Idaho State notebook

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dthompson@journalnet.com

MOSCOW, Idaho — Jayson Bird didn’t listen to the smattering of boos from the partisan Kibbie Dome crowd when he took the field for the visiting Idaho State Bengals — strange as it must have felt to hear them from fans who just last year rooted him on.

The graduate student Bird took the field Saturday clad in Bengals colors while Rayce Bird, his brother, wore the Vandals’ gold and black Jayson once wore himself. He carried eight times for 37 yards, including a long run of 15 yards.

"It was definitely a unique experience being back where I began my college football career," Jayson Bird said. "I’ve had a good relationship with all the players, so there were no hard feelings either way."

Apparently, though, some referees didn’t see the trash talking that way immediately.

"During the game, the refs kind of got on us a little bit, but they don’t really understand," Vandals cornerback Isaac Butts said. "They thought that we were just talking crap to another player, but that’s J-Bird. That’s J-Bird."

Injuries hampered Bird during his time with Idaho, and because of them, he was granted another year of eligibility. He chose to transfer to Idaho State — much closer to his hometown of Shelley — and is enrolled in the athletic administration graduate program at the Pocatello university.

Knickrehm held out

Bird might have seen his workload increase because junior Clint Knickrehm wasn’t on the field for any of his own.

The Bengals’ opening-day starting running back was held out against the Vandals due to a tender shoulder that he bruised last week against Boise State. In his stead, senior Ken Cornist ran 10 times for 58 yards.

Zamberlin said he hoped to have Knickrehm available for the game Sept. 18 against North Dakota.

Ponciano bursts back

After missing the season opener, junior returner JD Ponciano played — and played well — against the Vandals.

He returned four kickoffs an average of 36 yards, including a 60-yard return midway through the second quarter. Ponciano underwent sports hernia surgery in mid-August and didn’t participate in practice until this week.

"He’s not 100 percent yet," Zamberlin said. "I’d say he’s only going to get better and better. ... He’s fearless, and he’s got a great sense for returning kicks."

Ponciano also played some as a receiver against the Vandals but didn’t register any catches.

"I can definitely feel that I’m gassed a lot," Ponciano said. "I’ll work on that during this off week."

The snapping situation

When senior defensive lineman Josh Crittenden came out to snap a punt to Jon Vanderwielen in the second quarter, he became the fourth different Idaho State player to do so this season — and the only to do so thus far without major incident.

True freshman Chris Kirkegaard started the season as the team’s primary long snapper, but he tore his ACL against Boise State and missed most of the game. In that contest, senior tackle Evan Dietrich-Smith filled in but bounced at least three snaps to Vanderwielen, and one of those plays ended in a blocked punt.

Then on Saturday, field-goal snapper Ryan Henry launched a punt snap that nearly over Vanderwielen’s head in the first quarter. The punter brought down the ball, but his kick was blocked and recovered for an Idaho touchdown.

Caccia, Smith honored

Babe Caccia, the former Idaho State coach and administrator, was honored along with other former Vandals Lyle Smith and Tony Knap during a brief on-field ceremony between the first and second quarters.

Caccia graduated from the University of Idaho before moving back to Pocatello, where he coached the Idaho State football team for 14 seasons and later became the school’s athletic director.

Another redshirt burned

Freshman receiver Ryan Anchetta-Major made a special teams appearance on Saturday, meaning he can no longer redshirt this season.

Along with Kirkegaard, Anchetta-Major and offensive lineman Braeden Clayson — who played this game and the season opener — are the Bengals’ only three true freshmen to play this year. Clayson played on point-after attempts, Zamberlin said.

By Dan Thompson

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