SAN MARCOS, Texas — Shaun Rutherford threw for one touchdown and used his legs to run for another Saturday to lead Texas State to a 38-7 victory over visiting Idaho.
The Vandals fall to 1-6 after losing their first WAC game (1-1).
“It was a miserable game,” Idaho coach Robb Akey. “We have to play better on defense. We didn’t tackle well. Texas State played well. It was a bad combination.”
The Vandals managed just 315 yards on offense — 211 on 19-of-34 passing (two interceptions) and 104 rushing. Meantime, the crafty Bobcat offense covered 519 yards with 337 of those on 47 carries by a fleet of deceptive backs and another 182 through the air.
“Defensively, we just didn’t play well,” Akey said. “We have to stop the running game. That’s the bottom line.
“That was real disappointing.”
Rutherford completed 14-of-19 passes for 182 yards and a touchdown while scrambling 15 times for 85 yards and another score. Rutherford hooked up with Andy Erickson on a 31-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter, then had a 9-yard touchdown run with 6:55 to go in the first half.
Texas State (3-3, 1-0 WAC) didn’t turn the ball over once.
Idaho trailed 14-0 before James Baker scored a touchdown at the 5:07 mark in the second quarter, making it 14-6, but the Bobcats scored 24 unanswered points in the second half.
The Vandals play at Louisiana Tech next Saturday (5 p.m., tape-delayed on Altitude starting at 6 p.m.)
LAST WAC UNBEATEN TEAM LOSES
HOUSTON — Quarterback Taylor McHargue ran for two touchdowns and Turner Petersen added another as Rice’s ground game overwhelmed UTSA in a 34-14 victory.
McHargue completed 12-of-21 passes for 144 yards and ran for another 68 yards. Charles Ross led all rushers with 117 yards on 16 carries as Rice (2-5) rolled up 301 yards on the ground.
David Glasco II scored UTSA’s sole touchdown on a 36-yard pass from Eric Soza. Glasco also ran it in for the 2-point conversion. Kristian Stern had two field goals for the Roadrunners, who lost for the first time this season after a 5-0 start.
