complete notes and stats in pdf

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IDAHO STATE BENGALS (2-2, 1-0) vs. PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (1-3, 0-1) 
Saturday, October 1, 2016, 2:30 p.m. • Providence Park (18,627), Portland, OR
TV: None
RADIO: Rip City Radio 620 AM, www.ripcityradio.com • Pregame Show: 1:30 p.m. • Play-by-play: Tom Hewitt • Analyst: Mike Lund
INTERNET: Live video stream: www.GoViks.com/Live • Live stats: www.ViksLive.com

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THE SERIES RECORD: VIKINGS vs. BENGALS
All-Time Series: Idaho State leads 24-16-1 • The series is tied 10-10 in Portland • ISU leads 14-6-1 in Pocatello
Big Sky Conference Series: Portland State leads 11-9 • ISU leads 6-4 in Pocatello • PSU leads 7-3 in Portland

Nov. 16, 1996: ISU 31-12 @ Portland
Nov. 15, 1997: ISU 26-24 @ Pocatello
Sept. 26, 1998: ISU 43-41 @ Portland
Oct. 9, 1999: PSU 52-13 @ Pocatello
Oct. 14, 2000: PSU 59-21 @ Portland
Oct. 13, 2001: ISU 23-17 @ Pocatello
Nov. 2, 2002: PSU 27-24 @ Portland
Nov. 1, 2003: ISU 30-20 @ Pocatello
Nov. 6, 2004: PSU 42-21 @ Portland
Nov. 5, 2005: ISU 36-34 @ Pocatello
Oct. 14, 2006: PSU 34-13 @ Portland
Oct. 20, 2007: ISU 38-20 @ Pocatello
Oct. 25, 2008: PSU 36-13 @ Portland
Nov. 14, 2009: ISU 41-34 @ Pocatello
Oct. 2, 2010: PSU 38-3 @ Portland
Oct. 1, 2011: PSU 42-35 @ Pocatello
Oct. 6, 2012: PSU 77-10 @ Portland
Nov. 9, 2013: PSU 38-31 @ Pocatello
Nov. 1, 2014: ISU 31-13 @ Portland
Sept. 10, 2015: PSU 34-14 @ Pocatello
 
LAST MEETING, Sept. 12, 2015: ^#24 Portland State 34, ^#23 Idaho State 14
The Viking defense held the Bengals to 242 yards and forced four turnovers in the win. Meanwhile, PSU's special teams returned a kickoff for a touchdown and snuffed out an Idaho State fake punt attempt.
   
David Jones led the Viking offense with 113 yards on 18 carries. Overall, the Vikings had 342 total yards.
           
John Norcross made 13 tackles, while Jeremy Lutali had 12 stops and an interception.
 
VIKINGS HOPE TO END THREE-GAME SKID AGAINST ISU
The Portland State Vikings will return to Providence Park for their first home game in 28 days when they host the Idaho State Bengals in a Big Sky Conference game this Saturday. The Vikings and Bengals meet in a 2:30 p.m. game that will be the conference home opener for PSU.
     
It was a rough month of September for the Vikings as they went on the road to face three straight formidable opponents. The result was three straight losses as PSU is now 1-3 this season, 0-1 in Big Sky play. PSU lost at San Jose State (66-35), Washington (41-3) and Southern Utah (45-31) in consecutive weeks. Turnovers and inconsistent defensive play have troubled the Vikings, as well as early-season injuries. The Vikings committed 15 turnovers and gave up 152 points in those three games.
     
PSU will try to fight back this week though as they take on Idaho State. The Bengals are fresh off a conference home-opening win against Sacramento State, 42-34. ISU is 2-2 on the season, 1-0 in the Big Sky.
     
The Vikings have a good recent history against Idaho State, winning five of the last six meetings, including a 34-14 decision last year in Pocatello. PSU has won 11 of 20 Big Sky Conference matchups overall.
     
Portland State is unranked this week for the first time in 17 polling weeks, dating to the first week of the 2015 season. But the Vikings are happy to be home for three of their next four games in the month of October.
     
This week's game is not televised, but a live video stream will be available at www.GoViks.com/Live. The radio broadcast is on Rip City Radio 620 AM and www.ripcityradio.com. The pregame show begins at 1:30 p.m.
 
STORYLINES AND SERIES HISTORY
• Portland State has won five of the last six meetings with Idaho State, but lost in the Bengals most recent trip to Portland (31-13 in 2014).
• Bengal Coach Mike Kramer has faced the Vikings 18 times with three different schools (7-11 overall including Eastern Washington and Montana State). He was named the Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year in 2014 at Idaho State.
• The teams have met 41 times in the last 51 years.
 
SCOUTING THE BENGALS
Idaho State comes into this week's game having played a somewhat similar schedule to the Vikings. The Bengals opened with a win against a lower division school, then lost a pair of games on the road to FBS schools. The difference is last week ISU was at home and got a conference-opening win over Sacramento State, 42-34.
     
Idaho State likes to pass the football, throwing on 60% of its offensive plays. Quarterback Tanner Gueller has thrown for exactly 900 yards and five touchdowns in four games, completing just under 60% of his passes. Gueller's main targets are Josh Cook (23-281-2) and KW Williams (18-210-2).
     
Jakori Ford leads the running game with 48 carries for 251 yards and four touchdowns.
     
Overall, Idaho State averages 367 yards per game, with over 235 coming through the air. The Bengals have committed nine turnovers and forced seven this season.
     
Defensively, they have given up 446.5 yards per game, including 272.2 yards passing. Mike Jenkins leads the team with 41 tackles and seven tackles for loss. Joe Martin has 33 tackles for the Bengals.
 
GAME WEEK ACTIVITIES
VIKINGS ON THE RADIO: All Portland State football games can be heard on Rip City Radio 620 AM and www.ripcityradio.com. The Viking Pre-Game Show begins one hour prior to kickoff each week... Tom Hewitt (play-by-play) and Mike Lund (analyst) call the action.
 
VIKINGS ON THE INTERNET: Live streaming video of all Portland State home and Big Sky Conference games can be seen free at a link on www.GoViks.com/Live... Live stats for Portland State home games are at www.ViksLive.com.
 
VIKING FOOTBALL LUNCHEONS: Every Friday of a home football week (Sept. 2, Sept. 30, Oct. 14, Oct. 28 and Thursday, Nov. 17), Portland State Athletics will host a football luncheon at the Old Spaghetti Factory, located at 0715 SW Bancroft. Coach Barnum and Viking players will speak and be available for questions. The luncheon starts at noon and is open to the public and costs $12.
 
BRUCE BARNUM ON THE RADIO: Viking football Coach Bruce Barnum can be heard every Wednesday afternoon on Rip City Radio 620 AM. Barnum joins Travis Demers as he reviews and previews Viking football games.
 
VIKING PLAYER DIARY: Look for SR CB Xavier Coleman's player diary each week on OregonLive.com and in the Oregonian. For the second year in a row, Coleman will give weekly updates on the Viking team's progress throughout the 2016 season. His diary should appear each Monday at OregonLive.com.
 
TICKETS: Single-game tickets range from $20 to $30. Student tickets are $10 each. Kids 14 and under are $5. Portland State Students tickets are FREE with valid ID. Visit www.GoViks.com of call 1-888-VIK-TIKS for all details and pricing.
 
QUICK SNAPS: SUSTAINABLE AND RECYCLABLE
 
TURNOVERS, SUU BIG PLAYS GIVE VIKINGS A BIG HEADACHE: Portland State ran into a Homecoming buzzsaw at Southern Utah, as the defending Big Sky Conference Champions beat the Vikings, 45-31, last Saturday. The Vikings committed five turnovers in the game, severely hampering their chances for a victory. And, the Thunderbirds scored four touchdowns of over 70 yards in length. Still, PSU was at the three-yard line with 26 seconds left and a chance to tie as it trailed, 38-31. But, in the face of a blitz, SR QB Alex Kuresa threw an interception that was returned 98 yards by Jermaine Doubs to seal the win for Southern Utah... Portland State led 10-7 early in the second quarter, but Southern Utah's offense exploded for 24 points before halftime, scoring two touchdowns on big plays, and a third after a Viking turnover. By halftime the Thunderbirds had outgained the Vikings 423 yards to 80... Early in the fourth quarter Kuresa converted a big fourth-and-four play when he hit Paris Penn streaking down the left sideline with a 34-yard touchdown reception. PSU trailed by only a touchdown with 12:08 left, 38-31. The Viking defense forced four straight three-and-outs by Southern Utah in the fourth quarter as the Thunderbirds ran 12 offensive plays for minus-24 yards in those series'. But PSU couldn't come all the way back. After Penn's touchdown, the Vikings had three possessions resulting in losing the ball on downs and two interceptions... Southern Utah outgained the Vikings 541-509 overall in the game.
 
TURNOVERS BEFUDDLE VIKINGS: Through four games this season, the Vikings have been overwhelmed by turnovers. They have a total of 16 while forcing only three. That's a dramatic turnaround from last season when the Vikings forced 28 TOs while committing only 15. That's right, PSU already has more turnovers in four games than it had in 12 games in 2016... the Vikings have 16 turnovers leading to 52 opponent points... meanwhile, PSU has scored only three points off three opponent turnovers.
 
THE GUY WITH THE COOL NAME: SR TE Maximo Espitia (eh-SPEETH-ee-uh) has become a key element of the Viking offense following his transfer from California. Espitia, a graduate transfer, is making the most of his one season of remaining eligibility. He had a career-high seven receptions for 138 yards at Southern Utah. Espitia leads the team with 17 receptions for 334 yards and two touchdowns this season. He averages over 20 yards per catch. At 6-2, 235, Espitia is listed as a tight end, but he often lines up in the slot or split wide.
 
YOUTH SHALL SERVE: Portland State played its sixth true freshman on defense this season in the Southern Utah game. Those six have played in part due to numerous injuries on the Viking defense... FR LB Mason Vega joined the fray briefly against the Thunderbirds. The other five true freshmen who had already played include starting DT Anthony Del Toro, DE Kenton Bartlett, DT Sione Taumoe'anga, CB Montre Brown and LB Devin Thompson... the Vikings are also playing true freshmen TE Charlie Taumoepeau and LS Riley Shackelford.
 
WE SAY, SEISAY: Speaking of injuries on defense, JR WR/CB Chris Seisay moved over to the defensive side of the ball against Southern Utah. Seisay played cornerback at Oregon for two seasons, including starting games in the Rose Bowl and the National Championship. When he came to the Vikings he was put at wide receiver, a position he dominated at in high school. Against SUU, Seisay started at cornerback and also played some downs at wide receiver. He had eight tackles to lead the team.
 
NO RETURN POLICY: Portland State SR P Marcus Kinsella is averaging only 38.5 yards per punt this season, down from 40.9 last season. But much of that is due to directional punting and keeping the football away from opposing return men. As a result, the Vikings have allowed only two return yards and have a net average of 37.5.
 
THE GREAT GONZO: SR K Jonathan Gonzales has made his only two field goal attempts this season. He has made 32-42 in his career to tie for second all-time at PSU and is first in percentage (.762)... Gonzales is 14-14 on extra points this season and 97-98 in his career... with 193 career points in less than three seasons, Gonzales ranks 11th all-time at PSU.
 
SLASH LINE: In baseball the line for a hitter that includes batting average/on-base percentage/slugging percentage/OPS is called a slash line. There isn't such a thing as a slash line in football, but if there was, JR DE Davond Dade's would already look pretty good. So far this season, he has 15 tackles, two tackles for loss, a sack, a forced fumble, an interception and a blocked kick.
 
X MARKS THE SPOT: Opposing offenses have stayed away from SR CB Xavier Coleman for the most part this season. And why not? Last year, he had five interceptions and 13 pass breakups and was listed as a preseason All-American by four media services this year. Coleman has two breakups this season and with 29 in his career now ranks second all-time at Portland State.
 
GO FOR IT? SURE: Portland State's offense is 5-7 on fourth down this season when the Vikings go for it. They have converted at least one in each game. PSU was 1-3 on fourth down at Southern Utah.
 
OFFENSIVE HIGHLIGHTS
• SR QB Alex Kuresa rushed for 123 yards and had 345 yards of total offense against Central Washington (9/3). Both of those were career highs. He passed those numbers with new career highs of 133 rushing yards and 397 yards of total offense at Southern Utah (9/24).
• SR RB Nate Tago rushed for 136 yards and three touchdowns on 24 carries against Central Washington (9/3). All were career highs.
• SR RB Paris Penn rushed for a career-high 137 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries at San Jose State (9/10). He also caught a 22-yard touchdown pass. Penn's previous career-high was 112 yards (2 TDs) at Oregon State in 2014.
• PSU has rushed for 200+ yards in three of four games. The Vikings had eight 200+ rushing games in 2015 (averaging 250.6 per game on the ground overall). PSU has rushed for 200+ yards per game for six straight seasons heading into 2016.
 
DEFENSIVE HIGHLIGHTS
• SR LB Anthony McNichols had a career-high 13 tackles at Washington (9/17). For the season, he has made 36 tackles and three tackles for loss to lead the team.
• SR LB Austin Wolff had a career-high eight tackles and a sack in his first career start against Central Washington.
 
SPECIAL TEAMS HIGHLIGHTS
• JR DE Davond Dade blocked a first-quarter field goal attempt by Central Washington (9/3).
• PSU successfully converted a fake punt against San Jose State (9/10) with SR RB Nate Tago completing a 43-yard pass to SR TE Maximo Espitia.
• JR WR Trent Riley blocked a punt against San Jose State (9/10) in the fourth quarter. It was recovered and returned 25 yards by SO CB Artuz Manning.
• SR P Marcus Kinsella booted a career-best 67-yard punt at Southern Utah (9/24).
 
MILESTONES
• SR RB Nate Tago passed 1,000 career rushing yards in the game with Central Washington (9/3). He now has 1,217 career yards and 16 career touchdowns on 265 carries. Tago has played in 36 games with eight starts.
• SR QB Alex Kuresa went over 2,000 career passing yards in the game with Central Washington (9/3). He has 2,744 passing yards in 16 games as a Viking. Kuresa has completed 175-324 passes with 22 touchdowns and 15 interceptions... Kuresa passed 1,000 career rushing yards at Southern Utah (9/24). In 16 career games, he has 214 carries for 1,032 yards and nine touchdowns rushing.
• SR RB Nate Tago has passed 1,000 career kickoff return yards (1,048) and ranks eighth all-time at PSU.
 
GET ON THE BUS: AMERICANA TOUR, PART TWO: This season PSU anticipates bus trips to San Jose, CA, Seattle, Davis, CA and Sacramento. There will also be a bus ride home from Ogden, UT... the round trip to San Jose was a total of 1,340 miles. The ride included a stop off at Oregon Wildlife Safari and the obligatory In-and-Out Burger stop in Medford... the trip to Washington was a mere 358-mile round trip to Husky Stadium...  for the trip to Southern Utah, the Vikings flew to Las Vegas, then bussed up to Cedar City for the game with Southern Utah (171 miles). Not much of a bus ride (relatively speaking), but the Vikings had time to include the Criss Angel Show at the Luxor Hotel in LV upon arrival on Thursday night... That makes 1,869 bus miles so far for the Vikings... Coach Barnum led his program on what he called the "Americana Tour" in 2015, which included bus rides to Pullman, WA, Pocatello, ID, San Luis Obispo, CA, and Cheney, WA. In all, the Vikings logged 4,394 bus miles and approximately 80 hours round trip to those four destinations (PSU also flew on two road trips). The Americana Tour included such things as dozens of on-bus movies, a stop to buy a lottery ticket on the way home from beating Washington State, a practice on Boise State's blue turf, a sight-seeing trip to Alcatraz (in which equipment manager Mike Haluska was left on the island… but soon retrieved), and a midnight McDonald's run at a lonely truck stop in eastern Oregon. In addition to the economy of the bus trips, Barnum contends the time together draws the Viking team closer.
 
VETERANS: Portland State has a less experienced roster than last season. These are the guys who have played and started the most games in their careers:
• Most games played: SR CB Xavier Coleman, 38; SR OL Cam Keizur, 37; SR DT Savali Talalemotu, 37; SR RB Nate Tago, 36; SR WR Darnell Adams, 34; SR P Marcus Kinsella, 32
• Most career starts: SR OL Cam Keizur, 34; SR CB Xavier Coleman, 28; SR K Jonathan Gonzales, 28; SR P Marcus Kinsella, 28; JR S Beau Duronslet, 18; SR DE Michael Doman, 17
• Consecutive starts: SR K Jonathan Gonzales, 28; SR P Marcus Kinsella, 28; SR CB Xavier Coleman, 21; SR QB Alex Kuresa, 16
 
SCHEDULE NOTES
• With a win over Central Washington (43-26, Sept. 3), Portland State is now 15-0 against lower division schools since moving to Division I and the Big Sky Conference in 1996.
• At this point in the schedule, Portland State figures to play at least three nationally-ranked teams in 2016 (Washington, Cal Poly, Eastern Washington). The Vikings were 5-1 against ranked teams in 2015.
• Remarkably, Portland State plays five Big Sky opponents who have bye weeks prior to their game with the Vikings.
• This is the seventh time that Portland State has played at least two FBS level programs in the same season (the Vikings played three in 2006).
• Despite this being PSU's 70th season of football, the Vikings faced San Jose State for just the first time in history.
• PSU faces only five teams in 2016 that were on the schedule in 2015. The Vikings went 4-1 against those teams.
• Due to the 13-team Big Sky Conference, Portland State plays three league teams it did not see in 2015: Weber State, UC Davis and Sacramento State. The Vikings see three other opponents cycle off its schedule in 2016: Montana, Montana State and North Dakota. The Vikings do not play Northern Arizona for the second year in a row.
• The 2016 NCAA I FCS playoffs, which includes 24 teams, begin on Nov. 26.
• The University of Idaho will rejoin the Big Sky Conference as a football-playing member in 2018.
• Portland State will play Pac-12 teams in 2017 (Oregon State) and 2018 (Oregon), making it seven straights seasons with a Pac-12 team on the Viking schedule.