Weber State (4-3, 3-1 Big Sky) aims to get the bell back in the second of three trophy games this season when No. 21 Idaho State visits Stewart Stadium for a 1 p.m. homecoming kickoff.

The Bengals (4-2, 1-2) made waves with an early-season win at Utah State but have lost two straight — a 38-31 home loss to now-No. 8 Northern Arizona, and a 25-24 home loss to Cal Poly.

Former, longtime WSU coach and now Idaho State defensive coordinator Grant Duff returns to Ogden for the first time since heading to Pocatello with he and head coach Cody Hawkins trying to lift the Bengals to relevance.

Duff is expecting a tall task for his defense.

“They’re throwing the ball successfully and they’re running the ball very successfully — they’re the second-leading rushing offense in the Big Sky, so you can’t sleep on that,” Duff said in a press conference. “If you load the box, they’re gonna try to sling it around and take advantage of one-on-one matchups. If you play a light box, they’re gonna run it right down your throat. They understand who they are and who they are not, and they keep themselves out of bad situations.”

Does he have feelings about coaching against WSU in Stewart Stadium?

“You have a lot of good memories. We did a lot of cool things, but I’m a big believer in people, and people make things special. None of the people that were special in my time down there are still there,” Duff said. “So it’s just faded memories of a day gone by.”

DEPTH CHART NOTES

The only change to starters this week is freshman Denzel Peoples moving into a starting cornerback spot, overtaking fifth-year player Bones Marks — though like last week against Idaho, nickel situations against Idaho State may see both on the field at times. Strong safety co-starters Tommy Romano and Jayden Mayberry may also share the field in those situations.

Jacob Edmonds returns after injury and slots in as backup left guard, behind freshman starter Teancum Moea’i. Brody Cutrer remains at starting center, having moved there from left guard after Edmonds went out.

Though it changes most weeks, Dyson Parker and Omar Shah are listed as this week’s starting kick returners, which they did last week.

MEET THE BENGALS

Quarterback Jordan Cooke (No. 1) is, as expected, the man to watch in ISU’s pass-forward offense. He averages 272.3 passing yards per game on a 61% completion rate, totaling 14 touchdowns and six interceptions.

He’s essentially got four receivers at 50 yards or more per game: Chedon James (No. 8, 75.7), Julian Mason (No. 80, 58.3), Zedekiah Anahu-Ambrosio (No. 7, 56.3) and Tommy Poe (No. 13, 49.6).

At 62.8 yards per game, Tytan Mason (No. 20) leads the run game after an early season-ending injury to Dason Brooks.

Senior linebacker Nathan Reynolds (No. 7) leads ISU with 54 tackles. Duff has the Bengals averaging 7.7 tackles for loss per game; former Wildcat Bronson Childs (No. 96) and Jackson Irwin (No. 18) each have 4.5 TFLs this season.

Mason Lindberg (No. 26) is a threat in the kicking game. He’s 13 of 18 on field goals this seaosn, but 12 of 14 on kicks between 20 and 49 yards. Interestingly, 10 of his 13 makes came in two games: he went 5 for 5 against both Utah State and Cal Poly.

TEAM VS. TEAM METRICS

Through seven games, Weber State averages 37.6 points per game (13th nationally) on 446.7 yards (15th nationally), including 6.4 yards per play. Defensively, WSU has allowed 36.1 points per game on 475.1 yards, including 6.2 yards per play.

The six-turnover debacle in Game 4 still has the Wildcats well behind in turnover margin at minus-eight, losing 17 giveaways (11 interceptions, six fumbles) while gaining nine (five interceptions, four fumbles). WSU has also blocked five kicks this season: three PATs, one field goal, one punt, with the latter two both returned for touchdowns.

Weber leads the Big Sky with 17 sacks on defense while allowing 13.

WSU averages 4.6 penalties per game for 39.6 yards.

In six games, Idaho State scores 34.8 points per game on 436.7 yards, including 6.6 yards per play. Defensively, ISU has allowed 21.8 points per game on 371 yards, including 5.3 yards per play.

The Bengals are exactly even in the turnover margin, matching by method; they’ve lost 10 turnovers (seven interceptions, three fumbles) while gaining 10 takeaways (seven interceptions, three fumbles).

Idaho State has recorded 13 sacks defensively while allowing 10.

The Bengals average 4.5 penalties per game for 40.2 yards.

ODDS & PREDICTIONS

Jeff Sagarin ranks Weber State at No. 163 in all of Division I (FBS and FCS, 266 total teams). Idaho State is No. 145. His formula calls for a virtual pick ’em, with WSU using home-field advantage to be favored by 0.33 points.

ESPN’s Bill Connelly ranks Weber State at No. 38 in FCS (128 teams) and Idaho State at No. 16. His formula favors Idaho State by eight points, predicting an ISU win of 39-31.

D Ratings favors the visitors by even more, giving Idaho State an 11-point edge with a score prediction of 35-24 at 79.5% probability.

WEATHER

If you endured the early-arriving remnants of Hurricane Rachel and two lightning delays last week, consider this week your reward.

Saturday is forecast for sunny skies, a 1% chance of precipitation, and a high of 70 degrees in Ogden. It will be about 65 degrees at kickoff, warming to 70 by game’s end.

TV & RADIO

In Utah, the game will be broadcast over the air on both KJZZ and KMYU, also with the usual ESPN+ subscription stream. Dave Fox, Alema Harrington and Frank Dolce will be on the call.

Weber State’s radio call, with Carl Arky and former WSU player Dave Stireman, airs in Utah on 103.1 FM and online at coast103.com.

ALL-TIME SERIES

Weber State overwhelmingly leads the all-time series 49-17. WSU is 25-6 in Ogden, but ISU won in its last trip to Stewart Stadium. Idaho State’s current two-game win streak is the first time the Bengals have won consecutively against WSU since 1984.