BUTTE, Mont. –
Keagan McCoy returned a fumble 40-yards for the go-ahead score with two minutes remaining, as The College of Idaho rallied on the road for an improbable 28-23 victory over Montana Tech at Bob Green Field.
Trailing 23-14 with five minutes left and facing 4th-and-18, the Yotes (4-2, 4-2 Frontier) took advantage of a pass interference call to extend the drive – leading to a C of I touchdown.
The Orediggers (2-4, 2-4) were in position to seal the victory, converting a 3rd-and-2 near midfield. However, on the next play, Tech quarterback Jet Campbell fumbled a handoff, with McCoy scooping up the football and sprinting to the house to give the visitors the lead.
Dorian Hardin sealed the road win by intercepting Campbell with a minute left.
Despite outgaining the Diggers and holding an edge in total yards – C of I trailed 20-7 at the break.
Tech took advantage of a Mark Estes 25-yard punt return to set up a short field, as Campbell and Estes connected on an 8-yard scoring strike and a 7-0 lead.
C of I got even on their next drive, as
Ryan Hibbs found
Jake Nadley for 16 yards and
Hunter Juarez for 14 more, as
Nick Calzaretta ran the final 4-yards to get the visitors on the board.
The Diggers outscored C of I 13-0 in the second quarter – as Campbell found Logan Kennedy alone for a 17-yard touchdown pass and just before the break, Naoki Harmer picked off Hibbs and returned the interception 25-yards for a score.
The Yotes cut the margin to 20-14 early in the third quarter, as Hibbs connected with
Isaiah Veal on a 34-yard scoring pass, but Tech took advantage of a C of I interception to get a 28-yard Jared Griffith field goal to build a 9-point lead.
C of I responded with a 77-yard march – aided when Brandon Morley was called for pass interference on a fourth down attempt. The Yotes scored on the next play, as Hibbs found Calzaretta open in the flat for a 6-yard touchdown – setting up the wild finish.
Hibbs finished 18-of-36 for 221 yards through the air, with Calzaretta rushing 20 times for 64 yards.
Campbell was 15-of-31 for 173 passing yards in the loss for Tech.
The Coyotes will have next weekend off, before returning home on Oct. 23, hosting Montana Western at 1 p.m.
NOTES:
- The Coyote defense held Tech to just 80 rushing yards – the fourth-straight game the No. 1 rush defense in the Frontier Conference has held an opponent under 100 rushing yards
- Dylan Martinez led all players with 11 tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss, while Tanner Leaf added eight stops
- C of I rushed for a season-low 110 yards – just 3.0 yards per carry – with no rush longer than nine yards
- Calzaretta posted his 35th career rushing touchdown in the first quarter, while his fourth quarter receiving touchdown his second as a Yote
- Calzaretta pushed his career rushing total to 3,211 – just 202 yards from Darius-James Peterson's career rushing mark
- Nadley led the Coyote receivers with four catches for 37 yards, while Ben Hruby had a season-high three grabs for 39 yards
- Both teams had two turnovers on the day
- It marked the Yotes third-straight win at Tech and kept the team one game back of Rocky Mountain in the Frontier Conference standings
