2023 Idaho Vandals football team

American college football season

2023 Idaho Vandals football
ConferenceBig Sky
Ranking
STATSNo. 8
FCS CoachesNo. T–4
Record9–4 (6–2 Big Sky)
Head coach
  • Jason Eck (2nd season)
Offensive coordinatorLuke Schleusner (2nd season)
Offensive schemeSpread option
Defensive coordinatorRob Aurich
(2nd season)
Base defense3–4
Home stadiumKibbie Dome
Seasons
← 2022
2024 →
2023 Big Sky Conference football standings
  • v
  • t
  • e
 Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 2 Montana $^   7 – 1     13 – 2  
No. 8 Idaho ^   6 – 2     9 – 4  
No. 9 Montana State ^   6 – 2     8 – 4  
Northern Arizona   5 – 3     5 – 6  
No. 24 UC Davis   5 – 3     7 – 4  
No. 13 Sacramento State ^   4 – 4     8 – 5  
Portland State   4 – 4     5 – 6  
Weber State   4 – 4     6 – 5  
Eastern Washington   3 – 5     4 – 7  
Idaho State   3 – 5     3 – 8  
Cal Poly   1 – 7     3 – 8  
Northern Colorado   0 – 8     0 – 11  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
Rankings from STATS Poll

The 2023 Idaho Vandals football team represented the University of Idaho in the Big Sky Conference during the 2023 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by second-year head coach Jason Eck, the Vandals were 8–3 (6–2 in Big Sky, 2nd) in the regular season, and played their home games on campus at the Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho.

Seeded fourth in the 24-team FCS playoffs, Idaho received a bye in the first round and hosted two games, but fell in the quarterfinals to Albany to finish at 9–4 (.692).

Preseason

Polls

On July 23, 2023, during the virtual Big Sky Kickoff, the Vandals were predicted to finish fifth in the Big Sky by the coaches and second by the media.[1]

Coaches poll
Predicted finish Team Votes (1st place)
1 Montana State 120 (10)
2 UC Davis 96 (1)
3 Sacramento State 94 (1)
4 Weber State 91
5 Idaho 89
6 Montana 84
7 Eastern Washington 52
8 Portland State 45
9 Northern Arizona 44
10 Northern Colorado 37
11 Cal Poly 25
12 Idaho State 15
Media poll
Predicted finish Team Votes (1st place)
1 Montana State 447 (26)
2 Idaho 410 (8)
3 Montana 359 (2)
4 Sacramento State 334 (3)
5 UC Davis 330
6 Weber State 320
7 Eastern Washington 216
8 Northern Arizona 178
9 Portland State 167
10 Northern Colorado 109
11 Cal Poly 103
12 Idaho State 69

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendance
August 315:00 pmat Lamar*No. 8ESPN+W 42–17  5,321
September 94:00 p.m.at Nevada*No. 7KNSN-TVW 33–619,852
September 161:00 p.m.at California*No. 5P12NL 17–3136,810
September 231:00 p.m.No. 4 Sacramento StateNo. 7ESPN+W 36–27  9,433
September 301:00 p.m.at No. 19 Eastern WashingtonNo. 4ESPN+W 44–36  8,347
October 75:00 p.m.at Cal PolyNo. 3ESPN+W 42–14  6,028
October 147:30 p.m.No. 16 MontanadaggerNo. 3
ESPN2L 21–2314,218
October 281:00 p.m.No. 2 Montana StateNo. 9
  • Kibbie Dome
  • Moscow, ID
ESPN+W 24–2113,073
November 412:00 p.m.at Northern ColoradoNo. 3ESPN+W 27–13  3,608
November 1112:00 p.m.at Weber StateNo. 4ESPN+L 29–31  8,741
November 184:00 p.m.Idaho StateNo. 6
ESPN+W 63–21  9,854
December 27:00 p.m.No. 14 Southern Illinois*No. 4
ESPN2W 20–17 OT  9,224
December 97:00 p.m.No. 9 Albany*No. 4
  • Kibbie Dome
  • Moscow, ID (FCS Quarterfinal)
ESPN+L 22–30  9,372
  • *Non-conference game
  • daggerHomecoming
  • Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Pacific time

[2]

Game summaries

at Lamar

No. 8 Idaho Vandals (0–0) at Lamar Cardinals (0–0) – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 8 Vandals 14 14 7742
Cardinals 0 0 31417

at Provost Umphrey Stadium • Beaumont, TX

  • Date: August 31, 2023
  • Game time: 7:00 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 97 °F (36 °C) • Wind: E 10 miles per hour (16 km/h)
  • Game attendance: 5,321
  • Referee: Craig Hesler
  • TV: ESPN+
Game information
First Quarter
  • UID – 7:54 Hayden Hatten 6 yd pass from McCoy,Gevani (Pope,Cameron kick) UID 7–0 Drive: 11 plays, 75 yards, TOP 07:06
  • UID – 4:45 Woods,Anthony 9 yd run (Pope,Cameron kick) UID 14–0 Drive: 4 plays, 46 yards, TOP 01:30
Second Quarter
  • UID – 7:30 Woods,Anthony 6 yd run UID 20–0 Drive: 11 plays, 96 yards, TOP 06:40
  • UID – 00:33 Hatten,Hayden 20 yd pass from McCoy,Gevani (Cox,Jake pass) UID 28–0 Drive: 4 plays, 90 yards, TOP 01:17
Third Quarter
  • UID – 12:39 Romano,Nick 45 yd pass from Hatten,Hayden (Prescott,Logan kick) UID 35–0 Drive: 2 plays, 47 yards, TOP 00:28
  • LU – 4:46 Esqueda,Chris 30 yd field goalUID 35–3 Drive: 10 plays, 37 yards, TOP 04:38
Fourth Quarter
  • UID – 9:08 Cox,Jake 15 yd pass from Layne,Jack (Prescott,Logan kick) UID 42–3 Drive: 6 plays, 60 yards, TOP 03:06
  • LU – 4:55 Griffin,Khalan 2 yd run (Esqueda,Chris kick) UID 42–10 Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, TOP 04:13
  • LU – 3:29 Hall,Trae 12 yd pass from Coleman,Robert (Esqueda,Chris kick) UID 42–17 Drive: 5 plays, 39 yards, TOP 01:16
Top passers
  • IDHO – Gevani McCoy – 14/19, 164 yards, 2 TD
  • LU – Robert Coleman – 15/24, 119 yards, INT
Top rushers
  • IDHO – Anthony Woods – 13 carries, 138 yards, 2 TD
  • LU – Khalan Griffin – 12 carries, 44 yards, TD
Top receivers
  • IDHO – Hayden Hatten – 6 receptions, 86 yards, 2 TD
  • LU – Andre Dennis – 1 reception, 34 yards

at Nevada

No. 7 Idaho Vandals (1–0) at Nevada Wolf Pack (0–1) – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 7 Vandals 14 3 10633
Wolf Pack 3 3 006

at Mackay Stadium • Reno, NV

  • Date: September 9, 2023
  • Game time: 4:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game attendance: 19,852
  • TV: KNSN-TV

at California

No. 5 Idaho Vandals (2–0) at California Golden Bears (1–1) – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 5 Vandals 10 7 0017
Golden Bears 0 14 14331

at California Memorial Stadium • Berkeley, CA

  • Date: September 16, 2023
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game attendance: 36,810
  • TV: Pac-12 Network
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
  • IDHO – Gevani McCoy – 28/46, 279 yards, INT
  • CAL – Sam Jackson V – 12/23, 108 yards, 2 TD
Top rushers
  • IDHO – Anthony Woods – 11 carries, 56 yards, TD
  • CAL – Isaiah Ifanse – 22 carries, 137 yards, TD
Top receivers
  • IDHO – Hayden Hatten – 8 receptions, 80 yards
  • CAL – Jeremiah Hunter – 5 receptions, 48 yards, TD

vs No. 4 Sacramento State

No. 4 Sacramento State (3–0) vs No. 7 Idaho Vandals (2–1) – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 4 Hornets 3 7 71027
No. 7 Vandals 3 10 14936

at Kibbie Dome • Moscow, ID

  • Date: September 23, 2023
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: Sunny, Indoors
  • Game attendance: 9,433
  • Referee: Jake Iverson
  • TV announcers (ESPN+): Play-by-Play: Dennis Patchin • Analysis: Ryan Phillips
Game information
First Quarter
  • (7:02) IDHO – Ricardo Chavez 29-yard field goal (Drive: 14 plays, 49 yards, 7:58; Idaho 3–0)
  • (2:19) SAC – Zach Schreiner 36-yard field goal (Drive: 13 plays, 56 yards, 4:39; Tied 3–3)
Second Quarter
  • (7:19) IDHO – Anthony Woods 2-yard run (Ricardo Chavez kick) (Drive: 12 plays, 68 yards, 7:03; Idaho 10–3)
  • (1:26) IDHO – Ricardo Chavez 50-yard field goal (Drive: 8 plays, 32 yards, 4:08; Idaho 13–3)
  • (0:31) SAC – Austin Jarrard 5-yard pass from Kaiden Bennett (Zach Schreiner kick) (Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 0:55; Idaho 13–10)
Third Quarter
  • (10:39) IDHO – Turon Ivy Jr. 52-yard pass from Gevani McCoy (Ricardo Chavez kick) (Drive: 6 plays, 82 yards, 3:00; Idaho 20–10)
  • (7:35) SAC – Marcus Fulcher 2-yard run (Zach Schreiner kick) (Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 3:04; Idaho 20–17)
  • (0:18) IDHO – Terez Traynor 60-yard pass from Gevani McCoy (Ricardo Chavez kick) (Drive: 5 plays, 91 yards, 3:04; Idaho 27–17)
Fourth Quarter
  • (11:00) SAC – Zach Schreiner 44-yard field goal (Drive: 13 plays, 54 yards, 4:12; Idaho 27–20)
  • (4:54) SAC – Marcus Fulcher 11-yard pass from Kaiden Bennett (Zach Schreiner kick) (Drive: 6 plays, 54 yards, 2:13; Tied 27–27)
  • (0:01) IDHO – Ricardo Chavez 30-yard field goal (Drive: 8 plays, 36 yards, 4:46; Idaho 30–27)
  • (0:00) IDHO – Turon Ivy Jr. 6-yard fumble return (Idaho 36–27)
Line
  • IDHO –2.5
Over/Under
  • 57.5
Top passers
  • SAC – Kaiden Bennett – 15/29, 236 yards, 2 TD
  • IDHO – Gevani McCoy – 15/21, 234 yards, 2 TD
Top rushers
  • SAC – Marcus Fulcher – 10 carries, 44 yards, TD
  • IDHO – Anthony Woods – 24 carries, 117 yards, TD
Top receivers
  • SAC – Jared Gipson – 3 receptions, 91 yards
  • IDHO – Hayden Hatten – 7 receptions, 72 yards

at No. 19 Eastern Washington

No. 4 Idaho Vandals (3–1) at No. 19 Eastern Washington (2–2) – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 4 Vandals 7 14 101344
No. 19 Eagles 7 14 7836

at Roos Field • Cheney, WA

  • Date: September 30, 2023
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game attendance: 8,347
  • TV: ESPN+

at Cal Poly

No. 3 Idaho Vandals (4–1) at Cal Poly Mustangs (2–3) – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 3 Vandals 7 21 7742
Mustangs 0 7 0714

at Mustang Memorial Field • San Luis Obispo, CA

  • Date: October 7, 2023
  • Game time: 5:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game attendance: 6,028
  • TV: ESPN+

vs No. 16 Montana

No. 16 Montana Grizzlies (5–1) vs No. 3 Idaho Vandals (5–1) – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 16 Grizzlies 10 10 0323
No. 3 Vandals 0 7 01421

at Kibbie Dome • Moscow, ID

  • Date: October 14, 2023
  • Game time: 7:30 p.m. PDT
  • Game attendance: 14,218
  • TV: ESPN2

vs No. 2 Montana State

No. 2 Montana State Bobcats (6–1) vs No. 9 Idaho Vandals (5–2) – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 2 Bobcats 0 0 14721
No. 9 Vandals 3 7 01424

at Kibbie Dome • Moscow, ID

  • Date: October 28, 2023
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game attendance: 13,073
  • TV: ESPN+

at Northern Colorado

No. 3 Idaho Vandals (6–2) at Northern Colorado Bears (0–8) – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 3 Vandals 3 7 71027
Bears 0 7 0613

at Nottingham Field • Greeley, CO

  • Date: November 4, 2023
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. MDT
  • Game attendance: 3,608
  • TV: ESPN+

at Weber State

No. 4 Idaho Vandals (7–2) at Weber State Wildcats (4–5) – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 4 Vandals 3 10 8829
Wildcats 0 14 14331

at Stewart Stadium • Ogden, UT

  • Date: November 11, 2023
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game attendance: 8,741
  • TV: ESPN+

vs Idaho State

Idaho State Bengals (3–7) vs No. 6 Idaho Vandals (7–3) – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Bengals 0 0 71421
No. 6 Vandals 28 28 0763

at Kibbie Dome • Moscow, ID

  • Date: November 18, 2023
  • Game time: 4:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game attendance: 9,854
  • TV: ESPN+

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
( ) = First-place votes
Week
PollPre123456789101112Final
STATS FCS875 (1)74331093464
Coaches13121010533885484

References

  1. ^ "Montana State Tabbed Preseason Football Favorites". July 25, 2021. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  2. ^ "2023 Idaho Football Schedule". FBSchedules. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
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