LEWISTON — In a wild game with as many momentum swings as turnovers and cloud bursts, Lewiston provided the final bit of wildness.

The Bengals scored the game’s final 10 points — including the go-ahead touchdown with 56 seconds left after a Coeur d’Alene gamble failed — and beat the Vikings 55-51 in a wacky 5A Inland Empire League football opener for both teams Friday night at rain-slickened Bengal Field.

“Helluva game,” Coeur d’Alene coach Shawn Amos said. “We ended up just a little short there, but Lewiston’s a heckuva football team. We obviously gave them too many opportunities and with that offense, you can’t give them those.”

Colton Richardson of Lewiston (7-0) rolled right and found Riley Way on a 5-yard touchdown pass to cap a comeback against Coeur d’Alene (3-3) in a game that featured eight lead changes and 925 yards of total offense.

“They’re damn good,” Lewiston coach Shawn Nilsson said. “Anybody could have won that football game. It went back and forth, with turnovers and big plays. I think they thought we were down when they had us to 10, and our kids, I know they’re going to play their butt off all the way to the end of the game. We learned that at Highland. I’m real proud of the kids and their effort, not giving up. We made a couple big stops defensively, to get us the ball back the last time.”

Coeur d’Alene led 51-41 on Joe Vang’s 5-yard run with 6:47 left, his second TD run of the quarter.

Lewiston marched the ball up the field on short passes, and closed to within 51-48 on Richardson’s 25-yard pass to Riley Way, whose fumble of a punt set up the Vikings’ first score of the final quarter.

Coeur d’Alene then drove to its 45-yard line, where it faced a fourth and 3 with 2:37 left.

The Vikings lined up in punt formation and quarterback Colson Yankoff, the team’s punter, eschewed the usual rugby-style punt and threw a short pass that was broken up by Lewiston, giving the Bengals great field position.

“He (Yankoff) has the option on that one,” Amos said. “One of those things … hindsight, we probably should have punted it, but it we got it the game would have been over. We don’t punt very often, so it’s something that we do regularly … roll the dice.”

“We practiced it,” Nilsson said of defending the Vikings’ fake punt. “We practiced exactly what they ran.”

Richardson completed three straight passes, then ran for 11 yards to the Viking 5, then found Way on the go-ahead score.

Richardson completed 11 of his final 12 passes, including his final five, and finished 30 for 50 for 304 yards and five touchdowns.

“We did a good job the last couple of drives of slowing down and not taking the big shot every single time,” Nilsson said. “I think we took a few too many of those (earlier in the game). Take your time, hit the quick routes, and it just happened to be Light.”

Light finished with 13 catches for 123 yards. Way had eight grabs for 127 and three scores. Richardson also scored on a pair of short TD runs.

Coeur d’Alene totaled 575 yards, including 313 on the ground. Caleb Beggerly ran for 115 yards on 14 carries, and Yankoff ran for 127 on 16 carries. Yankoff passed for 300 yards and three touchdowns, two to Jackson Sumner.

With Coeur d’Alene down 21-8 but at the Lewiston 1, the snap from center sailed over Yankoff’s head. The ball squirted back to the 24, where Light scooped it up and raced 76 yards for a TD and a 28-8 lead.

But Coeur d’Alene answered with three touchdowns in less than three minutes, capped by Kyler Prendergast’s 45-yard interception return, to take a 29-28 lead at the half.

Next Friday, Coeur d’Alene plays host to Lake City (3-4, 0-1 5A IEL), and Lewiston travels to Post Falls (6-1, 1-0).

Coeur d’Alene 8 21 7 15 — 51

Lewiston 14 14 13 14 — 55

First quarter

Lew — Riley Way 45 pass from Colton Richardson (Lane Grant kick), 7:06

Cd’A — Jackson Sumner 58 pass from Colson Yankoff (Yankoff run), 5:41

Lew — Alex Light 14 pass from Richardson (Grant kick), :41

Second quarter

Lew — Troy Ahlers 7 pass from Richardson (Grant kick), 8:44

Lew — Light 76 fumble return (Grant kick), 6:07

Cd’A — Yankoff 5 run (Seth Harrison kick), 4:43

Cd’A — Lundblad 43 pass from Yankoff (Harrison kick), 2:14

Cd’A — Kyler Prendergast 45 interception return (Harrison kick), 1:56

Third quarter

Lew — Richardson 1 run (Grant kick), 7:33

Cd’A — Sumner 32 pass from Yankoff (Harrison kick), 6:22

Lew — Richardson 2 run (pass failed), 1:13

Fourth quarter

Cd’A — Joe Vang 10 run (Vang run), 9:54

Cd’A — Vang 5 run (Harrison kick), 6:47

Lew — Way 25 pass from Richardson (Grant kick), 4:20

Lew — Way 5 pass from Richardson (Grant kick), :56

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — Cd’A, Vang 12-71, Beggerly 14-115, Yankoff 16-127, Anderson 1-0. Lew, Richardson 14-25, Clarke 3-13, Fletcher 2-5, Way 1-3.

PASSING — Cd’A, Yankoff 23-37-1-300. Lew, Richardson, 30-50-2-304.

RECEIVING — Cd’A, Ramseyer 6-45, Sumner 6-136, Anderson 1-14, Lundblad 3-52, Vang 2-0, Naccarato 1-14, Prendergast 4-39. Lew, Driskill 3-26, Light 13-123, Way 8-127, Ahlers 2-6, Clarke 2-6, Wilson 2-16.