The San José State football team secured its first win of the season, defeating University of Idaho on Saturday afternoon in a neck-and-neck battle.

The Spartans fell behind 14 points early but rallied back, capping the comeback with a 48-yard game-winning field goal by senior kicker Denis Lynch with seven seconds left to win 31-28.

It was Lynch’s first make of the season after starting 0-for-4. Lynch was also 4-for-4 on extra points, putting him at 7-for-7 on the season.

“The last two weeks I’ve kind of pulled my head up a little too fast, which isn’t what you really want to do as a kicker. So it’s kind of just reaffirming myself to keep my head down and follow through and make the kick,” Lynch said. “Just being able to do my part was awesome.”

SJSU’s offense was led by senior quarterback Walker Eget, who posted a season-best 62 % completion rate.

Eget avoided throwing an interception for the first time this season, but he did fumble.

The turnover was forced by junior safety Tim Jackson and recovered by junior linebacker Dylan Layne at the 46 yard line.

Idaho capitalized on the mistake, capping the drive with the game’s first score on a touchdown run by sophomore quarterback Joshua Wood.

It marked the third-straight game in which the Spartans committed a first-quarter turnover.

“The biggest thing we talked about this week is taking care of the rock,” Eget said. “Being decisive and making good decisions, that’s something we harped on and really tried to dial in on.”

The offense started clicking after the biggest running play of the year by junior running back Jabari Bates, who broke free for an 87-yard touchdown, the longest run of his career. The score cut the Spartans’ deficit to seven points, making it 14-7 and sparked their comeback.

“Having that run game is a big-time part of this offense because people only expect us to pass. So I think that just shows we can do both,” Eget said.

The Spartans’ 31 points and four touchdowns were the most they had scored all season.

Before this game, the team had totaled just three touchdowns.

This was also the first game in which the Spartans had both a running back and a receiver surpass 100 scrimmage yards.

Sophomore wide receiver Danny Scudero had 130 receiving yards, putting him sixth in the nation.

Junior wide receiver Kyri Shoels scored the first touchdown of his career on a 15-yard reception in the second quarter, tying the game for the Spartans and adding to the night’s history.

Shoels built on his career-best performance from the previous game, when he had eight receptions for 73 yards.

Spartans head coach Ken Niumatalolo credited Shoels as a key reason for the team’s win.

“We saw his speed against Texas, that he can run against anybody. When the ball’s gone to him, he’s made plays,” Niumatalolo said.

The Spartans also made some big defensive plays, holding Idaho to 152 rushing yards on 43 attempts, while their own rushing attack produced 198 yards on just 26 carries.

They struggled on fourth-down defense, as the Vandals converted 5-of-5 fourth-down attempts.

Their last two touchdowns came on drives that included successful fourth-down conversions.

Freshman wide receiver Ryan Jezioro connected on a 15-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter to give Idaho a 21-14 lead.

However, Spartans senior running back Floyd Chalk IV quickly tied the game with a 7-yard rushing touchdown to end the third quarter.

“We gotta get that fixed, and we will,” Niumatalolo said. “We had a chance on some third-and-longs. They made it fourth-and-1, fourth-and-2, those are always hard to stop.”

He added that the Spartans need to do a better job on early downs to avoid those short-yardage situations.

The Spartans defense also failed to force a turnover today, after recording a few in weeks 1 and 2.

Spartans senior defensive back Jalen Apalit-Williams starred on defense, leading the team with nine tackles.

“Don’t give up. It’s a four-quarter game. We have to do our part, and we’ve got to be physical day in and day out. No matter who’s in front of us, we’ve got to win the physicality of the game,” Apalit-Williams said.

Special teams also came through for the Spartans, as Idaho’s junior kicker Cameron Pope missed a 34-yard field goal at the end of the second quarter.

The kick would have given the Vandals a 17-14 lead, and those three points ended up making a difference in the game.

The Spartans will now play their final non-conference game, traveling to Stanford for the Bill Walsh Legacy Game on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. at Stanford Stadium.