After two tough defeats to open the season, Vandal football (0-2, 0-1) opens up their slate of six home games this season on Saturday, Sep. 12 when they welcome the Lamar Cardinals (1-1) to the P1FCU Kibbie Dome.
Despite the losses, there have been several bright spots for the Vandals so far. Senior Quarterback Joshua Wood has five total touchdowns this season, and has showcased both his arm and overall athletic talent as well.
Junior Wide receiver Tony Harste has over 200 yards receiving and two touchdown catches. Fifth-year student running back Hayden Kincheloe picked up his first touchdown of the season against Utah while junior kicker Owen Forsman has made every kick he’s been asked to so far.
Fifth-year linebacker Cruz Hepburn is already up to 17 total tackles on the year.
Head coach Thomas Ford Jr. struck an optimistic tone in his Monday press conference despite the 0-2 start, saying,
“You know, if we bat the ball down at the end of the game, we’re one and one. And our only loss would be to a top 25 FBS opponent. So my message to Vandal fans is there’s nothing that’s changed in terms of what we can still accomplish this season.”
There have been offensive flashes and dynamic plays for sure, but the defense as a unit has struggled to find its rhythm. With no turnovers forced and only one sack on the season, the unit will look to come out aggressively on home turf. Speaking of returning to Moscow, Ford said, “It’ll be our first home game, it’ll be the first normal week that we’ve had to play a football game on an actual Saturday, so we couldn’t be more excited to get back in front of our home fans, play in the confines of the dome and use that to our advantage. One thing that we’re really preaching this week is just protecting the dome.”
Ford continued, “Defensively, we just need to really do a better job of executing. We need to be able to run our base defense and have guys communicating at a high level. We’ve struggled a little bit when the picture changes, when we get motions and shifts, and so that’s something that we need to make easier for our guys.”
The visiting Lamar Cardinals sit at 1-1 on the season, with their loss coming last week against FBS opponents Louisiana-Lafayette 38-7. While their solo win came against Abilene Christian in a close 21-14 matchup. The Cardinals currently sit ranked at #17 in the FCS Coaches’ Poll.
Junior quarterback Aiden McCown has started both games so far for the Cardinals, and is coming off a three interception game against ULL. Lamar is evenly spread across offensively, but senior running back Parker Jenkins and senior tight end Davin Driskell are their “forces to be reckon with”. The Cardinals’ leading tacklers are mostly defensive backs, with juniors Mar Mar Evans and Bryce McDonald atop that list with 11 total tackles a piece.
The Vandal faithful are known for bringing the noise and energy to every home game, and Idaho will look to use that as fuel to come out of the gate fast and aggressive on Saturday afternoon. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. in the P1FCU Kibbie Dome in Moscow, and will be broadcast on ESPN+ and SWX.