Vandals off to good start
LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The Idaho Vandals erased a lot of frustration Saturday night.
For the first time in 10 years they opened the football season with a win and it was their first road win since 2006, a 21-6 decision over Western Athletic Conference rival New Mexico State.
“It does feel great,” third-year head coach Robb Akey said. “I’m happy for these players. I’m happy for tonight.”
Nathan Enderle threw two touchdown passes and Princeton McCarty got most of his 96 yards rushing on one play to spoil DeWayne Walker’s coaching debut with the Aggies.
McCarty had the highlight of the game late in the first quarter, but he probably won’t advertise it.
With the Vandals at their 32, McCarty broke free up the middle, burst past the linebackers into open field with no defenders anywhere nearby. As he sprinted untouched toward the end zone, he tripped at the 5 and put his face mask into the turf at the 1.
McCarty, who had a career-high 160 yards rushing in last season’s 20-14 win over the Aggies, scored on the next play to put Idaho up 14-0. He got a bear hug on the sideline from Akey.
“It was a team win,” Akey said. “All three phases of the team contributed. It was a great step forward. I think success early for this team is important.”
New Mexico State has been one of the nation’s worst programs for decades and Walker got off to a rough start in his bid to turn things around. The Aggies had a touchdown overturned by an officials’ review, missed a field goal and PAT kick and lost two fumbles.
Enderle completed 11 of 21 attempts for 179 yards with one interception. He threw a 6-yard TD pass to Daniel Hardy to cap Idaho’s first drive, then found Max Komar on a 38-yard catch-and-run that helped the Vandals to a 21-0 halftime lead.
There were some strange happenings after Hardy’s touchdown.
The Aggies moved the ball to the Idaho 40 before pinning the Vandals on their 4 with a punt. On third down Komar had a big gain on a reverse but was upended and lost the ball as he hit the ground. NMSU’s Stephon Hatchett grabbed the loose ball and scored, but after a long review Komar was ruled down, only to have Hatchett intercept Enderle on the next play.
The Aggies ran one play before Idaho’s Andre Ferguson recovered a fumble at the 17. UI moved to the 32 before McCarty broke loose for his long run.
Idaho has beaten New Mexico State five of the past six years. The Aggies ended last season on a seven-game losing streak, which led to the firing of former coach Hal Mumme, and things didn’t look much better much of the night even with a new coaching staff.
New Mexico State struggled to find an offensive rhythm, but avoided a shutout on Tonny Glynn’s 3-yard TD run late in the third period. Jeff Fleming, a junior college transfer who won the quarterback job in fall workouts, drove the Aggies to the Idaho 4 on their next possession before Shiloh Keo’s interception ended the threat.
“We were telling each other, ‘Bend, don’t break,’ ”Keo said.
Notes
Trey Farquhar’s first collegiate kick was a successful PAT. … Bobby Cowan’s first collegiate punt went 52 yards. … McCarty’s 67-yard run was the longest of his career. … The first-half shutout was the first for the Vandals since Oct. 1, 2005, when they ended up with a 27-13 win over Utah State.