MOSCOW — Struggles continued for the University of Idaho’s offense and the result was a 24-11 homecoming loss to Louisiana Tech on Saturday afternoon in Western Athletic Conference play before 15,309 at the Kibbie Dome.

Vandals coach Robb Akey was succinct in his assessment: “Very disappointed. … There were plenty of opportunities.”

The defense and special teams made more of the opportunities that came their way. Idaho’s first two points were scored when Andre Ferguson caught up with Lennon Creer in the end zone, double-duty receiver/returner Justin Veltung returned a punt 81 yards to score late in the game, and in between kicker Trey Farquhar drilled a 43-yard field goal.

The offense, however, sputtered. Idaho (1-5, 0-2 WAC) hasn’t scored an offensive touchdown during regulation since two weeks ago vs. Fresno State.

“We just weren’t executing,” said quarterback Brian Reader, who completed 19 of 47 attempts for 244 yards with three interceptions. “I put a lot of blame on myself. The defense did a great job. They made stops. We needed to put points on the board.”

Hunter Lee ran for a career-high 134 yards, freshman Nick Isham threw a touchdown pass and ran for another score, and Jay Dudley added a 53-yard interception return for a touchdown for Louisiana Tech (2-4, 1-1), which snapped a three-game losing streak. Isham hit David Gru for a 6-yard score in the third quarter, then got in himself from the 1 a few minutes later. He finished with 163 yards passing.

Vandal drives started but all too often skidded to a halt with a miscue of some sort or another. In addition to the interceptions, there was a lost fumble and the Vandals managed just two of 16 third-down conversions.

The defense thwarted Louisiana Tech on all but three of its 16 third-down conversion attempts and it tallied five tackles-for-loss, which includes two quarterback sacks. It had Isham frequently on the run with seven quarterback hurries in addition to two pass breakups. Gary Walker led the defensive effort with 15 total tackles with Tre`Shawn Robinson adding 10 and Korey Toomer totaling 10, which includes both sacks.

“It didn’t go the way we wanted,” Toomer said. “There are always big plays that are going to happen on the field. Today, Louisiana Tech just got the best of it.”

Creer, the starting running back for the Bulldogs, left the game with an injury in the third quarter, giving Lee an opportunity to pile up yards. Lee’s 18-yard run over the left side with just over a minute to play enabled the Bulldogs to run out the rest of the clock.

Veltung’s punt-return touchdown pulled Idaho within 13 points, and the Vandals went for two, hoping to make it an 11-point game. But receiver Marsel Posey ran headfirst into a sideline storage area while trying to catch Reader’s pass.

Posey was taken off the field on a stretcher, and Akey said he lost consciousness.

“It looks a lot better than it did right there,” Akey said. “He was knocked out. (A Vandals trainer) was on the spot. (Posey) came to and was able to wake up. They kept him still, but he was able to move both hands and both feet, so his extremities were working, and that’s very positive.”

The Bulldogs held Idaho to 47 rushing yards, and their defense kept the Vandals out of the red zone the entire game.

Lee, a walk-on from Flower Mound, Texas, is a true freshman. After the game, Lee walked up to Louisiana Tech coach Sonny Dykes and said, “Thank you for allowing me to walk on this year.”

Dykes replied, “That was the easiest decision I have ever had to make.”

Louisiana Tech 0 10 14 0—24

Idaho 0 5 0 6—11

Second Quarter

LaT_FG Nelson 23, 14:56.

Id_Ferguson Safety, 12:27.

LaT_Dudley 53 interception return (Nelson kick), 4:47.

Id_FG Farquhar 43, 2:57.

Third Quarter

LaT_Gru 6 pass from Isham (Nelson kick), 6:19.

LaT_Isham 1 run (Nelson kick), :05.

Fourth Quarter

Id_Veltung 81 punt return (pass failed), 3:35.

A_15,309.

LaT Id

First downs 21 15

Rushes-yards 48-190 22-47

Passing 163 244

Comp-Att-Int 25-39-0 19-47-3

Return Yards 100 93

Punts-Avg. 10-48.0 11-50.0

Fumbles-Lost 1-0 1-1

Penalties-Yards 5-40 5-46

Time of Possession 34:58 25:02

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING_Louisiana Tech, H.Lee 28-134, Creer 12-54, Patton 1-9, Isham 7-(minus 7). Idaho, McCarty 13-44, Bailey 7-15, Reader 2-(minus 12).

PASSING_Louisiana Tech, Isham 25-39-0-163. Idaho, Reader 19-47-3-244.

RECEIVING_Louisiana Tech, Patton 9-34, Gru 4-28, Ikharo 4-26, Guillot 3-43, H.Lee 2-20, Casey 2-11, L.Fitte 1-1. Idaho, Veltung 6-94, M.Scott 4-47, A.Johnson 2-47, Elmo 2-36, McCarty 2-6, Bailey 1-8, Posey 1-4, LaGrone 1-2.