MOSCOW, Idaho – Gevani McCoy threw for 298 yards and 4 TDs in the most impressive offensive performance of head coach Jason Eck's short Vandal career to lead Idaho to a 55-35 win over Northern Colorado Saturday night at the Kibbie Dome.

The Vandal offense was dominant in every facet, rushing for 262 yards and passing for 298 yards. Idaho punted once and for the fourth straight game did not turn the ball over. The Vandals averaged 6.7 yards per carry, 8.48 yards per play and were 8-10 on third downs while grabbing 30 first downs.

Idaho moved the ball at will, but Northern Colorado kept pace for much of the game. The Bears tallied 399 yards of offense and quarterback Dylan McCaffrey was 17-25 for 256 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Idaho scored just a minute and 35 seconds into the game when McCoy found Jermaine Jackson for a 26-yard touchdown. Northern Colorado responded with a touchdown of their own, but the PAT was blocked by Marcus Harris.

Idaho added a field goal midway with 40 seconds to play in the first quarter, but UNC took a 13-10 lead midway through the second. Idaho responded on the ensuing drive to retake the lead, 17-13, with a 27-yard rush by Elisha Cummings, his first of three touchdowns.

UNC regained the lead 20-17 with just 1:21 left in the half, but the Vandals put together a five-play 75-yard drive in just 46 seconds to regain the lead 24-20 with just 35 seconds left before the break. Cummings again found the end zone after a long run, this time for 25 yards. Idaho would not trail again.

Idaho forced a three-and-out in Northern Colorado's first possession of the second half and then drove 59 yards in six plays to take a 31-20 lead on Anthony Woods' first career touchdown. He picked his way through defenders for a 15-yard touchdown.

Northern Colorado responded with a touchdown to cut the lead to 31-28 with 6:43 left in the third before Idaho took over with 24 unanswered points.

McCoy found Hayden Hatten for back-to-back touchdowns the first, a 35-yard score and the second, a 9-yard touchdown. He then found Cummings out of the backfield for his third touchdown of the day. Ricardo Chavez added a 39-yard field goal with 5:02 remaining to cap the Idaho scoring at 55 and give Idaho a 27-point lead.

Northern Colorado scored a touchdown with under a minute to play to set the final score at 55-35.

Two Vandal receivers, Hatten (131 yards) and Jackson (101) ended the day with over 100-yards receiving. Woods led the way on the rushing front with a career-high 96 yards on 17 carries. Cummings ended with 78 yards on seven carries and two catches for 15 yards.

Fa'Avae Fa'Avae again led the defense in tackles with nine on the day. Paul Moala and Murvin Kenion III both recorded interceptions for the Vandals. Idaho has now gone four consecutive games without a turnover, the longest streak since at least 2001.

The win is the third-straight for the Vandals moving their record to 3-2 on the year and 2-0 in Big Sky Conference play.  It is the first three-game win streak since 2016 and the first time Idaho is 2-0 in league play since 2009.

NOTES
-         Hayden Hatten and Jermaine Jackson both hit the century mark on receiving yards. It is the first time two Vandals hit the 100-yard receiving mark since Alfonso Onunwor and Jacob Sannon did so against South Alabama on Sept. 23, 2017.
-         After going 18-20 last week in Flagstaff, McCoy was again efficient in the pass game, going 22-27 (81.5%). In Big Sky play, he is 40-47 (85.1%).
-         McCoy surpassed his career mark for receiving yards, his previous best was 212 against Washington State in the season opener.
-         Coming into the game Idaho had struggled on third down, going 16-57 (28%). Idaho went 8-10 against Northern Colorado.
-         McCoy set career highs in completions (22), yards (298) and touchdowns (4).
-         Anthony Woods scored his first career touchdown. He also set a career-high in yards (96). He did not have a carry for a loss on the day.
-         With takeaways and no turnovers, the Vandals are now 10-2 on the year for takeaways.
-         Ricardo Chavez hit two field goals (21-yards, 39-yards) and remains perfect on the year at 10-10.  
-         Idaho's 560 yards of offense is the most against a DI opponent since putting up 738 yards in the overtime win over NAU in 2019.
-        Announced attendance was 10,759, it was the highest attended game in the Kibbie Dome since the Montana game in 2018 (14,571).

UP NEXT
The Vandals will get a bye week next week before traveling to Missoula to face Montana for the Little Brown Stein on Oct. 15. The game is set to kick off at 12 p.m. pacific. The Grizzlies are 5-0 after surviving a late comeback by Idaho State on the road and winning 28-20 in Pocatello. Idaho leads the all-time rivalry series 55-30-2 but hasn't won since 1999.

The Vandals and Grizzlies sit atop the Big Sky at 2-0 in Big Sky play along with Montana State. Weber State and Sacramento State are 1-0 but had their bye week this week.