Nov. 20, 2004
Final Stats
Cedar City, UT---Southern Utah quarterback Casey Rehrer scored two touchdowns in the final 8:43 as theThunderbirds defeated Idaho State 45-31 in the season finale in another wild game in the 13-game series.
The Bengals were trailing 31-24 entering the fourth quarter when Mark Hetherington threw a 43-yard touchdown pass to Shedrack Okoebor, his fourth touchdown pass of the game. The Bengals were trailing as Southern Utah scored 14 points in an eight second span of the third quarter.
With 4:39 left in the third, Rehrer scored the first of his three touchdowns on a 3-yard run. The Bengals were flagged for a personal foul, and SUU kicked off from the 50. The ball went into the end zone, and Kenyon Blue returned the kick but fumbled at the 16, and Jason Lee picked it up and waltzed in for a 31-24 lead.
Hetherington went just 5-for-20 in the second half, but two went for touchdowns. The Bengals finished the season 3-8, the first 8-loss season under Larry Lewis. Both of these teams open the season with each other next year on Thursday, September 1 of 2005 in Holt Arena.
The Bengals were able to tie the game at 17 late in the half when Hetherington hit Dane Simmons on a hot route for a 54-yard catch-and-carry touchdown, and then Trevor Ward fumbled a snap on a punt, and ISU was able to get a 26-yard field goal out of it to go into the half at 17-17.
Notes: Sale' Key broke Merril Hoge's career mark for receptions with 187. He missed Ed Bell's career receiving yards mark, finishing with 2,630 yards, 46 behind Bell ... Mark Hetherington finished with 302 yards passing, giving him 3192 yards, the third-most in a single season ... Idaho State broke the Big Sky and school record with 575 passing attempts. ISU completed 305 for the season ... Mike Rose got his first two sacks of the season in his final game of his career.
