Skip To Main Content
Skip To Main Content
16_FB_Gross
Liza Safford

Football Seth Dahle, Sports Information Director

Big Plays On Both Ends Propel No. 11 EOU Football Past College of Idaho, 48-14

Box Score

CALDWELL, Idaho – Between a record-tying 100-yard kickoff return by junior wide receiver Calvin Connors and an 83-yard interception return by senior defensive back Kalliy Ceesay, it was quite the Saturday afternoon for the 11th-ranked EOU football team at Simplot Stadium. 
 
Behind a 27-0 run between the first and third quarters, the Mountaineers (6-2 Frontier) mustered a 48-14 triumph over College of Idaho to collect their fourth straight win and notch their best start since the 2009 campaign.
 
Connors' 100-yard return in the first quarter tied both an NAIA record and a school record set by Jace Billngsley last season. Senior quarterback Zach Bartlow completed 17 passes for 269 yards and two touchdowns to go along with 47 rushing yards.
 
Junior wide receiver Joshua Richards caught six passes for a career-best 174 receiving yards, the most by any Mountie since 2008. Meanwhile, senior running back Alfred Gross paced the ground attack with a pair of touchdowns.
 
Defensively, sophomore defensive back Justin Hughes and senior linebacker Tucker Stanley led the way with 14 tackles apiece, while Ceesay posted four tackles, two pass breakups, and an interception return for his first career touchdown.
 
THE RUNDOWN
Bartlow started things off for EOU with a 75-yard touchdown pass to Richards nearly four minutes into the contest, and after a Yote touchdown, Connors broke the tie with his record-tying 100-yard kickoff return for the tally with 5:46 left in the opening quarter.
 
A pair of field goals (28, 37) by sophomore Nathan Harden sandwiched a touchdown pass from Bartlow to junior wide receiver Brenden Kelly, and then Gross posted a three-yard carry into the end zone to cap a 27-0 Mountaineer run to extend the margin to 34-7 with 9:56 remaining in the third.
 
After the Yotes (2-6 Frontier) pulled to within 20 (34-14) on a Darius-James Peterson touchdown run and a defensive stop, Ceesay stepped in front of a third-down pass in College of Idaho's red zone and went the distance to put the game out of reach.
 
BY THE NUMBERS
100 – Yard kickoff return by Connors.
83 – Yard interception return by Ceesay.
4-0 – EOU's record on the road this season.
1st – 6-2 start by the Blue and Gold since 2009.
174 – Receiving yards by Richards
 
UP NEXT
EOU returns home for Senior Day on Nov. 5 against Rocky Mountain. Kickoff is set for noon.
 
Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

Zach Bartlow

#4 Zach Bartlow

QB
6' 1"
Redshirt Senior
Kalliy Ceesay

#22 Kalliy Ceesay

DB
6' 2"
Redshirt Senior
Calvin Connors

#9 Calvin Connors

WR
5' 9"
Junior
Alfred Gross

#5 Alfred Gross

RB
5' 9"
Senior
Nathan Harden

#17 Nathan Harden

P/K
6' 0"
Redshirt Sophomore
Justin Hughes

#34 Justin Hughes

DB
5' 10"
Junior
Brenden Kelly

#85 Brenden Kelly

WR
6' 2"
Junior
Joshua Richards

#21 Joshua Richards

WR
5' 10"
Redshirt Junior
Tucker Stanley

#7 Tucker Stanley

LB
6' 0"
Redshirt Senior

Players Mentioned

Zach Bartlow

#4 Zach Bartlow

6' 1"
Redshirt Senior
QB
Kalliy Ceesay

#22 Kalliy Ceesay

6' 2"
Redshirt Senior
DB
Calvin Connors

#9 Calvin Connors

5' 9"
Junior
WR
Alfred Gross

#5 Alfred Gross

5' 9"
Senior
RB
Nathan Harden

#17 Nathan Harden

6' 0"
Redshirt Sophomore
P/K
Justin Hughes

#34 Justin Hughes

5' 10"
Junior
DB
Brenden Kelly

#85 Brenden Kelly

6' 2"
Junior
WR
Joshua Richards

#21 Joshua Richards

5' 10"
Redshirt Junior
WR
Tucker Stanley

#7 Tucker Stanley

6' 0"
Redshirt Senior
LB