CALDWELL, Idaho - With just 42 seconds to play, No. 19 College of Idaho had a potential game-tying field goal opportunity. Rocky Mountain College's Brail Lipford had other ideas, though, blocking the Yotes' 38-yard field goal attempt to preserve a 33-30 win for the Battlin' Bears.
Rocky led 33-22 just minutes into the fourth quarter, but COI came storming back for the chance to tie. The Yotes got a 9-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Hibbs to Connor Gagain, who would also connect on the two-point conversion to make it 33-30.
Rocky would move the ball near midfield on its ensuing possession before being forced to punt. With just 3:16 to play and pinned on its own 2-yard line, COI methodically pushed the ball down the field before Cameron Simons' attempt was blocked.
COI had built an early 17-7 lead over Rocky on the heels of a Jack Rice 82-yard scoring run and a Nick Calzaretta 21-yard touchdown scamper. Nathan Dick's 42-yard scoring toss to Trae Henry in the first quarter seemed as if it would be Rocky's only points of the half, but a 7-play, 80-yard drive was capped off by Dick's 8-yard touchdown run with 1:24 to go in the second quarter. The extra point try, however, was blocked and returned by Taeson Hardin to give COI a 19-13 lead at halftime.
But Rocky controlled nearly the entire second half.
Riley Garrett hit a field goal from 35 yards, which was answered by a Simons field goal from 29 yards to make the lead 22-16. But on the next play from scrimmage, Dick hit Donovan Sellgren for an 85-yard touchdown and the Bears never looked back.
Another Garrett field goal in the fourth quarter gave Rocky a four-point lead, then an interception led to a Victor Ngalamulume 3-yard scoring run to push the lead to 33-22.
Dick was phenomenal forRocky, throwing for 294 yards and two touchdowns, while running for 56 yards and one touchdown.
Rocky was out-gained by COI on the ground by nearly 200 yards (306-110), but COI was 2 of 4 on field goal attempts and averaged just 6.1 yards per attempt passing.
Rocky improves to 2-0 on the season, while COI falls to 1-1. Both the Bears and Yotes have a bye week upcoming.
