 to go in the opening quarter.
The Huskies, playing in their 1,000th intercollegiate football game, led 3-0 after one quarter on Mike Salerno’s field goal.
Idaho claimed a 7-3 lead on a 26-yard second-quarter pass play from Enderle to Daniel Hardy and never trailed again. Enderle also threw second-quarter scoring strikes of 21 yards to Deonte Jackson and 58 yards to Princeton McCarty on the way to a 21-13 halftime lead.
Salerno kicked a 50-yarder as time expired in the first half and added a 25-yarder in the third.
Woolridge added a 1-yard third-quarter touchdown run and rushed for a game-high 144 yards on 19 carries. Farquhar hit second-half field goals of 33 and 40 yards.
Enderle was 18 of 23 for 270 yards, with Greenwood, Preston Davis and Maurice Shaw catching three passes apiece. Greenwood tallied 67 yards, Davis 29 and Shaw 28.
Harnish was 17 of 23 for 184 yards, and he rushed for another 62 yards. Cox caught five passes for 53 yards.
The Vandals limited the Huskies to 128 rushing yards and were relentless in their pursuit of Harnish. The Vandals wound up with four passes defensed and five tackles for loss.
(8) Boise State 49, Bowling Green 14: Kellen Moore threw for 247 yards and two touchdowns as the Broncos (4-0) defeated the Falcons (1-3) in Bowling Green, Ohio.
Boise State’s first six scoring drives took no more than four plays. Its big-play offense scored three touchdowns in just 21/2 minutes in the second quarter.
The Broncos didn’t score until a minute into the second quarter when receiver Titus Young ran scored the first of his two TDs.
Bowling Green had no answer for Moore, who had 195 passing yards in the second quarter alone, or the Broncos’ running game, which piled up 267 yards.
(14) Cincinnati 28, Fresno State 20: Tony Pike threw three touchdown passes in a quick-strike offense that was hardly on the field, and the host Bearcats (4-0) held on for a victory over a Fresno State team that ran all over them for most of the game. One big gamble made the Bulldogs (1-3) come up empty. Facing fourth-and-2 at the Cincinnati 6-yard line to open the fourth quarter, Fresno State chose to throw. Ryan Colburn’s pass was picked off, and Pike put the Bearcats in control with a 23-yard TD pass to Mardy Gilyard.
San Jose State 19, Cal Poly 9: Lamon Muldrow rushed for a career-high 184 yards and scored a touchdown as the Spartans (1-3) ended their three-game losing streak with a victory over the Mustangs (1-2) at San Jose, Calif.
Utah State 53, Southern Utah 34: Running back Robert Turbin ran for 106 yards, caught four passes for 116 yards and scored three touchdowns to lead the Aggies (1-2) over the Thunderbirds (1-3) at Logan, Utah.
New Mexico State 20, New Mexico 17: Jeff Fleming’s 4-yard touchdown pass to Marcus Anderson with 39 seconds remaining gave the Aggies (2-2) the non-conference win over the Lobos (0-4) at Albuquerque, N.M.