Idaho Upsets #1 Montana State In Final Second In Friday Night Stunner

On Friday night #1 Montana State was on the cusp of extending its FCS-best winning streak to 20 games. In fact, it appeared the Bobcats had done just that as Idaho quarterback Joshua Wood completed a deep ball to Noah West-Baranco with under ten seconds left. The clock ticked down to just one second… not nearly enough time to get another snap off… but an inexplicable timeout by MSU would end up resulting in catastrophe. With one final chance, Wood heaved a pass to Ryan Jezioro in the end zone. Before a frenzied Kibbie Dome crowd, Wood pushed in on the ensuing two-point try, completing the stunner of all stunners for the previously winless Vandals.

Never before had Idaho beaten a #1-ranked opponent but from the get go it was clear that Thomas Ford’s team meant business. On the very first offensive snap, Wood uncorked a deep ball to Jezioro who got behind the Bobcats defense. Jezioro went down the sideline for the 75-yard touchdown; a play that was a microcosm of how the night would go for both teams.

Montana State was playing without four of its All-American starters for the second straight week. With quarterback Justin Lamson out, it was again backup Patrick Duchien who got the nod for the ‘Cats. Duchien helped MSU regain the lead following the Jezioro touchdown when he found receiver Carter Dahlke (playing in place of the injured Taco Dowler) for a wide open 20-yard score later in the first. It was a connection that worked well all night. Duchien and Dahlke would team up for 10 completions and 126 yards before the night was over.

Keeping Wood and the Idaho offense at bay, though, was a problem for the Montana State defense. Wood used his legs to keep plays alive, allowing the passing game to open wide up for the Vandals. He would end up throwing for 315 yards on the evening. It paved way for the ground game which helped keep Idaho in the game as well. Running back Damonte Bias found the end zone before halftime as Montana State led it 24-20 at the break.

The other thing plaguing MSU was missed field goals. The usually sure-footed Myles Sansted missed two kicks on the night, one from 47 yards and one from 52. Those miscues combined with the defensive breakdowns allowed the Vandals to stay within striking distance even when the Bobcats went up by two scores in the fourth quarter.

Duchien ran it in to make it 34-20 with 13:29 to play. It seemed like that lead would be enough for Montana State to salt the victory away. Idaho kept clawing, though, and a quick touchdown answer from Wood and the offense made it a one-possession game in the closing phases.

Montana State forced Idaho to burn its three timeouts and got the clock down inside a minute. That’s where disaster struck for the ‘Cats. It was a mix of a few more defensive mistakes paired with poor clock management that gave the Vandals their shot at the end. Head coach Brent Vigen’s timeout with one second left is something that will undoubtedly draw a lot of scrutiny, especially seeing how it all ended.

It was nothing short of magic for Idaho right at the end. Wood and Jezioro ended the game the same way they began it; burning the Montana State defense. Instead of opting for overtime, the Vandals drew up a game-winning two-point conversion that will live on in Idaho lore for a good, long time. Wood played the hero and sliced his way into the end zone for a win that folks in Moscow won’t soon forget.

The loss by MSU is one in a long line of strange ones at the Kibbie Dome and one that will surely send the FCS Top 5 into chaos when the polls come out next week. Montana State has still not won in Idaho since the 1990 season (granted the Vandals were FBS for many of the years in that span). This is the Bobcats’ first loss since their home opener against South Dakota State last season. Now 5-1 (2-1 Big Sky), they head into their bye week where they hope to get players back from injury. Eastern Washington will be waiting after that.

For Idaho this is a win that just might spark a turnaround. The Vandals are 1-4 (1-1 Big Sky) and now turn their collective attention to Weber State. It was an all-around gutsy effort for a team that had its back against the wall in the worst way heading into Friday night. If anything can galvanize a team, it’s surely a victory over the defending national champs in that epic of fashion.