Idaho State Bengals football

Idaho State Bengals football
2015 Idaho State Bengals football team
First season	1963
Athletic director	Jeff Tingey
Head coach	Mike Kramer 5th year, 16–41 (.281)
Stadium	Holt Arena
Seating capacity	12,000
Field surface	SoftTop Matrix (2011–) AstroTurf (1970–2010)
Location	Pocatello, Idaho, U.S.
Conference	Big Sky Conference
All-time record	449–463–20 (.492)
Bowl record	2–0–0 (1.000)
Claimed nat'l titles	1 (1981, Div. I-AA)
Conference titles	8 (5 RMAC, 3 Big Sky)
Colors	Black and Orange[1]
Rivals	Weber State Montana
Website	ISUBengals.com

The Idaho State Bengals football program represents Idaho State University in college football and plays its home games at Holt Arena, an indoor facility on campus in Pocatello. Idaho State is a charter member of the Big Sky Conference in NCAA Division I FCS (formerly Division I-AA). Through the 2011 season, the Bengals have an all-time record of 451–472–20 (.489).^[2]

History

After a winless 0–11 season in 1979, Bud Hake was fired after three years and a 5–28 (.152) record.^[3] Dave Kragthorpe was hired as head coach for the 1980 season, and the Bengals went 6–5 in his first year. The following season, ISU won the Division I-AA Championship. Following two playoff victories at home, the Bengals defeated Eastern Kentucky 34–23 in the Pioneer Bowl at Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls, Texas.^[4] The quarterback during the 12–1 championship season was senior Mike Machurek,^[4] a junior college transfer from San Diego City College;^[5] he was a sixth round selection in the 1982 NFL draft (154th overall). Machurek spent over three seasons with the Detroit Lions,^[6] and had treatment for skin cancer during the second.^[7]

Idaho State returned to the I-AA playoffs in 1983, but lost 27–20 at home in the first round to conference champion Nevada-Reno.^[8] The Bengals have not made another playoff appearance, although they were tri-Big Sky champions in 2002, all at 5–2 in conference play (and 1–1 against each other). ISU (8–3) was passed over for the playoffs, however, for Montana (10–2) and Montana State (7–5), the other tri-champs that year.

Following the 2010 season, head coach John Zamberlin was fired after four seasons (6–39, .143) and Mike Kramer was hired as ISU's 25th head football coach. During his first season in 2011 the Bengals won only two games. Kramer was formerly the head coach at Eastern Washington and Montana State.^[9] Among his assistants are former University of Alabama football players Todd Bates and Rudy Griffin and former Brigham Young University player Mike Rigell.^[10]

Idaho State formerly had spirited intrastate rivalries with both the University of Idaho and Boise State University, when all three schools were members of the Big Sky Conference. Since Idaho and BSU left the Big Sky for the Big West in 1996 to move up to Division I-A, ISU has played the teams infrequently and Weber State University of nearby Ogden has become ISU's main rival in football. The Bengals also claim a rivalry with the Montana Grizzlies of Missoula, though ISU has only one victory in the last sixteen meetings.^[11]

Conference Affiliations

• 1902-1949: Independent
• 1950-1960: Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference
• 1961-1962: Independent
• 1963–present: Big Sky Conference

Conference championships

Year Conference Overall Record Conference Record 1952 RMAC 8–0–0 5–0 1953 6–2–0 5–0 1955 8–1–0 6–0 1957 9–0–0 4–0 1959 6–2–0 3–0 1963 Big Sky 5–3–0 3–1 1981 12–1–0 6–1 2002 8–3–0 5–2 Total Conference Titles 8

Division I-AA/FCS Playoffs results

The Bengals have appeared in the I-AA/FCS playoffs two times with a record of 3–1. They were National Champions in 1981.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
1981	Quarterfinals Semifinals National Championship Game	Rhode Island South Carolina State Eastern Kentucky	W 51–0 W 41–12 W 34–23
1983	First Round	Nevada	L 20–27

All-Americans

The Bengals have had five two-time All-Americans: wide receiver Ed Bell ('68-'69), defensive end Josh Hays ('95-96), placekicker Pete Garces ('98-'99), defensive end Jared Allen ('02-'03), and punter David Harrington ('10-'11). Allen also won the prestigious Buck Buchanan Award in 2003 as the top defensive player in the nation in Division 1-AA. Wide receiver Rodrick Rumble was an All-American in 2011, a season in which he broke the Big Sky conference record for receptions with 112. Return specialist Tavoy Moore was given first-team All-American honors by the American Football Coaches Association for the 2010 season. Punter Jon Vanderwielen earned several All-American honors in 2009.^[12]

Coaching history

Head Coach	Years	Seasons	Wins	Losses	Ties	Pct.
Herbert Chaney	1902–1903	2	5	1	1	.786
Charles Rowe	1904	1	1	3	0	.250
Hubert Upjohn	1905–1906	2	3	2	3	.563
John Morris	1907–1908	2	8	5	0	.615
Harvey Holmes	1909–1914	6	28	10	0	.737
Reuben Bronson (a)	1915–1916	2	9	5	0	.643
J.T. Fogt	1917	1	2	2	0	.500
Reuben Bronson (b)	1919	1	2	2	1	.500
Ralph Hutchinson	1920–1927	8	25	24	2	.510
Felix Plastino	1928–1934	7	34	16	3	.670
Guy Wicks	1935–1940	6	29	17	1	.628
John Vesser	1941–1951	9	41	27	6	.595
Babe Caccia	1952–1965	14	79	38	2	.664
Leo McKillop	1966–1967	2	4	15	0	.211
Ed Cavanaugh	1968–1971	4	28	19	0	.596
Bob Griffin	1972–1975	4	21	20	0	.512
Joe Pascale	1976	1	1	9	0	.100
Bud Hake	1977–1979	3	5	27	0	.156
Dave Kragthorpe	1980–1982	3	21	14	0	.600
Jim Koetter	1983–1987	5	23	32	1	.411
Garth Hall	1988–1991	4	9	33	1	.214
Brian McNeely	1992–1996	5	21	34	0	.382
Tom Walsh	1997–1998	2	6	16	0	.261
Larry Lewis	1999–2006	8	40	49	0	.449
John Zamberlin	2007–2010	4	6	39	0	.133
Mike Kramer	2011–present	4	14	32	0	.304
Totals	1902–2014	110	457	492	21	.482

Holt Arena

The Bengals play home games in Holt Arena, an indoor multi-purpose athletic stadium located on the north end of the ISU campus. Completed in September 1970, Holt Arena is the oldest enclosed stadium on a college campus in the United States and the second-oldest overall. Only the Houston Astrodome, completed in 1965, predates it.

The indoor arena was conceived by ISU athletic director Milton W. "Dubby" Holt in 1966. ISU students voted to appropriate not more than $2.8 million to the project two years later. Originally named the ASISU MiniDome, it replaced the outdoor "Spud Bowl" (now Davis Field) as the Bengals' home football stadium; it was renamed in 1988 to honor Holt.

After 41 football seasons on AstroTurf, infilled synthetic turf was installed in Holt Arena in July 2011. Similar to FieldTurf, the SoftTop Removable Matrix System ^[13] is also installed in AT&T Stadium in the NFL.

Idaho State players in the NFL

A number of players from Idaho State have gone on to play in the National Football League (NFL), including Jared Allen, Merrill Hoge, Evan Dietrich-Smith, Ed "The Flea" Bell, Mike Machurek, and Jeff Charleston.

In addition, a number of ISU alums have gone on to successful coaching careers, including Marvin Lewis, head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals; Dirk Koetter, the former head coach at Boise State and Arizona State, and Head Coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers; Gary Andersen, the head coach at Oregon State University; and Kevin Gilbride, offensive coordinator of the New York Giants. (As a graduate assistant at Idaho State, Gilbride served as one of two co-coaches of the ISU women's basketball team.)

ISU also produced several players who went on to be very successful high school football coaches, including Jim and Brent Koetter (both of whom won Idaho state championships at both Pocatello and Highland high schools), and former Bengal quarterback Paul Peterson who led Eagle to the Idaho 5A state championship game three times in four seasons.

Key

B	Back	K	Kicker	NT	Nose tackle
C	Center	LB	Linebacker	FB	Fullback
DB	Defensive back	P	Punter	HB	Halfback
DE	Defensive end	QB	Quarterback	WR	Wide receiver
DT	Defensive tackle	RB	Running back	G	Guard
E	End	T	Offensive tackle	TE	Tight end

Year	Round	Pick in round	Overall pick	Player	Team	Position
2004	4	30	126	Jared Allen	Chiefs	DE
2003	6	7	180	Eddie Johnson	Vikings	P
1987	10	10	261	Merril Hoge	Steelers	RB
1986	8	3	197	Kevin Hudgens	Falcons	DE
1985	9	24	248	Bob Otto	Seahawks	DE
1983	11	21	300	Dan Taylor	Cowboys	T
1983	12	14	321	Jim Lane	Lions	C
1982	6	15	154	Mike Machurek	Lions	QB
1982	8	19	214	Case DeBruijn	Chiefs	P
1977	3	18	74	Rick Scribner	Packers	G
1975	11	12	272	Rene Garnett	Patriots	DB
1975	12	11	297	Matt Kendon	Patriots	DT
1975	13	1	313	John Roman	Colts	G
1974	13	2	314	Brian Vertefeuille	Chargers	T
1974	15	19	383	Greg Mathis	Raiders	DB
1973	6	22	152	Tom Toner	Packers	LB
1973	8	11	193	Mike Hankock	Redskins	TE
1972	10	20	254	Phillip Price	Raiders	DB
1971	10	9	243	Carlis Harris	Broncos	WR
1970	9	20	228	Ed Bell	Jets	WR
1964	13	5	173	John Miller	Lions	T
1961	17	9	233	Tom Jewell	49ers	T
1959	16	6	186	Bob Cook	49ers	B
1958	21	12	253	Jim Wagstaff	Lions	B
1957	22	7	260	Paul Tripp	49ers	T
1956	23	6	271	Al Stephenson	Colts	T[14]

References

1. "Brand Identity". Idaho State University. Retrieved March 29, 2016.
2. "Football Championship Subdivision Records" (PDF). NCAA. p. 41. Retrieved 2010-12-10.
3. "Idaho State's Hake quits". Spokesman-Review (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. November 25, 1979. p. C6.
4. "Bengals ride like the wind". Lewiston Morning Tribune Location=Idaho. Associated Press. December 21, 1981. p. 2D.
5. Missildine, Harry (November 4, 1980). "Bengals won't miss meeting with Vandals". Spokesman-Review (Spokane, Washington). p. 21.
6. "Machurek may be out of a job". Ludington Daily News (Michigan). Associated Press. August 5, 1985. p. 9.
7. "Machurek almost ready". Argus-Press (Owosso, Michigan). Associated Press. August 9, 1983. p. 10.
8. "Nevada-Reno downs Idaho State in playoffs". Lewiston Morning Tribune (Idaho). November 27, 1983. p. 2B.
9. "Kramer selected to coach Bengals". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. November 23, 2010. Retrieved 2010-12-10.
10. "Kramer Announces Staff". Idaho State University Athletics. November 29, 2010. Retrieved 2010-12-10.
11. cfbdatawarehouse.com - ISU vs. Montana - accessed 2011-09-22
12. "Moore Named First-Team All-American". Idaho State Athletics. 2010-12-07. Retrieved 2010-12-10.
13. ISUBengals.com - Hellas Construction to Install New Holt Arena Turf - 2011-06-02 - accessed 2011-09-22
14. DraftHistory.com

External links

• Official website