ST. GEORGE, Utah - Idaho State trailed 14-0 after one quarter, was outgained by 169 yards and never forced a punt. It still left Greater Zion Stadium with a 34-27 win over Utah Tech on Saturday afternoon, because its defense took the ball away four times and scored the last two touchdowns of the game.
Trehsyn Fesili intercepted Bronson Barben and returned it 43 yards for the go-ahead score with 55 seconds left. About seven minutes earlier, Zion To'oto'o strip-sacked Barben, picked up the loose ball and ran 32 yards to tie the game at 27. Idaho State (6-3, 3-3 Big Sky) scored 24 points off turnovers and did not commit one.
Utah Tech (1-8, 1-5 Big Sky) scored on the first play from scrimmage, an 79-yard pass from Barben to Mike Williams 11 seconds into the game. The Trailblazers followed with a 13-play, 92-yard drive capped by Barben's 6-yard run, and they had 174 yards of offense to Idaho State's 52 after the first quarter.
Fesili started the turnaround early in the second quarter. He hit Barben from behind for a strip sack, and Bronson Childs recovered at the Utah Tech 35. Carson Sudbury ran for 7 and 12 yards to the 16, Jordan Cooke converted a fourth-and-1 with a 3-yard keeper, and Cooke found Tommy Poe for a 4-yard touchdown.
On Utah Tech's next possession, Titan Saxton intercepted Barben for the first pick of his career and returned it 16 yards to the Utah Tech 29. Mason Lindberg made a 47-yard field goal to cut the lead to 14-10. The Trailblazers drove inside the Idaho State 5 on the following series, but a holding call and an offensive pass interference penalty pushed them back and they settled for a 35-yard field goal. Lindberg answered with a 27-yard kick with six seconds left, and Idaho State went to halftime down 17-13.
The Bengals took the second-half kickoff and went 80 yards in 11 plays for their first lead. The drive stalled on a third-down sack near midfield, but an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Utah Tech gave Idaho State a first down at its own 45. Tytan Mason ran 17 yards on the next snap, and Cooke later hit Poe on a 26-yard touchdown down the right side for a 20-17 lead.
Utah Tech went back in front with a 15-play, 75-yard drive that took 8:33 off the clock. The Trailblazers converted a fourth-and-1 at the Idaho State 28 after the spot was upheld on review, and Barben threw a 9-yard touchdown to Darnell O'Quinn on third-and-goal. Max Shepherd added a 31-yard field goal after Collin Lewis broke up a third-down pass, and Utah Tech led 27-20 with 10:43 to play.
Idaho State's next drive reached the Utah Tech 33 on a 29-yard catch by Poe but ended on downs after a sack. On Utah Tech's first snap, To'oto'o came free, knocked the ball out of Barben's hands and returned it for the tying score. It was Idaho State's first fumble return touchdown since Nathan Reynolds went 53 yards against Sacramento State on Oct. 26, 2024.
Utah Tech then put together a 13-play drive to the Idaho State 18 and faced fourth-and-1. A false start moved the ball back 5 yards, and Shepherd missed from 41 with 2:12 left. After an Idaho State punt, Fesili jumped a short pass on second down and went untouched for the winning touchdown.
Cooke completed 21 of 38 passes for 178 yards and two touchdowns without an interception despite being sacked four times. Poe caught seven passes for 96 yards and both offensive touchdowns. Reynolds and Ryder Holt each had eight tackles.
Game stats
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Idaho State scored 24 points off four Utah Tech turnovers (two fumbles, two interceptions) and had no turnovers of its own.
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Utah Tech outgained Idaho State 424-255, held the ball for 37:49 and did not punt.
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Idaho State scored on both of its red zone trips (one touchdown, one field goal).
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Jordan Cooke went 21 of 38 for 178 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions.
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Tommy Poe had seven catches for 96 yards and two touchdowns on a team-high 12 targets.
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Trehsyn Fesili had six tackles, a sack, a forced fumble and a 43-yard interception return for a touchdown.
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Zion To'oto'o had five tackles, two tackles for loss, a sack, a forced fumble and a 32-yard fumble return for a touchdown.
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Nathan Reynolds and Ryder Holt led the team with eight tackles each.
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Mason Lindberg made field goals of 47 and 27 yards, went 4 for 4 on extra points and had five touchbacks on seven kickoffs.
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Utah Tech was penalized nine times for 90 yards; Idaho State was flagged five times for 60.
Notables
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Idaho State is 6-3 overall and 3-3 in Big Sky play.
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This was the first meeting between the programs with both at the Division I level and Utah Tech as a Big Sky member. Idaho State beat then-Division II Dixie State 40-14 in Pocatello in 2013.
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Utah Tech head coach Lance Anderson played for Idaho State in 1993 and later coached two seasons with the Bengals. Saturday was the first time he faced his alma mater in a 30-year coaching career.
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To'oto'o's fumble return was the Bengals' first since Reynolds' 53-yard return against Sacramento State on Oct. 26, 2024.
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Fesili has a strip sack in back-to-back games.
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Saxton's second-quarter interception was the first of his career.
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Poe scored Idaho State's first touchdown for the second straight game and the second time this season. He has five touchdown catches this season.
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Lindberg has 16 made field goals this season, which moves him into sole possession of [fifth/seventh] on the program's single-season list.
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Cooke has 18 touchdown passes this season, tying Shane Griggs (2000) for 10th on the program's single-season list.
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Williams' 79-yard touchdown was the longest score Idaho State has allowed this season and the longest in at least the last two seasons. Coming 11 seconds into the game, it was also the fastest the Bengals have been scored on this season.
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Idaho State is 4-1 this season when it wins the coin toss.
