Out of the four games on Idaho’s non conference schedule, the two home games seem far more favorable for the Vandals compared to the road games. They started off the Thomas Ford. Jr era and the 2025 season with a hard-fought effort, losing to an FBS opponent on the road. They will finish non conference play in San Jose, California, against a dangerous San Jose State Spartans team from the Mountain West Conference.
After winning all six games in the P1FCU Kibbie Dome in 2024, Idaho’s two nonconference home games come against non-ranked FCS opponents. The first of two was St. Thomas, a team from the Pioneer Football League, who completed its transition from Division III to Division I and is eligible for the FCS postseason beginning this season. The Vandals were expected to defeat the Tommies with ease, but they allowed 30 points and 472 yards of total offense.
Their second home game, this time against the Utah Tech University Trailblazers, kicks off at 1 p.m. and is the official game of the Kibbie Dome’s 50-year anniversary celebration.
“There’s no question they will be a challenge. That’s a well-coached group,” Ford said in Monday’s press conference. “What I do know is they’re going to be disciplined.”
Out of their five games on the nonconference slate for the 2025 season, the Trailblazers face Big Sky Conference opponents in each of their first three games. They began the season at home in St. George, Utah against University of California, Davis. UC Davis was the only team that beat Idaho in 2024 that didn’t finish the regular season undefeated, and the two teams will play in Moscow on Nov. 8. The Trailblazers fell to the UC Davis Aggies 31-24 on the same day the Vandals lost to Washington State.
Last week, the Trailblazers played their first road game of the season in Flagstaff, Arizona, falling short to the Northern Arizona University Lumberjacks, 38-31. Idaho will also be making the trip to Flagstaff for a showdown under the lights with NAU on Halloween. The Lumberjacks lost 23-17 against Idaho in the Kibbie Dome last season.
Given that Idaho plays both of Utah Tech’s previous two opponents down the line in conference play, coach Ford says it will be an advantage when preparing for those teams. The Trailblazers led by 17 against UC Davis, and they mounted an impressive comeback to cut the deficit to one score late against NAU.
Though the Trailblazers have already taken two losses at the hands of Big Sky teams, it is imperative that Idaho does not overlook them. The team looked somewhat unprepared for the fight that St. Thomas brought to Moscow, and they nearly paid the price. Facing a team that has put up a fight against two respectable teams that Idaho knows very well, the Vandals have to prepare for this game like they would any other.
This time around, Idaho needs to show that they can comfortably defeat lesser opponents. Achieving this starts with executing on the defensive side of the ball. After giving up just three rushing yards on 22 carries in week one, Idaho allowed the Tommies to rush for 208. Playing against competition from the same conference, Utah Tech averaged 120 yards on the ground in their first two contests.
Liam Bradford can be reached at [email protected].