San Jose, Calif. - San Jose State scored a season-high 17 points in the first quarter and took a 22-10 lead into halftime, but the Idaho Vandals (2-7, 1-4 WAC) scored 22 unanswered fourth quarter points en route to a 32-29 win on Saturday afternoon in Spartan Stadium.
Through three quarters the Spartans (3-6, 2-3 WAC) had out gained the Idaho 268-to-126 yards, but in the fourth the Vandals put up 219 yards of offense to San Jose State's 89. Idaho scored on drives of 79, 84 and 85 yards to erase the 12-point Spartans lead and take a 32-22 advantage with 1:49 left to play.
Matt Faulkner, who went 29-of-41 for 289 yards, connected with Ryan Otten on a 47-yard scoring strike to narrow the score to 32-29 with 1:08 to play, but the on-side kick attempts failed for San Jose State and Idaho ran out the clock. The teams combines for 702 yards of offense with San Jose State holding a small 357-to-345 advantage.
The Spartans forced three turnovers on Idaho's first four possessions and turned them into 13 points. Pompey Festejo forced a fumble which Travis Johnson recovered on the Idaho 19 yard line. San Jose State drove the ball down to the two and Jen Alvernik connected on a 19-yard field goal to give San Jose State a 3-0 lead.
On the ensuing kickoff, Idaho's Matthew Harvey fumbled the ball on the 25 after Alex Germany knocked it out. Festeyo recovered the ball. Two plays later, Brandon Butley ran off tackle for a two-yard touchdown and a 10-0 lead. It was his eighth rushing touchdown of the season.
Tyler Ervin capped the Spartans first quarter scoring blitz with his first rushing touchdown, an 11-yard run to the left side for a 17-0 lead. The 17 points were the most scored by the Spartans in the first quarter this year.
On the final Idaho possession of the first quarter, Duke Ihenacho deflected a Taylor Davis pass. Festejo grabbed the ball for his second interception of the year. The Spartans took over on the Idaho 38, got an Alvernik fieldgoal for a 20-0 lead.
On the next Vandals possession, Idaho drove 68-yards culminating in a two-yard touchdown for running back Kama Bailey, the first of his two touchdowns on the day.
On Idaho's next possession, defensive end Travis Johnson sacked Davis in the endzone for a safety. It was the first safety scored by the Spartans since the 2004 season and gave SJSU a 22-7 lead with 2:32 to play. Johnson would go on to have four sacks on the day which ties a San Jose State single-game record.
Trey Farquhar, the Idaho kicker, hammered a 55-yard field goal with one second left before the half to send the teams to the locker rooms with San Jose State leading 22-10. The field goal was the longest in Farquhar's career and tied for the second longest in Idaho history.
The teams went to the fourth with the score 22-10 and that is when Idaho's offense started clicking. Bailey scored his second touchdown with 9:57 to play to make it 22-17. On their next possession, Davis hooked up with Mike LaGrone for a 13-yard score and after a successful two-point conversion Idaho took a 25-22 lead.
The Spartans went three-and-out and on the Vandals next possession Ryan Bass scored on a 1-yard touchdown to stretch the lead to 32-22 ahead of Otten's score which made it 32-29.
Noel Grigsby caught 11 passes for 84 yards to lead San Jose State. It is the third time in the last four games he has made 10+ catches. He now has 70 catches for the season which ties him with James Jones for sixth place on the Spartans single-season list. Grigsby had 126 career receptions which also ties him with Jones for seventh place on the career receptions list.
San Jose State plays its next game on Saturday, November 12 in Logan, Utah. The Spartans will face the Utah State Aggies with kickoff scheduled for 1:00 p.m.