UND blasts Idaho State with 38 first-half points in 52-28 win

GRAND FORKS — UND killed the negative narratives Saturday at the Potato Bowl.

Could UND stop a trend of slow starts? Could it put together a passing game? Could it avoid struggling against Idaho State? Could it stop fumbling program momentum after big wins?

How’s 38-zip for an answer?

The No. 10 Fighting Hawks scored the game’s first 38 points and blasted Idaho State 52-28 in the Potato Bowl on Saturday in the Alerus Center in front of 10,685.

Last Saturday, UND upset then-No. 4 Montana thanks to 20 unanswered second-half points. But last season, when UND beat North Dakota State, the Hawks turned around and were shutout the following week in a blowout loss at Northern Iowa.

“I thought we handled it really well,” UND wide receiver Bo Belquist said of avoiding a Montana game hangover. “We flushed the game early in the week and didn’t even talk about it. I felt like our preparation was a lot better.”

UND finished with more points than the program has ever scored against a Big Sky Conference opponent.

On UND’s second offensive drive, the Hawks went on what’s becoming a 2024 staple. UND went 80 yards on 16 plays across more than six minutes, punching in a Gaven Ziebarth 1-yard touchdown run to make it 7-0.

As Idaho State marched down the field to answer, UND’s defense struck at the perfect time.

Playing with backup quarterback Jackson Sharman after starter Kobe Tracy was shaken up following a roughing the passer call two plays earlier on UND linebacker Wyatt Pedigo, Sharman threw a wobbly out route toward the sideline. Hawks corner Devin Hembry jumped the route and returned the interception 92 yards for a 14-0 lead.

“The quarterback pulled the pin and my eyes snapped to the receiver,” Hembry said. “We prepared well throughout the week. We took what we did in practice and applied it to the game.”

Hembry’s return for a touchdown was UND’s first of the season and first since Ted Mullin had a pick-six last season.

“I’m really proud of (Hembry),” UND coach Bubba Schweigert said. “He’s really worked hard in practice to become a better player each and every day. I’m really pleased with his effort.”

UND continued to turn defensive efforts into offense in the first half. Outside linebackers Lance Rucker and Riley Gerhardt both had strip sacks of Tracy deep in ISU territory to give the Hawks short fields on offense.

The Hawks led 38-7 at halftime as Tracy was just 6-for-18 passing for 72 yards.

UND’s offense was forced to move through the air, a stark change from the first two weeks of the season. The Hawks had just 45 rushing yards at halftime and 175 passing yards.

With the Bengals’ defense crowding the line of scrimmage, UND was dared to throw. Simon Romfo, in his third career start, finished 25-for-38 for 287 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.

Romfo, a junior from Calvin, N.D., rode the short passing game, powered by Bo Belquist’s career-high 165 yards on eight catches.

“I kind of anticipated the receivers having a bigger role today,” Belquist said. “Especially after the last two weeks after we ran the ball really well, we figured they would load the box up.”

UND’s run game found more room in the second half, finishing with 38 carries for 155 yards. Four running backs (Ziebarth, Isaiah Smith, Sawyer Seidl and Donovan Hunt) scored on touchdown runs.

The Hawks improved to 27-3 in the Alerus Center in the last 30 games.

“I think you have to take what the defense is going to give you,” Schweigert said. “They made it tough to run. After our first two weeks, you have to be able to counter that. We got a couple deep (passes) to Bo and that got us rolling and gave us a lot of confidence.”

The Hawks continue their four-game homestand next weekend against San Diego at the Alerus Center.