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McCarty guides Idaho past New Mexico State 21-6

Sep 15, 2009 - 9:37 PM By TIM KORTE AP Sports Writer

LAS CRUCES, N.M.(AP) -- Nathan Enderle threw two touchdown passes and Princeton McCarty got most of his 96 yards rushing on one play as Idaho beat New Mexico State 21-6 on Saturday night to spoil DeWayne Walker's coaching debut with the Aggies.

McCarty had the highlight of the game late in the first quarter, but he probably won't advertise it.

With the Vandals (1-0, 1-0 Western Athletic Conference) at their own 32, McCarty broke free up the middle, burst past the linebackers into open field with no defenders anywhere nearby. As he sprinted untouched toward the end zone, he tripped at the 5 and put his face mask into the turf at the 1.

McCarty, who had a career-high 160 yards rushing in last season's 20-14 win over the Aggies, scored on the next play to put Idaho up 14-0, then got a bear hug on the sideline from coach Robb Akey.

New Mexico State (0-1, 0-1) has been one of the nation's worst programs for decades and Walker got off to a rough start in his bid to turn things around. The Aggies had a touchdown overturned by an officials' review, missed a field goal and PAT kick and lost two fumbles.

Enderle completed 11 of 21 attempts for 179 yards with one interception. He threw a 6-yard TD pass to Daniel Hardy to cap Idaho's first drive, then found Max Komar on a 38-yard catch-and-run that helped the Vandals to a 21-0 halftime lead.

Idaho has beaten New Mexico State five of the past six years. The Aggies ended last season on a seven-game losing streak, which led to the firing of former coach Hal Mumme, and things didn't look much better much of the night even with a new coaching staff.

New Mexico State struggled to find an offensive rhythm but avoided a shutout on Tonny Glynn's 3-yard TD run late in the third period. Jeff Fleming, a junior college transfer to won the quarterback job in fall workouts, threw a fourth quarter interception that ended any hope for a rally.

Fleming was 21-of-33 for 230 yards.