Behind The Numbers: Week 4 FCS Football Review

The 2023 FCS football season is in full swing as Week 4 has come to a close. Each week we will go behind the numbers on some of the biggest games across the FCS landscape.

We take a look behind the numbers from this weekend’s biggest Week 4 FCS football action below.

No. 7 Idaho 36, No. 4 Sacramento State 27

How Did Idaho win?

Idaho won Saturday afternoon’s top-10 battle with well-rounded excellence in all three phases of the game. The Vandals kicked a game-winning field goal with one second remaining in the game. The final score of 36-27 was a little misleading as Idaho scored on a failed lateral attempt on the final play of the game. In this matchup last season, the Hornets ran for 5.5 yards per carry, but in this season’s game, the Vandals held the Hornets to only 2.4 yards per carry. The defense only generated two tackles for loss and still bottled up Kaiden Bennett and Marcus Fulcher. The Vandals put on a clinic for team defense as no player had more than five total tackles. Tommy McCormick and Marcus Harris had some big pass breakups in key moments of the game. Kaiden Bennett was able to make some clutch deep throws late but not enough to keep pace with the Idaho offense.

Both defenses played well with each team finishing with a sub-50% success rate on offense. The difference was a combination of timely run plays by Anthony Woods (4.9 YPC) and Gevani McCoy making some game-changing throws. Idaho dominated the time of possession with a consistent rushing attack, holding the ball for 39 minutes of the game. The biggest statement of the game came from the Idaho offensive line. On the final drive of the game, Idaho gave Anthony Woods seven carries in a row to set up the game-winning field goal. Coach Eck and company trusted the offensive line to assert their will on Sacramento State to seal the game.

What’s next for Sacramento State?

Sacramento State will look to bounce back against Northern Arizona next Saturday. It will be important to get the first Big Sky win of the season and avoid a 0-2 start to conference play. Northern Arizona is coming off a huge win last week against Montana, but the Hornets will present a far stiffer test offensively. Kaiden Bennett and the offense still have plenty of firepower and if Bennett can become more efficient throwing the ball the Hornets will still be one of the top teams in the nation. The defensive line continues to impress as they added another three sacks last weekend led by DeShawn Lynch. The Hornets still have conference games against No. 3 Montana State and No. 21 UC Davis ahead. If this team can pull off two wins Sacramento State still has a great shot at a Top-8 seed in the FCS playoffs.

What’s next for Idaho?

Idaho faces another ranked Big Sky opponent in No. 19 Eastern Washington next weekend. The Vandals will need to get focused quickly so they can avoid a letdown in Cheney. The win against Sacramento State was the first big hurdle in the Vandals’ quest to win the Big Sky. The Vandals still have games against No. 18 Montana, No. 3 Montana State, and No. 13 Weber State after the game this weekend. Even with the stiff competition, Idaho will have the most talented offense of anyone they play. If the defensive line can continue to play like a top-tier FCS unit, the Vandals have a great opportunity to win the Big Sky and be in contention for a Top-8 seed in the playoffs.

No. 19 Delaware 29, No. 11 New Hampshire 25

How did Delaware win?

New Hampshire jumped out to an 18-0 lead early in the second quarter, but the Delaware defense played dominant football over the final two quarters. The New Hampshire offense was held scoreless after the 13-minute mark of the second quarter with the only second-half points coming via Dylan Laube on a 100-yard kick return. The Wildcats had eight explosive plays in the game but only two came in the second half. Delaware forced New Hampshire to put together long drives, which the Wildcats struggled to do. Delaware did an outstanding job guarding FCS All-American Dylan Laube. Laube finished the game with 15 touches for 34 yards offensively. Laube averaged over eight yards a touch entering Saturday’s game, and Delaware held him to only 2.3 yards per play.

The Delaware offense played its own part in the Blue Hen’s victory. Quarterback Ryan O’Connor answered all the questions asked of him as he completed 65% of his passes for 336 passing yards and three touchdowns with no turnovers. Marcus Yarns and Kyron Cumby also dominated the Wildcat front. The two combined for 159 yards and 6.9 yards per carry, including a 30-yard touchdown run by Yarns that sealed the win for the Blue Hens.

What’s next for New Hampshire?

New Hampshire will look to bounce back next Saturday against Towson. Towson is coming off a disappointing loss to Norfolk State, and the Wildcats will feel confident about getting back on track. Going forward New Hampshire needs to establish a more consistent run game as the Wildcats are only averaging 4.4 yards per carry for the season. After going up 18-0 against Delaware they were unable to control time of possession with consistent drives. New Hampshire attempted 58 passes, while only rushing the ball 14 times the entire game despite an early lead. The offensive imbalance will keep this team from competing for the CAA title and making noise in the playoffs.

What’s next for Delaware?

Delaware will get to enjoy this big win with a bye week before facing Duquesne in the final out-of-conference game of the season. The Blue Hens have a relatively weak conference schedule, with the biggest test not coming until November against Elon and Villanova. The schedule gives the Blue Hens a real opportunity to compete for the CAA championship. This team has an excellent shot to win the rest of the games on the schedule, which would lock them into a Top-8 seed. The Blue Hens have a real opportunity to turn 2023 into a special season.

Eastern Washington 27, No. 19 UC Davis 24

How did Eastern Washington win?

Eastern Washington pulled off the upset by creating turnovers in clutch moments and avoiding crucial mistakes. By the numbers, UC Davis should have won this game. The Aggies averaged 6.4 yards per play to Eastern Washington’s 4.6 yards per play and UC Davis ran the ball for 7.6 yards per carry behind running back Lan Larison’s career night. Larison finished with 256 yards rushing on 22 carries before leaving the game with an injury. The Eagles struggled to establish the run, averaging only 2.9 yards per carry, and were inefficient on third downs. 

Football games are not won on paper though and the only number the Eagles will care about now is the final score. Eastern Washington was resilient and continued to keep themselves in the game with key plays. The defense forced three turnovers, including a pick-six from Marlon Jones Jr. The run defense may have struggled against Larison but the front seven did manage seven tackles for loss and then the secondary kept quarterback Miles Hastings in check with only 163 passing yards. Quarterback Kekoa Visperas did not have his best statistical game, but protected the football and made the right plays throughout the game.

What’s next for UC Davis?

UC Davis travels to Cal Poly next Saturday as the Aggies look for the first conference win of the season. A major question is the health of Larison as the Aggies have games against No. 18 Montana, No. 13 Weber State, and No. 9 Sacramento State ahead on the schedule. UC Davis still has a real opportunity to make a run for an At-Large bid if this team can win some key games. Larison has really been their only consistent offense this season as the passing game has struggled to get going, which is a cause for concern for this team. Look for the Aggies to try and get that passing game going this weekend against a struggling Cal Poly defense.

What’s next for Eastern Washington?

Eastern Washington does not have much time to celebrate as the Eagles prepare for No. 4 Idaho. This team has plenty of talent but should be encouraged by a strong start to the season and winning a close game on the road this past weekend was the next step. The Eagles did not turn the football over and finished the game with only two penalties. This team is learning how to win after a disappointing 2022 season.

Next week’s game the Eagles will need a little bit more offensive explosiveness if they are going to keep pace with one of the most talented teams in the nation. Whatever happens next week, the UC Davis win and a solid performance in out-of-conference play will have the Eagles looking to return to the FCS playoffs. We can look forward to watching this team continue to mature and grow back into the FCS force they have been for much of the last decade.