Here are position group grades from Idaho State's 40-31 win over Cal Poly Saturday afternoon, the Bengals' first win in more than a calendar year.

Offense: A

The Bengals delivered their best game on offense all season. Quarterback Hunter Hays, who returned from a lower-leg injury that kept him out the previous two games, completed 17 of 23 passes for 202 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

ISU also produced its best rushing game all year, totaling 293 yards on the ground. Transfer running back Keoua Kauhi carried seven times for 80 yards and a touchdown, Benji Omayebu logged 10 carries for 74 yards and a score, Raiden Hunter tallied 13 carries for 57 yards and a touchdown and Soujah Gasu posted five carries for 38 yards and his own touchdown. Even Hays got in on the action, registering nine carries for 45 yards.

Plus, the Bengals registered several big plays. In the first frame, Omayebu spun off one tackle and raced 51 yards into the end zone. In the second, Kauhi burst through a number of tackles, somersaulting into the end zone for a 60-yard score. In the third, Hays completed a slant route to Xavier Guillory, who did the rest on a 71-yard touchdown reception.

To nitpick the Bengals' offense, we can look at the fourth quarter, when they had to punt on five straight drives. On four of those series, ISU went three-and-out. That's what allowed Cal Poly to nearly come all the way back. Plus, with around three minutes left, the Bengals set up a quarterback sneak on fourthand-1 — and Hays lost a fumble.

In fact, ISU fumbled three times in this win, but it only lost one.

Defense: B

Judging the Bengals' defense in this one is a little tricky. The group secured stops when it absolutely needed to, getting interceptions from Charles Ike and Josh Alford to prevent Cal Poly from completing its comeback attempt, but the Bengals also yielded three straight scoring drives to get in that position to begin with.

Those series went like this: Jaden Ohlsen hit a 48-yard field goal, Spencer Brasch threw a 13-yard touchdown pass, then Brasch lasered a pass to Zedakiah Centers, who hung on to the pass in the end zone. That helped the Mustangs draw within 3731 — with nine minutes to play, plenty of time to complete the rally.

But ISU never let that happen. The Bengals snuffed out each of the Mustangs' ensuing drives with interceptions. They also sacked Brasch six times, which made an enormous difference.

Even when they couldn't get all the way to Brasch, they hurried his throws, like on Cal Poly's final play of the game, the Alford interception.

That's what mattered. Headed into this game, the Bengals ranked last in the Big Sky Conference in turnover margin, at minus-6. They have always won and lost with how they fare on the turnover front. In that way, it's no coincidence they captured this victory.

Special teams: B

Much of ISU's special teams play on Saturday revolved around kicker Ian Hershey, who played to mixed results: He missed his first field goal, a 42-yard attempt, but it's fair to wonder what he could have done with a better snap, which may have affected his timing.

Fortunately for the Bengals, Hershey didn't have to punt for the first time until the third quarter, when he sent away a 45-yard boot. In all, he punted five times for an average of 38 yards, which is OK by his standards. The one blemish on his game resume came in the fourth frame, when he botched a 23-yard punt. He jogged to the sideline with a slight limp. In either case, Cal Poly capitalized with a touchdown, drawing within six.

To Hershey's credit, he nailed a 44-yard field goal in the final seconds, putting the game out of reach. He has now made 4 of 6 field goal attempts as his freshman campaign continues to unfold.

Overall: B+

If there's one team in the country that will take a win, circumstances be damned, it's Idaho State. The Bengals may have come a few plays away from letting the Mustangs erase a four-score deficit, but the reality is this: They earned their first win in exactly 371 days.

They can keep things rolling next week, when they host Northern Arizona.