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Special teams keys Aztecs' upset at No. 19 Boise St.

From news and wire services | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 13 years, 1 month AGO
by From news and wire services
| November 4, 2012 8:00 PM

Adam Muema rushed for 127 yards and a touchdown and San Diego State's special teams had a hand in two other scores in a 21-19 upset of No. 19 Boise State on Saturday night at Boise.

Colin Lockett returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown, then in the third quarter Dwayne Garrett reached over a blocker and deflected Trevor Harman's punt to set up another score. Garrett scooped up the bouncing ball and was pushed out of bounds at the Boise State 8. Two plays later, Muema scored on a 3-yard run that put the Aztecs (7-3, 5-1 Mountain West) up 14-13.

Boise State (7-2, 4-1) and quarterback Joe Southwick, who struggled throughout the second half, rallied in the fourth quarter. Down 21-13 with 12:20 remaining, Southwick led the Broncos on a 16-play, 75-yard drive capped by his 1-yard touchdown toss to fullback Dan Paul that pulled Boise State within 21-19. The Broncos went for 2, but Southwick was pressured and his fluttering pass was picked off near the goal line by Rene Siluano.

The Aztecs took over with 5:35 minutes remaining, got a couple of first downs and ran out the clock to win their fifth straight and move into a tie for first place in the conference. It was also San Diego State's first victory over a ranked foe since a 1996 win over Wyoming.

For the Broncos, it was another rare loss on the blue turf. Last season, TCU came in and won at Bronco Stadium, spoiling hopes for a conference title and playing in a BCS bowl. Boise State came into the game with a 71-1 record in regular season home games, dating back to 2001.

The Broncos were led by D.J. Harper, who scored twice and rushed for 81 yards. Southwick was 20 of 31 passing for 164 yards on one touchdown. He was sharp in the first half and helped the Broncos take a 13-6 lead at the half. But he opened the second half by throwing an interception on the first play of the third quarter.

Boise State managed just one first down on the next three possessions in the third quarter. Boise State had 276 total yards on offense and was penalized just once.

But the Aztecs clearly outplayed the Broncos on special teams, an area Boise State has dominated opponents in recent years.

On the opening kick, Lockett caught the ball 4-yards deep, raced up the middle through the Boise State coverage, eluded the kicker and raced down the right sideline untouched for the score. It's the second kickoff return of the season for Lockett, who returned one in the Aztecs Sept. 8 victory over Army.

Redshirt quarterback Adam Dingwell, who took over three weeks ago after starter Ryan Katz went down with an injury, was 12 of 18 passing for 105 yards. Walter Kazee scored the Aztecs' final touchdown on a 1-yard dive with 12:20 left in the game.

Montana 24, Weber State 21: At Ogden, Utah, Shay Smithwick-Hann's 9-yard scoring pass to Bryce Carver with 6:37 remaining put Montana ahead to stay in a victory over Weber State.

The Grizzlies (5-5, 3-4 Big Sky) led 10-7 at halftime, but Weber State took the lead on Kris Parham's 1-yard run in the third quarter before Montana rallied.

The Wildcats (1-8, 1-5) closed in after Chris Lider's third field goal, a 35-yarder, made it 24-14 Montana. Cordero Dixon returned the kickoff 100 yards for a score with 3:41 to play, but Weber State never got the ball back.

Peter Nguyen ran for 103 yards for Montana, which won consecutive games for the first time this season. The Grizzlies have one game remaining, at home against Montana State in two weeks. Weber State's only win of the season came in its previous game, two weeks ago at Southern Utah.

Eastern Washington 34, Cal Poly 17: At Cheney, Vernon Adams threw for 288 yards and three touchdowns as Eastern Washington defeated Cal Poly (7-2).

Adams hit Brandon Kaufman on scoring passes of 43 and 10 yards, and found Greg Herd from 28 yards out while completing 19 of 29 passes for the Eagles (7-2). He also rushed for 68 yards.

Deonte Williams had 100 yards rushing on 20 carries for Cal Poly, and Kristaan Ivory added a career-high 94 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries. Andre Broadous was 10 of 18 passing for 129 yards, with one TD and one interception.

The Mustangs' 17 points were a season low.

The two teams entered the game tied for second at 5-1 in the Big Sky Conference, but the game did not count in the conference standings because it was prescheduled before Cal Poly became a member.

Northern Arizona 50, Idaho State 10: At Pocatello, Covaughn DeBoskie-Johnson and Casey Jahn combined for 295 yards rushing and three scores to lead Northern Arizona past the Bengals.

DeBoskie-Johnson ran for 151 yards and had touchdown runs of 34 and 62 yards, while Jahn had 144 yards, including a 66-yard score, as the Lumberjacks (8-1, 6-0 Big Sky) rolled up 616 yards of total offense.

Kevin Yost threw for 272 yards, including a 57-yard touchdown to Rodrick Rumble, for the Bengals (1-8, 0-6).

Pacific Lutheran 35, Whitworth 14: At Puyallup, Wash., Dalton Ritchey threw a pair of touchdown passes to Kyle Warner and the Lutes (6-2, 5-1 Northwest Conference) beat the Pirates (6-3, 2-3).

Whitworth's Bryan Peterson completed 19 of 32 passes for 189 yards and two TDs with a pair of interceptions. One of Peterson's TD passes was a 26-yard scoring strike to former Coeur d'Alene High standout Connor Williams.

Former Lakeland High standout Scott Carr had six tackles (five solo) for Whitworth.

Rocky Mountain 31, No. 16 Carroll 28: At Billings, Mont., Pete Anderson ran for 159 yards on 27 carries, Andrew McCulloch hauled in five catches for 95 yards and two TDs, and Rocky Mountain (5-5, 4-5) defeated Carroll (6-4, 6-3 Frontier Conference) for the first time since 2000 in NAIA play.

Carroll's Chance Demarais ran 23 times for 95 yards and a TD.

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