Back to winning ways, ‘best football is still ahead’ for Idaho Vandals

MOSCOW, Idaho – The Idaho Vandals looked in a mirror Saturday. Staring back was the team that had played the current Football Bowl Subdivision leader nearly to a draw.

After hanging within 10 points of Oregon, 24-14, in their opener, however, the reflection had grown murky. Borne down by injuries, the Vandals scuffled to a 5-3 record while managing to preserve a Football Championship Subdivision top -15 ranking. There was a disappointing 28-26 loss to UC Davis and a 38-7 beating at the hands of second-ranked Montana State. Idaho struggled to defeat a couple of Big Sky Conference second-tier teams: Northern Arizona 23-17 and Cal Poly 34-29.

But in the third quarter Saturday against another hard -luck league opponent, Eastern Washington University, a team Vandals coach Jason Eck said has outperformed its 2-6, 1-3 record, the image came back into sharp focus. In that third quarter, holding a marginal 17-13 lead, Idaho faced the Eagles at its goal line. On second down, EWU quarterback Kekoa Visperas, carried 6 yards to the 2-yard line. On third down, running back Tuna Altahir managed only a yard before being stopped by Vandals safety Dwayne McDougle and linebacker Zach Johnson. On fourth down, EWU’s premier receiver, Efton Chism took a short pass at the 2-yard line. But the 200-pound Chism could not force his way past 205-pound McDougle.

The defensive prowess that had been the Vandals’ hallmark in the early season had returned. Characterizing the renewed confidence in themselves, senior safety Tommy McCormick, who led the Vandals with 18 tackles, said “fourth -and-1 is a tough place for offenses to be against us.”

After taking possession following the goal -line stand, Idaho’s own offense went 98 yards in seven plays as redshirt freshman running back Deshaun Buchanan in three successive plays: a 5-yard pass reception, a 5-yard run to the one-yard line and a successful goal-line plunge, gave the Vandals a 24-13 advantage.

It provided the breathing room Idaho needed to fend off the Eagles in the second half of a battle that was not really decided until the final minute when Idaho was able to run out the clock in a 38-28 win.

Eck pointed to the back-to-back dominance of Idaho’s defense and offense on those third-quarter series as the game’s key.

He also heralded the return of an Idaho team that had romped its way to a No. 3 FCS ranking early in the season.

“Our best football is still ahead of us. We keep getting better,” Eck said afterwards.

Following a badly needed bye, Idaho will finish its regular season at Portland State, currently 1-6 and 1-3 in the Big Sky, at home against Weber State (3-5 and 2-2) and in Pocatello against Idaho State (4-5, 2-3).

If things work out, Idaho will have survived a rough road to a 9-3 record, 6-2 in the Big Sky, that should ensure it can host an FCS playoff game.

Buchanan and Art Williams typify the Vandals in the latter part of their season.

The running backs, both redshirt freshmen, filled in for starters Elisha Cummings and Nate Thomas, who set the tone for a productive Idaho ground game before injuries slowed them. Against EWU, Buchanan ran for 116 yards and two touchdowns, and Williams added 59 yards on 11 carries.

“With Nate and Eli being out, we were talking about taking advantage of our opportunities,” Buchanan said.

After Idaho’s quarterback to start the season, Jack Layne, suffered a broken collarbone against Oregon, Jack Wagner, Nick Josifek and Rocco Koch also took advantage of their opportunities. Wagner threw for 347 yards and three touchdowns against Cal Poly. He rotated with Josifek, who threw for touchdowns against UC Davis and Northern Arizona before being lost for the season himself with a collarbone injury suffered against Montana State, and freshman Koch, the biggest of the bunch at 220 pounds, who had mostly run the scout team until Josifek was hurt, hammered his way for 37 yards in nine carries with a touchdown against EWU.

But while the understudies kept Idaho contending against Big Sky opponents, the Vandals sorely missed the high-octane offense Layne provided. This was crystal clear when Layne made his return against EWU. He passed for 235 yards with a pair of touchdowns and an interception against the Eagles, and the ball came off his hand as quickly and with the velocity and accuracy that earned him the starting job. He renewed Idaho’s offense’s belief in itself, conveying the impression that anything EWU could do, Idaho could match.

“Jack played with a lot of courage,” Eck said. Coming back from injury, Layne was hardly tentative. Indeed, keeping the ball after a pass play broke down on Idaho’s first series, Layne gained 5 yards and went shoulder first into a tackle to make sure he got all five.

He said he had never missed a game before suffering the injury at Oregon and getting hurt “gave me a new perspective.” In being able to return against the Eagles “I was really focused on soaking up the moment,” he said.

That might represent where the Vandals are as a team now: soaking up a moment, pleased to be playing good football again and, most of all, delighted to be back.