No. 9 Idaho Vandals tame the No. 2 Montana State Bobcats in clash of football heavyweights

Oct. 29—MOSCOW — It was one for history books.

The No. 9 Idaho football team's 24-21 win over No. 2 Montana State on Saturday at the P1FCU Kibbie Dome had all the elements of an instant classic: a first half dominated by the underdog Vandals, a late comeback by the Bobcats and a dramatic finish.

Idaho sophomore quarterback Gevani McCoy connected with fifth-year senior Hayden Hatten from 12 yards out for the game's final margin. But the Bobcats (6-2, 4-1) kept it interesting until the waning seconds.

Montana State junior quarterback Tommy Mellott completed a pass to three different receivers for three consecutive first downs. And suddenly, the Bobcats were in business at Idaho's 29-yard line with 1:07 left in regulation.

After back-to-back Mellott incompletions, Idaho redshirt sophomore defensive end Malakai Williams made the defensive play of the game by sacking Mellott for an 8-yard loss.

This set up a 43-yard attempt for Montana State kicker Brendan Hall, one yard shy of his career-long.

The Springtown, Texas, native has struggled this season, entering Saturday's contest 6-of-10 on his attempts.

After Idaho coach Jason Eck used one of his timeouts to ice Hall, the snap was good, the hold was down, and the kick was wide right.

"I could not be more proud of this group of guys, players and coaches," Eck said. "We had a bad taste in our mouth because we really felt that last game before the bye week we didn't play the way we were capable to start the game and dug ourselves a deep hole. I'm proud of the resilience we showed; even in that game, we're not going to give up; we're going to keep fighting and punching back."

Here's how Idaho collected its biggest win at the Kibbie Dome in over a decade:

Establish dominance

It was clear what direction Idaho wanted to take the game offensively following its second drive of the game.

After the Vandals and Bobcats both went three-and-out to start, Idaho went on its longest drive of the season, spanning 20 plays and more than 10 minutes.

The drive finished with senior kicker Ricardo Chavez nailing a career-long 53-yard field goal to put Idaho in front 3-0 with 1:06 left in the first quarter.

All four of Idaho's scoring drives had more than 10 plays and lasted longer than five minutes. The Bobcats didn't run their 10th play until there was 2:25 remaining in the first half, and by game's end, Idaho had 43 minutes of possession time.

"That's Vandal football, man," Eck said. "40 minutes of possession, keeping the ball away from them. I like how aggressive we were; we were 3-for-4 on fourth down, and we're going to live and die. People want to question it; it's who we are. That's our fabric."

What a response

The Vandals had a bad taste in their mouth after their 23-21 loss to Montana on Oct. 14.

That bad taste was immediately removed following Idaho's performance against Montana State, especially on defense.

The Vandals held the nation's No. 1 rushing attack to a season-low 128 yards on 23 carries (5.3 yards per carry).

Idaho was able to key in on Melott, who is a dynamic runner at the quarterback position, by using its speed on the edge to contain him. Players such as defensive end Tylen Coleman and linebackers Tre Thomas and Xe'ree Alexander all had standout performances.

"I think we just got back to basics," Eck said. "I think we did a poor job coaching us last week and getting too caught up in things. This week we really just focused on the next play and being physical because this is a physical team and they play hard as hell, and I think the guys did a good job of buying in on that."

The efforts of the front seven were made even more impressive considering they were without their best pass rusher, Keyshawn James-Newby, who was ruled out prior to the game with a shoulder injury.

The safeties also held their own against the Bobcats' bruising rushing attack, with Tommy McCormick registering eight tackles.

"This is a game Tommy loves to play," Eck said. "He'd rather be playing downhill as a safety and tackling and being physical rather than covering 10 personnel and four wides all day. So I think he was licking his chops all week to have a game like this."

Mellott probably passed more than the Bobcats would've liked. He finished 12-of-24 passing for 191 yards and two touchdowns.

Melott took almost all of the snaps at QB for Montana State, and senior Sean Chambers saw limited action, finishing with three carries for 7 yards.

The Vandals were solid against the pass and were highlighted by redshirt freshman cornerback Ormanie Arnold's three pass breakups.

The Long Beach, Calif., native was targeted three times on the Bobcats' final drive and was a favorite to pick on throughout the contest.

"He raised up," Eck said of Arnold. "Marcus came in this year as preseason all-conference and things. So sometimes that leads teams to try and attack your other corner. But he's answered the bell all year. I'm so impressed with his growth as a player and a person."

Crown 'em

McCoy took control of the game from the get-go and didn't look back.

The Baldwin Hills, Calif., native was effective through the air and on the ground.

The Vandals dialed up several designed runs for the sophomore — he finished with 10 carries for 31 yards.

As a passer, much like the United States Postal Service, he delivered, finishing 22-of-29 for 229 yards and two touchdowns.

His best throw of the night was the 12-yarder to Hatten for the final margin. Hatten had communicated to McCoy in the huddle prior to the play that he wanted the ball.

"He asked me to give him a chance, and that's what I did," McCoy said. "I just gave him a chance, and he just went and made a great play like he always does."

The throw was placed on Hatten's back shoulder, away from the defender in man coverage. The throw was made even more impressive because it was far enough away from the safety, who had made a leaping attempt at an interception.

"As much as that was double coverage, it was a perfect ball," Hatten said. "When you have a guy like that who can throw the ball there, you just have to execute."

McCoy had several more jaw-droppers throughout, such as a 30-yard bomb to senior Jermaine Jackson on a third-and-five in the second quarter.

McCoy faced pressure on both sides, but he was able to drop it right into the speedster's bucket.

The reception led to a 7-yard Terez Traynor touchdown to put Idaho in front 10-0.

"I haven't seen every quarterback, so it's tough for me to judge," Eck said. "But I can't believe there's another quarterback in FCS football better than (Gevani) McCoy."

Players of the game

Idaho quarterback McCoy finished 22-of-29 passing for 229 yards and two touchdowns.

Vandals' defensive end Williams had a QB hurry and a sack.

Idaho safety McCormick had eight tackles, one for loss.

Plays of the game

Idaho quarterback McCoy located receiver Hatten for a 12-yard score for the game's final margin.

Vandals' defensive end Williams sacked the Bobcats' quarterback Mellott for an 8-yard loss, knocking them out of kicker Hall's range.

Idaho kicker Chavez nailed a career-long 53-yard field goal for the game's first score. It capped off the Vandals' longest drive of the season, spanning 20 plays over 10 minutes.

Montana State 0 0 14 7—21

Idaho 3 7 0 14—24

First quarter

Idaho — Ricardo Chavez 53 field goal.

Second quarter

Idaho — Terez Traynor 6 pass from Gevani McCoy (Chavez kick).

Third quarter

Montana State — Jared White 16 pass from Tommy Mellott (Brendan Hall kick).

Montana State — Clevan Thomas Jr. 2 pass from Mellott (Hall kick).

Fourth quarter

Idaho — Anthony Woods 3 run (Chavez kick).

Montana State — Julius Davis 24 run (Hall kick).

Idaho — Hayden Hatten 12 pass from McCoy (Chavez kick).

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — Montana State, Davis 11-85, Mellott 6-28, White 2-17, Chambers 3-7; Idaho, Woods 20-68, Romano 10-44, Jackson 1-16, McCoy 10-31

PASSING — Montana State, Mellott 12-24-0—191; Idaho,McCoy 22-29-0—229

RECEIVING — Montana State Pickering 4-87, Trimble 1-46, Thomas 3-23, Thomas 3-23, McCullough 3-19, White 1-16; Idaho, Hatten 4-63, Jackson 5-58, Traynor 48, Woods 3-28, Dwyer 2-12, Romano 2-11, Ivy Jr. 1-9.

Pixley may be contacted at (208) 848-2290, tpixley@lmtribune.com or on Twitter @TreebTalks.