’Cats beat bears in Colo.

On a day that could have been bleak, as Weber State University played without running back Trevyn Smith who was suspended for the first half for breaking team rules, the Wildcats managed to defeat the University of Northern Colorado Bears 28-20.
Freshman running back Bo Bolen stepped up and made up for the absence of the three-year Big Sky Conference rushing leader by posting a career high 207 rushing yards.
“He was suspended for half for a team violation,” said Head Coach Ron McBride of Smith. “He could have played in the second half but the other kid was doing well so we just didn’t go back to Trevyn, we just stuck with Bo Bolen, let him finish the game out.”
On the opening drive, the Wildcats managed to drive 81 yards to UNC’s two-yard line but the drive ended with a fumble by Bolen that UNC recovered. The defense held the UNC offense to just seven yards in their first three downs and the Bears were forced to punt.
Safety Beau Hadley, who had a team-high nine tackles, said that the Wildcats’ last loss has helped to motivate the team.
“I think that after the loss at Montana State we have dialed in even more,” Hadley said. “I think that everybody in every aspect (has gotten better), including the coaches. I think our practices have bee better and in every position group I feel like everybody has gotten better and played harder.”
After the Bears’ punt only went 14 yards before going out of bounds, the ’Cats took over on UNC’s 23-yard line. The Wildcats only needed three plays to put the first points of the night on the board off of a one-yard rush by Bolen.
“He had a great game, he played tremendously well,” McBride said. Mentally and physically; both aspects. This was his first opportunity to start and I think he broke the record for all-purpose yards in a single game.”
Both teams were held scoreless for the remainder of the first quarter, but on the opening drive of the second quarter the Wildcats were able to put together an 80-yard that was capped off with a five-yard completion to Tyrell Francisco for a touchdown.
UNC running back Andre Harris was able to score on a two-yard rush with 5:09 left in the half after quarterback Bryan Waggener connected with Patrick Walker to bring the ball into the red zone.
“We were in the third quarter, we controlled the first half of the game and in the third quarter we let them back in the game because we weren’t executing enough on offense,” McBride said. “In the fourth quarter we were able to take over the game again and we had two big drives in the fourth quarter, one where we missed a field goal and one where we scored a touchdown.”
WSU was quick to respond, answering with a Joe Collins touchdown 20 seconds left in the half.
A 10-point third quarter brought the Bears to within four (21-17) but the Wildcats would not relinquish the lead. Halfway through the fourth quarter UNC kicked a 46-yard field goal to make the score 21-20 WSU, but on the next drive, quarterback Cameron Higgins was again able to connect with Collins for a touchdown. The Wildcats were then able to pick off a Waggener pass to seal the win.
“It was a back and forth game and the game was never really over until we had that pick with about a minute and 57 to go in the fourth quarter,” McBride said. “So the game was in doubt until all the way to that point.”
Hadley said that the team is now in a position where they can make things happen.
“We’re excited for the rest of the season,” Hadley said. “We’ve put ourselves back in a good position. At first we put ourselves in a bad position but it feels like now, we’re not in the greatest situation, but we’re back where the ball’s in our court and we can make something happen.
The team will play the University of Montana, who are currently the leaders in the Big Sky Conference Standings Saturday, Oct. 31 at Montana.