Portland State head coach Bruce Barnum chuckled at the notion his team was a slight favorite in the eyes of odds makers last week as his team prepared for its second Football Bowl Subdivision matchup of the season.
When the transmission blew on PSU’s charter bus, Barnum definitely didn’t feel like the favorite. But his Vikings did not let the delayed travel to Apogee Stadium on the North Texas campus get in their way.
Despite the logistical problems and the fact that Barnum and part of his team did not show up until just minutes before kickoff, the Vikings wasted no time making history. Portland State scored 66 unanswered points, including 45 in the first half in producing the single largest blowout by an FCS school of an FBS program. PSU scored six touchdowns of at least 56 yards, including a 70-yard and 60-yard catch and run by David Jones and a 68-yard touchdown by walk-on Mitchell Thompson to cap the scoring in the 66-7 win.
“There was some snafus in the beginning,” Barnum said with his customary laugh on Wednesday morning. “The bus lost the transmission on us so I had to sit there and decide which guys had to be saved. At first, a coach comes up to me, ‘Oh my God, we lost the bus.’ I was like, ‘We are good. Watch this.’ We turned it into a positive and it didn’t bother the players a lick. We got to the stadium and we played loose football. First series, we screwed up on. We ran a trick play like you see on TV and had it called back and everyone ran off laughing and having a good time. That’s how I want them to play.”
The lopsided blowout helped Portland State continue its surprise season. A team picked to finish 12th in the 13-team Big Sky Conference in the preseason polls enters Saturday’s matchup against No. 16 Montana State with a 4-1 record and a No. 17 national ranking. The drubbing of North Texas was PSU’s second win over an FBS school this season, making them the first FCS program to win two FBS games in one season since North Dakota State beat Central Michigan and Minnesota in 2007. Portland State opened its season with a 24-17 win over Washington State, a team that defeated preseason Pac 12 favorite Oregon last week.
“That North Texas game was the most fun I’ve played in,” Portland State senior defensive tackle Daniel Fusi said. “Fun to get off the field as fast as we can instead of those long drives we usually start off on. It was easy to get excited with everyone making plays.”
Portland State’s first drive stalled out when backup senior quarterback Kieran McDonagh’s 25-yard pass to junior starting quarterback Alex Kuresa was called back because of an illegal block. The Vikings did not panic. A defensive unit that currently leads the Big Sky in most major statistical categories made a second straight stop.
On PSU’s second possession, Kuresa hit Darnell Adams for a 34-yard touchdown and the Vikings were off and running. The lead swelled to 14-0 before the end of the first quarter as PSU put together a dominant eight-play, 87-yard drive. The first frame ended with back-to-back 25-yard runs by senior David Jones.
Junior Nate Tago finished off the drive with his first of two touchdowns. The defense forced a punt, Jones ripped off a 70-yard touchdown, the defense forced another punt, Kuresa hit Thomas Carter for a 56-yard touchdown and the rout was on.
Since Barnum took over with interim status last November— Barnum signed a five-year contract extension on Wednesday — he has put a priority on playing blue-collar football with an emphasis on performing loose and having fun. “Barney Ball” as his players call it was on full display in Denton, Texas last weekend.
“Everyone in the country goes into big games on college football Saturday and they waste the first quarter, the first drive because they are doing this and that wrong,” Barnum said. “The culture I was trying to create is for us to play loose. I honestly don’t care win or lose if my team plays. We lost to North Dakota and we took the best from them and we learned from it. Nobody is going to go undefeated in this conference, it’s impossible.”
Portland State has four victories but just one against Big Sky competition. The Vikings marched into Holt Arena in Pocatello, Idaho and stomped FCS preseason No. 23 Idaho State 34-17 in Week 2. Two weeks ago, PSU fell to North Dakota 19-16 in a slugfest between two of the league’s most physical teams.
“The week before, we were in a fight, a bar room brawl and we lost,” Barnum said. “I wondered how our team would come out and I liked how we did against the Mean Greeners. Everything came together and we had a good day.”
“Our confidence is pretty high,” said Jones, who piled up 198 yards from scrimmage and three total touchdowns on just 10 offensive touches. “It was really frustrating playing North Dakota and losing that game. It actually put into perspective that we could be beat. But we came back full steam ahead against North Texas and we were clicking on all cylinders. We have confidence, we believe in ourselves and that will go a long way.”
Montana State head coach Rob Ash did not get a chance to monitor the Vikings’ second FBS upset as Ash’s Bobcats took on Sacramento State last week. When someone informed Ash of the final score, he couldn’t believe his ears. When he watched the film, he couldn’t believe his eyes.
“Last week’s blowout was the most amazing thing I’ve seen with an FCS team going to play an FBS team like that and thrashing them like Portland State did,” Ash said on Tuesday. “That extremely impressive.”
“(Barnum) has them playing hard. There’s always been good talent at Portland State, physical abilities and now they are playing hard and playing as a team.”
Immediately following the game, the North Texas administration fired head coach Dan McCarney. Before McCarney’s dismissal, he had some words for Portland State’s new head coach and the old-school style his team is winning with.
“I want you to know this isn’t a high or a low bull—- deal, but how your team is playing and what you’re putting on the field is the return to what football should be,” Barnum told Sports Illustrated McCarney said following the game.
One of Barnum’s tenants is to not accept penalties and to avoid them at all costs. Following Thompson’s 68-yard touchdown run, the sophomore and his teammates were flagged for an excessive celebration penalty.
“We don’t tolerate penalties around here but when someone came over to the sideline and told me about that one, I said, ‘That’s on me,’” Barnum said. “That kid wasn’t even chose to go on the first bus. He was on the second bus with me and the rest of em’. That penalty I didn’t mind at all. Our kids were having so much fun and they deserved to celebrate a little bit.”
