1981 Idaho State Bengals football team

1981 Idaho State Bengals football
NCAA Division I-AA champion
Big Sky champion
ConferenceBig Sky Conference
Record12–1 (6–1 Big Sky)
Head coach
Base defense3–4
Home stadiumASISU Minidome
Seasons
← 1980
1982 →
1981 Big Sky Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 2 Idaho State $^ 6 1 0 12 1 0
No. 5 Boise State ^ 6 1 0 10 3 0
Montana 5 2 0 7 3 0
Nevada 4 3 0 7 4 0
Weber State 4 3 0 7 4 0
Northern Arizona 2 5 0 4 7 0
Montana State 1 6 0 3 7 0
Idaho 0 7 0 3 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Committee poll

The 1981 Idaho State Bengals football team represented Idaho State University in the Big Sky Conference during the 1981 NCAA Division I-AA football season. The Bengals were led by second-year head coach Dave Kragthorpe and played their home games at the ASISU Minidome (now Holt Arena), an indoor venue on campus in Pocatello, Idaho.

Quarterbacked by senior Mike Machurek, the Bengals won the Big Sky championship with a 6–1 record and were 9–1 overall in the regular season. The sole loss was at Montana, when Machurek remained in Pocatello with mononucleosis, and backup Dirk Koetter filled in;[1][2] the Griz kicked a late field goal to win by three points in Missoula.[3]

In the eight-team Division I-AA playoffs, Idaho State easily won two home playoff games, then secured their only national championship in the Pioneer Bowl at Wichita Falls, Texas. The Bengals defeated Eastern Kentucky 34–23 in the title game to finish with a 12–1 record,[4] just two years removed from a winless season.[2]

  1. ^ "ISU's Machurek to miss today's game". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. October 17, 1981. p. 3C.
  2. ^ a b Emerson, Paul (October 29, 1981). "Kragthorpe's turned Bengals into title contenders in two years". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 1B.
  3. ^ "Montana knocks off Idaho State". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. October 18, 1981. p. 7C.
  4. ^ "Bengals ride like the wind". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. December 20, 1981. p. 2D.