POCATELLO, Idaho — Quarterback Bryan Waggener completed 24-of-42 attempts for 212 yards and a touchdown, and he rushed for another score on Saturday as Northern Colorado beat Idaho State 30-7.
Alex Thompson had nine catches for 75 yards and a touchdown for the Bears (2-5, 1-4 Big Sky), and teammate Patrick Walker made nine for 89 yards. Tailback Andre Harris gained 113 yards on 24 carries and scored a touchdown.
Northern Colorado racked up 435 yards total offense, while holding Idaho State (0-7, 0-4) to 197 yards. The Bengals had minus-11 yards rushing for the game.
Bengals quarterback Russel Hill completed 29-of-49 attempts for 208 yards and a touchdown.
His top target was wide receiver Jaron Taylor, who had seven catches for 42 yards and a touchdown. Idaho State’s linebackers A.J. Storm and Phillip Arias had 14 tackles and 11 tackles, respectively.
The first score of the game was a 30-yard field goal by Northern Colorado kicker Michael York, capping a nine-play, 32-yard drive with 4:14 left in the first quarter.
Waggener’s third-down, seven-yard scramble for a touchdown occurred with 19 seconds left in the first half, giving the Bears a 10-0 halftime lead. That touchdown ended a 10-play, 82-yard drive.
Idaho State only had 26 yards of total offense in the first half.
Northern Colorado opened up the second half with an 80-yard, 12-play drive punctuated by Harris’s 1-yard touchdown run to take a 17-0 lead.
On their next possession, the Bears put together a 14-play, 99-yard scoring drive capped by Waggener’s 14-yard touchdown pass to Thompson, taking a 24-0 lead.
Idaho State’s lone score was an 11-yard touchdown pass by Hill to Taylor with 1:32 remaining in the third quarter.
Northern Colorado’s York kicked two fourth-quarter field goals of 47 and 21 yards to finish the Bears’ scoring.
