Sep. 14—GRAND FORKS — UND killed the negative narratives Saturday at the Potato Bowl.
Could UND stop a trend of slow starts? Could it put together a passing game? Could it avoid struggling against Idaho State? Could it stop fumbling program momentum after big wins?
How’s 38-zip for an answer?
The No. 10 Fighting Hawks scored the game’s first 38 points and blasted Idaho State 52-28 in the Potato Bowl on Saturday in the Alerus Center in front of 10,685.
Last Saturday, UND upset then-No. 4 Montana thanks to 20 unanswered second-half points. But last season, when UND beat North Dakota State, the Hawks turned around and were shutout the following week in a blowout loss at Northern Iowa.
“I thought we handled it really well,” UND wide receiver Bo Belquist said of avoiding a Montana game hangover. “We flushed the game early in the week and didn’t even talk about it. I felt like our preparation was a lot better.”
UND finished with more points than the program has ever scored against a Big Sky Conference opponent.
On UND’s second offensive drive, the Hawks went on what’s becoming a 2024 staple. UND went 80 yards on 16 plays across more than six minutes, punching in a Gaven Ziebarth 1-yard touchdown run to make it 7-0.
As Idaho State marched down the field to answer, UND’s defense struck at the perfect time.
Playing with backup quarterback Jackson Sharman after starter Kobe Tracy was shaken up following a roughing the passer call two plays earlier on UND linebacker Wyatt Pedigo, Sharman threw a wobbly out route toward the sideline. Hawks corner Devin Hembry jumped the route and returned the interception 92 yards for a 14-0 lead.
“The quarterback pulled the pin and my eyes snapped to the receiver,” Hembry said. “We prepared well throughout the week. We took what we did in practice and applied it to the game.”
Hembry’s return for a…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/und-blasts-idaho-state-38-003200140.html
Author : Grand Forks Herald
Publish date : 2024-09-15 00:32:00
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