Junior quarterback Luke Falk threw three touchdown passes as Washington State overcame a slow start to rout Idaho 56-6 on Saturday in Pullman, Wash.

Falk (21 of 36, 226 yards) connected with wide receivers Gabe Marks, Robert Lewis and Kyle Sweet for touchdowns while increasing his career yards total to (7,544), moving ahead of Drew Bledsoe (7,373) and Ryan Leaf (7,433) for fifth on the Cougars' all-time list.

Freshman James Williams rushed for 126 yards and his first touchdown to send Washington State (1-2) to its first victory. Fellow running back Gerard Wicks added a score on the ground for the Cougars, who won their ninth straight meeting by a combined 396-99 in a matchup of schools located eight miles apart.

Quarterback Matt Linehan was 19 of 33 for 172 yards for the Vandals (1-2), who were held to 78 rushing yards while yielding 228.

The Cougars led 21-3 at halftime after scoring on the ground, through the air and on special teams. Williams' 2-yard run culminated a nine-play, 82-yard drive with 22 seconds left in the first quarter.

Nose tackle Robert Barber blocked a 33-yard field goal attempt and cornerback Marcellus Pippins scooped up the ball and raced 72 yards for a touchdown midway through the second quarter. Falk and Marks connected for an 8-yard score with 4:02 left in the first half.

Washington State's defense stopped Linehan's run on third-and-goal at the 1 and Idaho coach Paul Petrino decided to settle for Austin Rehkow's 18-yard field goal midway through the third quarter that made it 21-6. The Cougars answered with a 14-play, 90-yard drive capped by a 2-yard touchdown run by Wicks.

Washington State extended its lead to 35-6 with 13:05 remaining when Falk found Lewis open over the middle for a 10-yard touchdown. Falk's third TD pass was a 9-yarder to Sweet, who dove to reach the pylon with 8:52 left to make it 42-6.

Barber played despite his alleged involvement in a July fight that left a student unconscious, resulting in the Pullman Police Department recommending assault charges be filed against him Friday.