1981 Idaho State Bengals football team

The 1981 Idaho State Bengals football team represented Idaho State University in the Big Sky Conference during the 1981 NCAA Division I-AA football season. The Bengals were led by second-year head coach Dave Kragthorpe and played their home games at the ASISU Minidome (now Holt Arena), an indoor venue on campus in Pocatello, Idaho.

1981 Idaho State Bengals football
NCAA Division I-AA champion
Big Sky champion
ConferenceBig Sky Conference
Record12–1 (6–1 Big Sky)
Head coach
Base defense3–4
Home stadiumASISU Minidome
(capacity: 12,000)
1981 Big Sky Conference football standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L TW L T
No. 2 Idaho State $^ 6 –1 –012 –1 –0
No. 5 Boise State ^ 6 –1 –010 –3 –0
Montana 5 –2 –07 –3 –0
Nevada 4 –3 –07 –4 –0
Weber State 4 –3 –07 –4 –0
Northern Arizona 2 –5 –04 –7 –0
Montana State 1 –6 –03 –7 –0
Idaho 0 –7 –03 –8 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Committee poll

Quarterbacked by senior Mike Machurek, the Bengals won the Big Sky championship with a 6–1 record and were 9–1 overall in the regular season. The sole loss was at Montana, when Machurek remained in Pocatello with mononucleosis, and backup Dirk Koetter filled in;[1][2] the Griz kicked a late field goal to win by three points in Missoula.[3]

In the eight-team Division I-AA playoffs, Idaho State easily won two home playoff games, then secured their only national championship in the Pioneer Bowl at Wichita Falls, Texas. The Bengals defeated Eastern Kentucky 34–23 in the title game to finish with a 12–1 record,[4] just two years removed from a winless season.[2]

Schedule
DateOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 12Eastern Washington*
W 34–10  8,005
September 19at Boise State
W 21–1020,486[5]
September 26NevadaNo. 3
  • ASISU Minidome
  • Pocatello, ID
W 23–7  9,883
October 3Northern ArizonadaggerNo. 3
  • ASISU Minidome
  • Pocatello, ID
W 31–611,284
October 10at Portland State*No. 2
W 28–9  2,757
October 17at MontanaNo. 2
L 21–24  9,190[1][3]
October 31at IdahoNo. 3
W 24–1410,500[6]
November 7Montana StateNo. 2
  • ASISU Minidome
  • Pocatello, ID
W 31–310,468
November 14Utah State*No. 2
  • ASISU Minidome
  • Pocatello, ID
W 50–2412,008
November 21Weber StateNo. 2
  • ASISU Minidome
  • Pocatello, ID
W 33–30 3OT13,444[7]
December 5Rhode Island*No. 2
W 51–012,153
December 12No. 3 South Carolina State*No. 2
  • ASISU Minidome
  • Pocatello, ID (NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal)
W 41–1212,300
December 19vs. No. 1 Eastern Kentucky*No. 2
ABCW 34–2311,002
  • *Non-conference game
  • daggerHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

[8][9]

  • The regular season finale against Weber State went to triple overtime;[7] the Big Sky introduced overtime for conference games the previous season, and this was its first-ever usage.[10]

Roster
1981 Idaho State Bengals football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos.#NameClass
LT Dan Taylor Jr
LG Ken Noel Sr
C Jim Lane Jr
RG Ken Bacon Jr
RT Steve Anderson Sr
TE Rod Childs Sr
QB 19 Mike Machurek Sr
QB 12 Dirk Koetter Sr
FB Rick Ambrosi Sr
TB Dwain Wilson Sr
FL Charles Ewing Sr
SE Jerry Bird Sr
 Defense
Pos.#NameClass
LDT Chuck Wiefels Jr
NG George Semons Sr
RDT John Naut Sr
SOLB John Olivia Jr
SILB Lem Galeai Sr
WILB Bill Snapp Jr
WOLB Dave Walser Sr
LCB Matt Courtney So
SS John Berry So
FS Reggie Chapman Jr
RCB Willie Allen Jr
 Special teams
Pos.#NameClass
PK, P 3 Case deBruijn Sr
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt
Source:[11]

All-conference

Five Bengals were named to the all-conference team: quarterback Mike Machurek (unanimous), tight end Rod Childs, linebacker Dave Walser, defensive back Matt Courtney (sophomore), and punter Case de Bruijn. The second team included linebacker Lem Galei (sophomore) and de Bruijn at placekicker.[12][13][14] Honorable mention were wide receivers Jerry Bird and Charles Ewing, tackle Steve Anderson, tailback Dwain Wilson, and linebacker Bill Snapp.[13][14]

NFL Draft

Two Bengal seniors were selected in the 1982 NFL Draft, which lasted twelve rounds (334 selections).

PlayerPositionRoundOverallFranchise
Mike MachurekQB6th154Detroit Lions
Case deBruijnP, PK8th214Kansas City Chiefs

References
  1. "ISU's Machurek to miss today's game". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. October 17, 1981. p. 3C.
  2. Emerson, Paul (October 29, 1981). "Kragthorpe's turned Bengals into title contenders in two years". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 1B.
  3. "Montana knocks off Idaho State". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. October 18, 1981. p. 7C.
  4. "Bengals ride like the wind". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. December 20, 1981. p. 2D.
  5. "Idaho St. 21, BSU 10". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. September 20, 1981. p. 6C.
  6. Emerson, Paul (November 1, 1981). "Machurek guides ISU past Idaho". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 1C.
  7. "ISU clinches title, Boise wants berth". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. November 23, 1981. p. C4.
  8. "Division I Championship" (PDF). NCAA. 2013. p. 14. Retrieved May 11, 2019 – via ncaa.org.
  9. "Idaho State Bengals 1981 Schedule". cfbinfo.com. Archived from the original on May 11, 2019. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  10. Kasper, John (September 25, 2013). "No. 48 Big Sky Innovation". Big Sky Conference. Retrieved October 13, 2019.
  11. "Probable starters". Lewiston Morning Tribune. October 31, 1981. p. 3C.
  12. "Former I.E. stars on Big Sky team". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). December 1, 1981. p. 18.
  13. "Idaho's Davis overlooked". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). staff and wire reports. December 2, 1981. p. 1B.
  14. "Idaho not ignored on defense". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. December 3, 1981. p. 3B.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.