Smith’s 2 TDs help Wyoming beat Idaho 21-16
LARAMIE, Wyo. (AP) — Trey Smith rushed for 152 yards and two scores, including an 80-yard dash early in the fourth quarter that gave Wyoming the breathing room it needed en route to a 21-16 win over Idaho on Saturday, the Cowboys’ seventh straight victory dating to last season.
It was the first 100-yard game for Smith, a graduate transfer from Louisville. On his insurance touchdown, he bounced off a defender at the line, shook a would-be ankle tackler a few yards downfield, regained his balance, then won a footrace down the right sideline.
The TD put Wyoming up 21-13, but Cade Coffey’s third field goal for Idaho, from 24 yards, trimmed the lead to 21-16 with 7:20 to go. The Cowboys’ Solomon Byrd sacked Mason Petrino to stuff the Vandals’ next drive, and Smith rushed for a pair of first downs to allow the Cowboys to run out the clock.
Austin Conway’s 45-yard punt return led to a 10-yard TD run by Smith late in the first half, putting the Cowboys up 14-10. Conway caught the Vandals’ coverage team by surprise by scooping up the ball just as it appeared it would roll dead.
Roshaun Johnson’s 15-yard TD run gave Idaho (1-2) a 10-0 lead after its first two possessions. Raghib Ismail Jr.’s 12-yard run for Wyoming (3-0) cut Idaho’s lead to 10-7 moments before Conway’s surprise punt return.
LOWER TIER SUCCESS
Wyoming improved to 7-1 against Idaho. Since 2000, Wyoming is 15-2 against FCS teams, with all games being played in Laramie.
DELAYED HOMECOMING
In 1969, 14 African-American football players were dismissed from the Wyoming team for asking their coach if they could wear black armbands before a game against Brigham Young to protest racist treatment by BYU players in a game the prior season. Wyoming athletic director Tom Burman invited the 11 living members of the so-called Black 14 back to campus and presented the eight players who attended with letterman’s jackets they would have earned had remained on the team.
Tony McGee, a defensive end on the ’69 squad, transferred to another college and went on to a 14-year NFL career, which included a Super Bowl title with the Washington Redskins in 1982.
“Super Bowl rings are great, but right now, this is something that I missed 50 years ago, something I desired 50 years ago, maybe even a bowl bid,” McGee said. “Right now, this is so special in my life. At this moment, this is No. 1.”
THE TAKEAWAY
Idaho: After a humiliating 79-7 loss at No. 15 Penn State to open the season, the Vandals rebounded with a 41-31 win over Division II Central Washington. Against Wyoming, the Vandals picked up 67 yards on the ground on their first two drives, but only seven yards on their next eight possessions, finishing with 93. Still, a stout defense and a respectable passing game (210 yards) kept Idaho in a tight battle all day.
Wyoming: For the third straight game, the Cowboys fell behind by at least 10 points early and had to fight back. An opening 37-31 upset of Missouri has been followed up with a pair of lackluster efforts, although the team’s 3-0 start is its best since 2011.
UP NEXT
Idaho: The Vandals will host Big Sky opponent Eastern Washington next Saturday, but the game won’t count in the conference standings because it was added after each team’s league games were set. Idaho leads the series 15-7 but has lost three straight to the Eagles.
Wyoming: The Cowboys finish their nonconference schedule at Tulsa on Saturday. The Cowboys lead the series 3-2 but the schools haven’t met since 1998 when both were in the WAC.
