UND quaterback Keaton Studsrud getting sacked by an ISU defender in Saturday’s loss to Idaho State. Photo by Nick Nelson/ The Dakota Student

To lose on homecoming weekend is disappointing.

To lose to a team that UND was better than is even more disappointing.

But losing after a referee does not do their job and costs a team an opportunity to try and win the game left UND fans with a feeling of shock and dismay as they filed out of the Alerus Center on Saturday after the Idaho State Bengals upset No 25 UND, 37-31.

“We got what we thought we would today, a four quarter game and unfortunately, we weren’t on the right end of the scoreboard,” UND coach Bubba Schweigert said. “We had respect for this team coming in and they won the fourth quarter and that is what we want to do and we take a lot of pride in that and on this day we did not do that.”

The Bengals came out of the gates flying as they scored a quick touchdown and forced a Keaton Studsrud interception and a Josh Seibel lost fumble on a punt.

The Green and White weathered the storm though and looked like the team fans expected to see. The UND offense rallied behind quarterback Keaton Studsrud and running back John Santiago. Studsrud would show poise and maturity on a touchdown pass in which the sophomore stood in the pocket with ISU defenders right in his face to put the Green and White up 7-6. Santiago would add a score as the true freshman outran the Bengals for his sixth touchdown of the year.

“I thought that in the first half we got off to a really poor start,” Schweigert said. “We had a couple penalties that hurt us and the turnovers obviously played a big factor in the first half but we still went in ahead, so we felt pretty fortunate to be ahead.”

After a ten point third quarter, things were looking up for the home team as the Green and White went into the fourth up 31-15.

That is when the tides drastically started to turn for the Green and White.

After marching the Green and White’s offense down into Bengal territory, Keaton Studsrud was hit by an ISU defender and appeared to injure his leg. The underclassman was unable to come back into the game, thrusting one time starter Ryan Bartels in for the rest of the contest.

The game would continue to spiral from there.

Idaho State’s offense came alive at the end of the third and throughout the fourth quarter, as they were able to move up and down the field on what is usually a stout UND defense.

The Bengals rallied off 22 unanswered points on the back of Idaho State running back Jakori Ford who rushed for two touchdowns and caught the eventual game winning touchdown for the Bengals.

While UND was down 37-31, there was still time to salvage the homecoming upset.

Bartels connected with captain tight end Zach Adler for a 36 yard pass that put the Green and White in ISU territory with the clock ticking down.

After three downs of gaining only four yards, it was fourth down and the game was on the line. Bartels aired out a rainbow pass to a double covered Santiago streaking towards the end zone.

Idaho State’s defensive back Anthony Ricks proceeded to blatantly push Santiago in the back as the ball became catchable and interfered with the receiver’s ability to catch the ball, all with his head not facing towards the ball. The pass went incomplete as Santiago and the rest of the 9,000+ fans in the Alerus Center sat in dismay as the referees handed the ball over to ISU.

This was a glaring case of pass interference but instead the referee swallowed his whistle and kept the flag in his pocket, costing UND a chance at winning the game. Referees are not supposed to affect the outcome of the game, but by not making the correct call, the referee’s sealed UND’s fate and the game was over.

Now let’s make this clear, UND lost this game through its poor play in the second half, not because the referee’s in-action and the players and coaches will be the first ones to tell fans that.

“No comment on that play,” Schweigert said. “We had plenty of opportunities in the game to make this a different game so we just need to move forward.”

The team’s ability to move forward will be vital for the week ahead. The Green and White looks to rebound against Big Sky Conference program Weber State on Saturday in Ogden, Utah.

Alex Stadnik is the sports editor for The Dakota Student. He can be reached at [email protected]