Sept. 10, 2007

Welcome back Bengals! This past week was a great one and I am looking forward to the coming week! If you haven't heard yet, the Bengals of Idaho State are undefeated. We opened the 2007 campaign with a defensive dominant 37-11 victory over the Southern Oregon Raiders.

The defense dominated from start to finish not allowing a touchdown and was led by defensive player of the game Terrance Calloway. He had two interceptions, one of which he took to the house. On the offensive side of the ball, we accumulated 512 yards of total offense and put 30 points on the board (seven came from the interception). In my eyes, the most impressive stat though was the balance and efficiency over the course of the game. We ran for 245 yards on 40 carries while passing for 267 yards on 33 attempts. Our co-offensive players of the game were Josh Barnett and Eddie Thompson. When it came to special teams play, there were some highs and lows. From a personal standpoint, missing two field goals should never happen. The special teams player of the game was Daniel Zeidman, who crushed kickoffs all game, made a great solo tackle, and put every punt inside the 15 yard line. Our coverage and return teams were solid, providing our offense and defense with good field position consistently.

Well, out with the old and in with the new. With the season opener behind us, it is time to look ahead to the Beavers of Oregon State. This is a game that the coaches and players are excited about and a challenge that we embrace. On paper, the Division I-A (FBS to the fans of the NCAA (Name Changing Association of America)) Beavers should roll us up without problem. However, don't judge a book by its cover and lets not forget history, both old and recent.

Widely considered the greatest upset of all-time, the USA hockey time beat perennial powerhouse Soviet Union in the semifinals of the 1980 Olympics. Sure others had fallen, they had lost 10-3 earlier in the tournament, but their resolve was never shaken and their belief never broken. More recently, the local Boise State Broncos upset the heavily favored Sooners of Oklahoma in what some call the greatest college football game ever. They were a lesser known program coming from a smaller football market; however, despite the odds, they walked in and shocked the world because they believed and never backed down.

In two weeks of college football this season, four FCS (I-AA) teams have upset FBS (I-A) teams. Most notably, there is the effective, but soon-to-be, cliché Appalachian State. They strolled into the Big House at Michigan unknown to the world and walked out as an iconic figure and instant legend. They beat a team that was too big, too fast, too strong, and far too experienced for the likes of a lower division team. We, the Bengals from Pocatello, Idaho, are in the same predicament this week.

We are going to prepare for the Beavers like every other team we will face this season. They put on their pants on leg at a time and play the same game we do. As long as we practice hard, execute our assignments, and most importantly, believe and have fun, we will put ourselves in position to be successful. Thanks for all your support last week, look forward to the continued cheering on Saturday (by the way, the game is on Fox Sports Northwest), and will talk to you next week!

Branden E. Jones #13