Oct. 22, 2007

Welcome back Bengal faithful. As I sit and write this diary entry, the emotions from Saturday's contest are coming back to me and I got goose bumps. From our stout defensive effort, to the roaring crowd in the second half, to walking across the field with no time left to sing our great fight song to the remaining fans, I have to say, that was the most exciting game I have been a part of in my short time as a Bengal. In addition, it feels great to write about a victory and the events that surround it.

First off, I would like to welcome back all the naysayers onto the Bengal's bandwagon after making negative remarks against the team, coaches, and season through different medias. Secondly, I would love to thank those 5,925 fans that made their way to Holt Arena and cheer on their local team. We appreciate your support and can honestly say you all were a major factor in our 38-20 victory over the Vikings. We know what we are capable of and have said all year that we have the ability play better than what our first six games showed. Despite wins against Southern Oregon and Northern Colorado, we didn't play a complete game and never had to come from behind or face true adversity. Against Portland State, we faced obstacles and a deficit, like we had in our previous four losses, but approached it differently and overcame it with high energy and belief, a dominating defense, and an opportunistic offense. Towards the end of the first half, we were down 13-0 with our offense sputtering and not much going for us. We could have put our heads down, coaches could have yelled until they were blue in the face, and our fans could have trickled out of Holt Arena regretting coming in the first place. However, this is not that team and this is a new era of Bengal football.

The first half of the game was what fans might call old Bengal football with us digging ourselves in a hole and going into halftime against a favored opponent down 13-3. Despite the odds, we went into the locker room not panicking and knowing that the game was nowhere near out of hand. During halftime, we had the two "A's" required for a great second half, adjustments and attitude. We strutted back onto Caccia Field with a level of confidence that was sure to, when combined with execution, make something happen in our favor. This is exactly what happened with us scoring a season high four third quarter touchdowns, highlighted by touchdowns by way of fumble recoveries by seniors Micah Cloward and Big Sky defensive player of the week Sterling Mennear. With a 31-13 lead (a reciprocal of last year's final score) heading into the fourth quarter, we put our foot on their throats by forcing two more turnovers on their first two possessions to seal the deal. A great, consummate effort by the coaches, players, and fans led to this victory that featured records and key numbers.

For starters, Josh Barnett continued his hard nose running Saturday to the tune of 18 carries totaling 139 yards; in addition to these gaudy numbers, he scored his first touchdown of the season on a 65 yard scamper that saw J.B. break tackles, show great vision with his cuts, and out run defenders for the last 50 or so yards. During these 18 carries, he tied Alfredo Anderson's ISU record of 100-yard games at 13, passed Merril Hoge for all-time carries with 591, and continued to close in on the career rushing mark, being 294 yards shy of Anderson's 3,370 total rushing yards. On a team note, we have now won two straight conference games at home for the first time since the 2003 season. Speaking of home winning streaks, we are now undefeated at 2-0 since the turf was honorable christened "Caccia Field." With this win, we have eclipsed our win total from all of last season and with four remaining contests against teams with a combined record of 14-14, a winning season is most definitely in reach.

With our victory over Portland State in the rear view mirror, we look ahead to the Cal Poly Mustangs (4-3, 0-1). This game gives us the opportunity to take on another opponent with a potent offense at home. Despite being a non-Big Sky Conference opponent, this is a good team that has been nationally ranked this season and continues to receive votes this very week. We know that we cannot rest on our laurels as we look to win our third game in the last four weeks. However, we are not looking ahead or behind, but will take it one practice at a time leading up to Saturday's contest at Holt Arena. Thanks again for your time in reading this and your support all season, look forward to another great game this week, and will talk to you next week.

Branden Jones #13