No. 12 Idaho State Opens Big Sky Home Slate Against No. 19 Northern Arizona

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No. 12 Idaho State Opens Big Sky Home Slate Against No. 19 Northern Arizona

 The Matchup

No. 12/14 Idaho State (4-0, 1-0 Big Sky) vs. No. 19 Northern Arizona (3-2, 1-1 Big Sky)

ICCU Dome | Pocatello, ID

6:00 PM MT - Kickoff on ESPN+

Listen: KISU 91.1 FM | KISU.org (Scott Gross and Mitch Beckstead)

POCATELLO, Idaho - Idaho State plays its first home game in three weeks Saturday, hosting No. 19 Northern Arizona at the ICCU Dome in a matchup of ranked Big Sky teams. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. MT on ESPN+.

The Bengals are 4-0 for the first time since 1995 and have won eight straight games dating to last season. Idaho State climbed two spots in both national polls this week, to No. 12 in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 and No. 14 in the AFCA Coaches Poll, after a 28-24 comeback win at Southern Utah in its Big Sky opener.

Saturday also marks 75 years since the two programs first met, a 34-20 Idaho State win in Pocatello in 1951.

Quick Look at the Lumberjacks

Northern Arizona enters 3-2 overall and 1-1 in league play, and Saturday is the Lumberjacks' third straight road game. NAU opened the season with a 34-27 win over Eastern Washington, lost 35-7 at Arizona, beat UIW 38-28 and won 35-23 at Utah Tech before falling 28-14 at No. 1 Montana State last week.

Quarterback Ty Pennington has completed 87 of 143 passes for 1,047 yards and seven touchdowns, including 311 yards at Utah Tech. Quran Gossett leads the ground game with 337 yards and two 100-yard games, and Kenveon Stone has a team-high four rushing touchdowns. Joey Stout leads NAU with 24 catches, and Myseth Currie has a team-high 243 receiving yards.

The Lumberjack defense leads the FCS with 14 takeaways and leads the Big Sky with a +8 turnover margin. NAU has seven interceptions and seven fumble recoveries, and has scored twice on defense. Safety Shoes Brinkley leads the team with 42 tackles, and Deliyon Freeman and Jahaad Fort each have two interceptions.

Lindsey Graves leads the Big Sky in kick returns and kick-return yards, including a 100-yard touchdown against Eastern Washington. Kicker Francisco Orduno Jr. hit a 55-yard field goal against UIW, the longest in the Big Sky this season.

NAU has converted 26 percent of its third downs (16 of 61), last in the conference.

THINGS TO LOOK FOR

Idaho State trailed 10-0 at Southern Utah before scoring 21 straight points. After SUU took a 24-21 lead in the fourth quarter, the Bengals went 75 yards in four plays, and Jordan Cooke hit Chedon James for a 43-yard touchdown with 7:19 left. Jackson Daniels then forced a fumble at the ISU 5 with two minutes left, Nathan Reynolds recovered it, and Nathan Abbott ended the game with a fourth-down sack.

Idaho State leads the Big Sky and ranks No. 8 nationally in scoring at 38.5 points per game.

The Bengal pass defense ranks No. 3 nationally in passing efficiency defense and No. 7 in passing yards allowed (144.0 per game). Opponents have completed half their passes and thrown two touchdown passes in four games.

Idaho State has outscored opponents 59-7 in the third quarter. Northern Arizona has been outscored 38-17 in third quarters.

Both teams have seven interceptions, tied for the Big Sky lead. Idaho State's seven equal its total for all of 2025, and six different Bengals have one.

Idaho State ran for a season-high 244 yards at Southern Utah. Tytan Mason is averaging 9.2 yards per carry this season.

Cooke moved to fourth in program history in pass attempts (893) and ninth in touchdown passes (38) last week. He is fourth in completions (521) and sixth in passing yards (6,575).

Northern Arizona leads the all-time series 39-17-1 and has won the last four meetings. Idaho State is 14-16 against NAU in Pocatello, and its last win in the series was a 56-42 home victory on Sept. 29, 2018.

A win would give Idaho State its first 5-0 start since 1995.

NUMBERS TO Watch

8: Idaho State's winning streak, dating to last season.

5: Big Sky teams ranked in both national polls this week (Montana State, Montana, Idaho State, UC Davis, Northern Arizona).

59-7: Idaho State's scoring margin in the third quarter this season.

11: Red-zone scores for Idaho State in 12 trips.

7: Interceptions by the Bengal defense, matching its 2025 season total.

2: Fumble recoveries by Nathan Reynolds, tied for the national lead.

10: Touchdown passes by Cooke this season, No. 13 nationally.

1.75: Field goals per game by Mason Lindberg, leading the Big Sky and No. 8 nationally.

58: Meetings between Idaho State and Northern Arizona, counting Saturday.