POCATELLO, Idaho — CJ Ceron broke free up the right side for a 53-yard touchdown run, the first of his career, and San Diego outrushed a nationally ranked, unbeaten opponent Saturday afternoon before No. 24 Idaho State pulled away for a 59-17 win in front of 6,574 at the ICCU Dome.
Ceron's score came on the third play of a 73-yard drive early in the fourth quarter and was the longest run of the game by either team.
Omar Mbakwe set it up with carries of nine and 11 yards, and
Emiliano Salazar's extra point capped a possession that took just 1:38.
The Toreros finished with 235 yards on 45 carries, 57 more than the Bengals managed on the ground, and 128 of that total came in the fourth quarter alone. Mbakwe led the way with 63 yards on 13 attempts and
Adam Criter added 61 on 16 carries.
Zamar Reese chipped in 45 yards, including a 25-yard burst on third-and-10 that flipped a drive in the fourth.
San Diego's best stretch came in the second quarter, the only period it won on the scoreboard. Trailing 21-0, USD answered with a nine-play, 61-yard march that
Dom Nankil finished with a 7-yard touchdown run at the 10:59 mark. Salazar's 37-yard field goal with 2:57 left in the half — the payoff on a 10-play, 45-yard possession that included a 32-yard strike from Nankil to
Christopher Hall on third-and-10 — cut the deficit to 21-10 and gave the Toreros a 10-3 edge in the quarter.
Ball control was the story all afternoon. San Diego held possession for 35:21 to Idaho State's 24:39, won the time-of-possession battle in every quarter, converted both of its red-zone trips and went 1-for-1 on fourth down. Twelve of the Toreros' 17 first downs came on the ground.
Tim Hays paced the defense with seven tackles.
Dillon Kellner added five stops, a sack and a pass breakup, and
Jaden Williams dropped Bengals quarterback Jordan Cooke for a 12-yard loss in the second quarter, helping push Idaho State out of range on a drive that ended with a missed 52-yard field goal.
Ezekiel Swayne also had five tackles and broke up a deep ball in the end zone in the final two minutes of the half. USD's three tackles for loss went for 21 yards.
Salazar averaged 43.9 yards on seven punts with a long of 55, dropped three inside the 20 without a touchback and connected on his only field-goal attempt.
Yosei Takahashi returned three kickoffs for 74 yards, among them a 33-yarder that gave San Diego the ball at its own 37 in the closing seconds of the first half.
UP NEXT
San Diego stays on the road next Saturday, Sept. 19, for a 5 p.m. kickoff at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo.
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