PORTLAND, Ore. – The Idaho State football team lost 45-20 to Portland State on Saturday afternoon at Providence Park in front of a crowd of 4,916. The loss dropped ISU to 2-3 and 1-1 in Big Sky play while the Vikings improved to 2-3 and 1-1 in league.
Idaho State scored a touchdown on its opening drive but the Vikings running game proved to be too much on Saturday. PSU rushed for 531 yards and ISU had 370 total yards.
The Bengals marched 16 plays on the opening drive but Portland State then reeled off 38 straight points before ISU was able to get on the scoreboard again.
The Bengals had 158 yards on the ground.
Jakori Ford carried the ball 18 times for 78 yards and one touchdown.
Tanner Gueller was 22-39 with two touchdown passes and one interception while throwing for 212 yards.
KW Williams led the receiving core with 10 receptions for 101 yards and two touchdowns.
Jayson Miller led the defense with a career-high 10 tackles.
Portland State led 38-6 after three quarters. The Bengals then scored two touchdowns in the final period, all being touchdown receptions by Williams.
Williams first touchdown was a 22-yard reception on a fourth and five from Gueller. The drive was a nine plays and ISU went 49 yards in 3:57.
PSU quickly answered back on a two play scoring drive to extend the Viking lead to 45-14 with 12:39 left in the game.
Later in the fourth quarter Williams tallied his second touchdown on another fourth down reception from Gueller at the Viking 25-yard line.
The Bengals have a bye before returning to the field on Oct. 15 for a 5 p.m. (MTN) contest at Northern Arizona.
Mike Kramer Post Game Quotes
"Running the ball is a matter of toughness and they were way tougher than we were with their run offense and our run defense. We were out of gap control. We didn't get off blocks in the front. They didn't run on the perimeter but they did a masterful job of disguising their intention. The plan we used wasn't executed at all. They knocked us off the ball and got big plays throughout the day. Congratulations to those guys. They simply outplayed us in every venue."
"We were inconsistent again at quarterback against tight man coverage. That is something our quarterbacks have to master. Our former quarterbacks never had to see that. It is a mystery to quarterbacks because it means the windows are tight. He will learn from this experience. It is hard to be a Division I quarterback when you don't make plays against man coverage with the style we play."
"We kept playing hard. We went down and scored some touchdowns while they still had their good guys in. We showed we can execute our offense. We had some communication issues with our coaching staff on defense and offense. It is all on me. It is all related to me."
"I think it is huge. We get a chance to get JonRhyeem back. I am not sure what is going to happen with the two offensive lineman. We will get better. We will do some things different defensively to give ourselves a chance. There are some things my staff is stronger at that I might not be allowing them to do well. We will play much better defensively in two weeks at NAU."
"Jayson (Miller) is a true sophomore. He is really galloping forward. He is not as dominant as I wish he would be. He doesn't trust himself and not as confident in his own ability as you and I are. He is a good looking player. He is really good at doing things the right way."
"Our linebacking core is much better than they played today."
Notes
- Today's game captains were
KW Williams,
Hayden Stout and
Josh Cook.
- The Bengals 16 play drive was the longest drive since Nov. 1, 2014 when the Bengals had 16 play drive that resulted in a field goal at Portland State.
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Jayson Miller's 10 tackles was a career-high.
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KW Williams moved into a tie for eighth place in career receptions with 152. Luke Austin and Jaron Taylor also have 152 receptions. Williams passed Akilah Lacey's 145 receptions today.
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KW Williams has 1,993 receiving yards. Jaron Taylor is currently in 10
th place in receiving yards with 2,066.
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KW Williams now has 21 career receiving touchdowns and he is tied with Luke Austin for fifth place. Akilah Lacey and Brett Fowler are tied for third place with 25 receiving touchdowns.
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Austin Campbell's 11-yard reception was a career-long.
