Idaho Stuns #1 Montana State With 1-Second Left on Clock

With one second on the clock and 25 yards to go, University of Idaho quarterback Josh Wood threw a touchdown pass that made history. What happened next made it legendary.

The senior signal-caller didn't just tie the game against No. 1 ranked Montana State on Friday night. He ran straight up the middle for a two-point conversion that gave Idaho a 35-34 victory and their first win ever against a top-ranked FCS team.

Fans stormed the field at the Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho, celebrating a comeback that seemed impossible just minutes earlier. The Vandals had trailed 34-20 early in the fourth quarter against the Bobcats, facing what looked like their fifth loss of the season.

But this 1-4 team never quit. Wood scored on a 1-yard run with under 10 minutes left to cut the lead to seven points, and Idaho's defense forced Montana State into back-to-back three-and-outs.

When Idaho got the ball back with 49 seconds remaining, they had no timeouts and 80 yards between them and glory. Wood completed a 23-yard pass to tight end Noah West-Baranco to reach the Montana State 25-yard line as the clock ticked down to its final second.

Coach Thomas Ford didn't need to think twice when his team scored to make it 34-33. "I told the guys the last two weeks when we beat this team, everyone in the country will be surprised, but not one single person in that room will be surprised," Ford said after the game.

Wood delivered on that belief, finishing 19-for-25 for 315 yards and two touchdowns through the air while adding 41 rushing yards and another score on the ground. Receiver Ryan Jezioro hauled in six catches for 147 yards and both touchdown passes, including the game-tying grab.

Why This Inspires

This wasn't a powerhouse program shocking the world. This was a team that had lost four of their first five games, finding something within themselves when it mattered most.

Ford's words after the game cut through the usual coach-speak. He talked about a "together" team that never quits, knowing some people thought it was just empty talk after all those losses.

Friday night proved it wasn't talk at all. It was truth waiting for its moment on national television.

The Vandals showed that belief in your team isn't measured by your record. Sometimes the greatest victories come from teams that refuse to see themselves as underdogs, even when everyone else does.

One second was all they needed to prove what they'd known all along.