Ex-Viking Watson excels again at Vandals' second spring scrimmage
MOSCOW — Coach Paul Petrino liked what he saw in Idaho’s second scrimmage of the spring Saturday at the Kibbie Dome, as the offense scored 13 touchdowns and Austin Rehkow booted three field goals.
Aaron Duckworth, whose total was bolstered by a 65-yard scoring run near the end of the scrimmage, led the ground game with 122 yards on 14 carries, with Denzal Brantley adding 95 yards on 12 carries and Isaiah Saunders carrying the ball 13 times for 87 yards.
“I think it’s good for us and one of the best things for us,” Petrino of the balance at running back. “When you see your teammate do really well, you kind of feed off that. I think it’s happening now with them, and that’s a good thing.”
Former Coeur d’Alene High standout Deon Watson pulled in pass after pass from quarterbacks Jake Luton and Gunnar Amos, also a former Viking. He finished with nine catches for 216 yards and four touchdowns.
“Deon’s having a great spring,” Petrino said of Watson. “And that’s kind of what you should be doing going into your senior year. He’s a good player and should be doing that. I think he’s working hard and did a good job in the offseason of getting stronger, and that makes you a faster player. He just understands everything with the offense right now.
“No matter what, from your freshman to senior year, you’re going to get better as a player. You’re going to get bigger, stronger and faster. And he’s working the hardest that he’s been since he got here and doing a good job.”
Reuben Mwehla had seven catches for 158 yards and three scores. David Ungerer accounted for 79 yards on five catches and Callen Hightower for 72 yards on three catches.
Luton completed 19 of 33 passes for 431 yards and six touchdowns, and Amos totaled 177 yards on 12 of 17.
“He just keeps improving each day,” said Petrino of Luton, a redshirt sophomore who is assuming the No. 1 quarterback duties for junior Matt Linehan, who is out for spring drills with a foot injury. “There’s some stuff he can improve on, but he keeps getting better each day. With all the reps he’s been getting, it’s been huge for him.”
Watson has bounced between wide receiver and tight end during practices this spring.
“It’s my last year out here, and I just want to set the tone for the younger guys,” Watson said. “There’s going be some games that are tough, but we’re not going to stop working. We had some games last year where we had some doubts, and we’ve got to get those out of our mind now and come to work on every play, every down.”
Defensively, Tony Lashley had 11 tackles and Ed Hall had nine. Jayshawn Jordan and Khalin Smith each had one interception. Collectively, the defense had eight tackles for loss and six passes defensed.
Idaho’s next scrimmage is Friday at 4:30 p.m. at the Kibbie Dome.
SCORING PLAYS
FG Austin Rehkow 20
Deon Watson 20 pass from Jake Luton (Rehkow kick)
Reuben Mwehla 29 pass from Luton (Rehkow kick)
Gunnar Amos 7 run (Rehkow kick)
FG Rehkow 22
Watson 5 pass from Luton (Rehkow kick)
FG Rehkow 37
Amos 2 run (Rehkow kick)
Jayshawn Jordan 39 interception return
Aaron Duckworth 1 run (Rehkow kick)
Mwehla 56 pass from Amos (Cade Coffey kick)
Watson 67 pass from Luton (Rehkow kick)
Mwehla 11 pass from Amos (Coffey kick)
Watson 31 pass from Luton (no conversion attempted)
Duckworth 65 run (no conversion attempted)
Onunwar 30 pass from Amos (no conversion attempted)
Callen Hightower 69 pass from Amos (no kick attempted)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — Duckworth 14-122, Saunders 13-87, Brantley 12-95, Coman 6-47, Amos 8-16, Luton 5-2.
PASSING — Luton, 19-33-2-431, Amos 12-17-0-177.
RECEIVING — Watson 9-216, Mwehla 7-158, Hightower 3-72, Sannon 1-7, Ungerer 5-79, Onunwar 5-71, Brantley 1-5.