Weber State football off to record start, cruises to 42-7 win at Portland State
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- Weber State running back Damon Bankston (26) cuts upfield against Portland State during a Big Sky Conference game Saturday, Oct. 15, 2022, in Hillsboro, Ore.
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- Weber State cornerbacks Marque Collins (2) and Maxwell Andeson (3) bring down Portland State receiver Maclaine Griffin during a Big Sky Conference game Saturday, Oct. 15, 2022, in Hillsboro, Ore.
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- Weber State quarterback Bronson Barron (10) scrambles for positive yards against Portland State during a Big Sky Conference game Saturday, Oct. 15, 2022, in Hillsboro, Ore.
Despite a stiff wind and record heat in the area, Weber State’s win Saturday at Portland State was as elementary as it gets.
The No. 6 Wildcats scored two quick touchdowns to open the game and cruised to a 42-7 victory at Hillsboro Stadium.
Weber State is now 6-0, a new program record for the best start to a season, and has run its nationwide, FCS-best win streaks to eight overall and eight straight on the road — coming on Jay Hill’s 100th game as the team’s head coach.
“So much good. Offense looked great, I thought Bronson (Barron) played a very good game. We threw it, we ran it,” Hill said. “It was really complete.”
The only blemish on the board came when Portland State’s first-team offense scored against WSU backup defenders with 6:18 left in the game, which happened to be the first fourth-quarter points Weber State (6-0, 3-0 Big Sky) has allowed all season.
The Portland State (2-4, 1-2) scoring drive was the only time the Vikings entered the red zone Saturday, and only the second time getting to at least the WSU 35. Before that late possession, WSU was outgaining PSU in total yards by a mark of 503 to 163.
“You hate giving up that score but one thing I’m never going to do, I’m never going to take those reps away from the backups and the development of guys we will need down the road,” Hill said. “Those reps were huge to get backups in for the entire fourth quarter.”
In the end, total yards favored Weber 555-236.
Weber State got the party started on the game’s first possession. A 32-yard pass from Bronson Barron to Ty MacPherson got things going, and the Wildcats finished the drive with three straight screen passes to Haze Hadley, the final a 3-yard touchdown for a 7-0 lead.
The 32-yarder to MacPherson converted a third-and-14, however, as a bad snap led to negative yards in the opening sequence. Saturday’s game saw WSU’s offense overcome several more bad snaps and false starts, which kept a few additional scoring chances from developing. In the end, WSU was penalized 11 times for 90 yards, while PSU took four penalties for 30 yards.
Portland State picked up a first down on its first time with the ball, but that possession was like all the rest: some empty yards that got nowhere near scoring range.
Weber State’s defense harassed talented quarterback Dante Chachere, forcing him into inefficient throwing until the scoring drive and sacking him four times. Chachere was 18 of 29 for 167 yards and rushed 19 times for 20 yards. The Vikings totaled 69 rushing yards on 36 carries.
“Defense came out, did a lot of great things. We talked about trying to contain this quarterback because he’s a very good athlete. He’s elusive,” Hill said. “Right from the get-go, I thought our defense did a really good job with the game plan.”
WSU’s offense took the ball and posted one of its two 90-plus-yard scoring drives of the day, led by a 31-yard rush from Donate McMillan and capped with a 23-yard Damon Bankston scoring rush for a 14-0 lead with 6:11 left in the first quarter.
A 26-yard, back-shoulder, catch-and-run to Jacob Sharp kicked off the next scoring drive, which ended with a highlight run from McMillan.
From the PSU 15, McMillan looped around the right edge, stiff-armed the first would-be tackler, broke a tackle, juked a defender cutting in from the sideline, then dragged one final defender to the goal line for a touchdown. That made it 21-0 midway through the second quarter.
Doug Schiess recovered a PSU fumble three plays later, but Weber gave it back when Bankston bobbled a sure pass from Barron and it was intercepted by Xavier Bell.
Weber took its next drive across midfield, where it was hurt by three false starts. Sharp dropped a sure pass to the PSU 30 late in the half, which kept the Wildcats from attempting a field goal as time expired, so WSU took a 21-0 lead into halftime.
Garrett Beck ended the opening series of the second half by sacking Chachere, and Sharp made up for his drop with a big score. Barron threw a slant to Sharp on first down and he took it the rest of the way for a 55-yard touchdown and a 28-0 lead with 11:49 left in the third quarter.
Weber State added to its interception total, a diving Winston Reid catch after an Eddie Heckard pass breakup on a Chachere heave to the goal line, for the defense’s 12th pick this season.
WSU then went 98 yards on 11 plays, a slow-starting drive that picked up steam on a 23-yard rumble from Kris Jackson and a 26-yard seam route to tight end Justin Malone. That set up a 2-yard lofted pass to Hayden Meacham for a touchdown and a 35-0 lead.
The game’s most impactful play, big-picture-wise, came early in the fourth quarter when Haze Hadley returned a punt into PSU territory but was spun down and twisted a leg awkwardly. He left the field with his left leg in an air cast and the rest of his season may be in doubt. He had six catches for 31 yards Saturday, adding 23 yards on a kickoff return. The long return on which he was injured was negated by a holding penalty.
Weber State started sending in backup defenders before the third quarter was over, and linebackers Simote Lokotui and Jayden Ah You shared a sack to help end a PSU possession.
Chachere ended PSU’s only scoring drive with a 12-yard touchdown to Mataio Talalemotu to make it 35-7 with 6:18 left.
An onside kick attempt went out of bounds, giving WSU a 51-yard field. Kylan Weisser threw a 12-yard slant to Treyshun Hurry but otherwise, it was Steven Shoats-Thomas rushing for 30 yards on six carries, capped with a 7-yard score for the final 42-7 margin.
Barron finished throwing 21 of 31 for 274 yards and three touchdowns, with the one interception. Ty MacPherson totaled 60 yards on four catches, Jon Christensen made his debut with three receptions for 32 yards, Meacham had three catches for 30 yards, and Sharp finished with two catches for 81 yards.
On the ground, McMillan led with 81 yards on nine carries. Jackson had 77 on six carries, Bankston totaled 40 yards on nine carries, Shoats-Thomas had his six carries for 30 yards, and Barron pitched in 31 yards on five rushes. WSU rushed for 6.9 yards per carry.
Weber State totaled 286 yards passing and 269 rushing.
“There’s so many good things going on and I’ve got to congratulate the staff,” Hill said. “The coaches we have right now are phenomenal … and the players have bought into what they’ve been asked to do. It was a complete win today.”
The win sets up a big matchup next week at Montana State, likely to be a No. 2 vs. No. 4 matchup in national rankings after Saturday’s results.
No. 2 South Dakota State should move to No. 1 after topping No. 1 North Dakota State on the road. Idaho took down No. 3 Montana 30-23 on the road as well.
BIG SKY SCORES
No. 6 Weber State 42, Portland State 7
Idaho 30, No. 3 Montana 23
No. 4 Montana State 37, Northern Colorado 14
No. 5 Sacramento State 52, Eastern Washington 28
UC Davis 56, Northern Arizona 27
Idaho State 40, Cal Poly 31