A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| Idaho Vandals football | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
 | |||
| First season | 1893 | ||
| Athletic director | Terry Gawlik | ||
| Head coach | Jason Eck 2nd season, 16–9 (.640) | ||
| Stadium | Kibbie Dome (capacity: 15,250) | ||
| Year built | 1971 (enclosed in 1975) | ||
| Field surface | RealGrass Pro | ||
| Location | Moscow, Idaho | ||
| NCAA division | Division I FCS | ||
| Conference | Big Sky | ||
| Past conferences | Sun Belt (2014–2017) Independent (2013) WAC (2005–2012) Sun Belt (2001–2004) Big West (1996–2000) Big Sky (1965–1995) Independent (1959–1964) Pacific Coast (1922–1958) Independent (1894–1921) | ||
| All-time record | 460–614–26 (.430) | ||
| Bowl record | 3–0 (1.000) | ||
| Playoff appearances | 13 (Div. I-AA/FCS) | ||
| Playoff record | 6–11 (.353) | ||
| Conference titles | 11 | ||
| Rivalries | Idaho State (rivalry) Montana (rivalry) Eastern Washington Boise State (rivalry; dormant) Washington State (rivalry) | ||
| Consensus All-Americans | 1 | ||
| Colors | Silver and gold[1] | ||
| Fight song | Go, Vandals, Go | ||
| Mascot | Joe Vandal | ||
| Marching band | The Sound of Idaho | ||
| Outfitter | Nike | ||
| Website | GoVandals.com | ||
The Idaho Vandals are the college football team that represents the University of Idaho and plays its home games at the Kibbie Dome, an indoor facility on campus in Moscow, Idaho.[2] Idaho is a member of the Big Sky Conference in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). The Vandals are coached by Jason Eck.
The Idaho football program began 131 years ago in 1893,[3] and through the 2019 season, the Vandals have an all-time record of 460–614–26 (.430).[4] They have played in three bowl games in their history, all victories in the Humanitarian/Famous Idaho Potato Bowl in Boise in 1998, 2009, and 2016.[5] As a Division I-AA (FCS) program for 18 seasons (1978–1995), Idaho made the playoffs eleven times and advanced to the national semifinals twice (1988 and 1993).
On April 28, 2016, university president Chuck Staben announced the football program would return to the Big Sky and FCS in 2018. This followed the Sun Belt Conference's announcement on March 1 that the associate membership of Idaho and New Mexico State for football would end after the 2017 season. Idaho is the first FBS program to voluntarily drop to FCS.[6]
History
The University of Idaho fielded its first football team in 1893.[7] It wasn't until 1917 that the program earned its nickname, the Vandals, after the UI basketball team under alumnus Hec Edmundson played defense with such ferocity that they "vandalized" their opponents and, thus, the nickname of Vandals was adopted for all school sports.[8]
Conference affiliations
Timeline
- Independent (1894–1921)
- Pacific Coast Conference (1922–1958)
- Independent (1959–1964)
- Big Sky Conference (1965–1995)[a]
- Big West Conference (1996–2000)
- Sun Belt Conference (2001–2004)
- Western Athletic Conference (2005–2012)
- FBS Independent (2013)
- Sun Belt Conference (2014–2017)
- Big Sky Conference (2018–present)
Conference history
The Idaho football program began competing 131 years ago in 1893,[3] and was a member of the Pacific Coast Conference from 1922 to 1958. It was then an independent until 1965, when it began league play in the Big Sky Conference. At the time, the other four football programs in the conference were members of the College Division (today's Division II), while Idaho remained a member of the University Division (today's Division I) through 1977, except for an involuntary demotion for 1967 and 1968.[10][11] It maintained its status by playing a majority of games against University Division opponents.[12]
A charter member of the Big Sky in 1963, Idaho did not participate in league play for football until 1965,[13][14][15] the Big Sky's third year, after the conference demanded it. With its upper division status, the Vandals were ineligible for the College Division (D-II) playoffs. Notably, in 1971, the Vandals won their first outright conference title in school history. However, runner-up Boise State received the Big Sky's automatic berth. Because of its hybrid status, Idaho requested to retain its higher allotment of football scholarships (75) than the other conference members (62),[12][16] which was expectedly disallowed.[17] The university received an invitation in 1973 to join the Pacific Coast Athletic Association (later the Big West Conference),[18][19] but the state board of education (concurrent board of regents) rejected it by a vote of 4 to 3.[17][20][21] The Big Sky moved up to the new Division I-AA in 1978 (while Idaho moved down).
Idaho experienced its best years in football from 1985 to 1995, when it made the I-AA national playoffs in ten of 11 seasons with four different head coaches, reaching the semifinals twice. After 18 years in Division I-AA, Idaho returned to Division I-A competition (now called the FBS) in 1996 in the Big West.
Idaho rejoined the Sun Belt Conference in 2014 after a season as an independent in 2013, and eight seasons in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC), which dropped football after the 2012 season. The Vandals were previously in the Sun Belt (also football only) from 2001 through 2004, after the Big West dropped football.
On August 18, 2012, Idaho was cleared to stay in the Football Bowl Subdivision as an independent[22] after the WAC announced it would drop football effective with the end of the 2012 season.[23] Idaho would only remain a football independent for the 2013 season; on March 27 of that year, the Sun Belt Conference announced that Idaho would return as a football-only member starting with the 2014 season.[24] Nearly two years later in 2016, the Sun Belt Conference announced via teleconference that neither the University of Idaho nor New Mexico State University would be renewed after the 2017 football season.[25] In 2018, Idaho resumed full membership in the Big Sky Conference, which participates in the Football Championship Subdivision.[26]
Conference championships
The Vandals have won 11 conference championships in their history, nine in the Big Sky.[27]
| Season | Conference | Head coach | Overall record | Conference record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1927† | Pacific Coast | Charles Erb | 4–1–3 | 2–0–2 |
| 1965† | Big Sky | Steve Musseau | 5–4 | 3–1 |
| 1968† | Big Sky | Y C McNease | 5–5 | 3–1 |
| 1971 | Big Sky | Don Robbins | 8–3 | 4–1 |
| 1982† | Big Sky | Dennis Erickson | 9–4 | 5–2 |
| 1985 | Big Sky | Dennis Erickson | 9–3 | 6–1 |
| 1987 | Big Sky | Keith Gilbertson | 9–3 | 7–1 |
| 1988 | Big Sky | Keith Gilbertson | 11–2 | 7–1 |
| 1989 | Big Sky | John L. Smith | 9–3 | 8–0 |
| 1992† | Big Sky | John L. Smith | 9–3 | 6–1 |
| 1998 | Big West | Chris Tormey | 9–3 | 4–1 |
- † Co-champions
Division I-AA/FCS playoffs
For eighteen seasons (1978–95), Idaho was a member of Division I-AA, and in 2018 returned to compete in what is now called the FCS Subdivision. The Vandals have participated in the I-AA/FCS playoffs twelve times to compile a 7–12 (.368) playoff record. The Vandals are 5–4 at home and 2–8 on the road, with a 4–8 record in the first round (2–4 at home, 2–4 away).
The best advancements were to the national semifinals in 1988 and 1993, but both seasons ended with road losses by large margins to the eventual national champions. The 1982 and 1990 teams advanced to the quarterfinals, but both lost close road games to the eventual national champions.[28]
| Season | Round | Score | Head coach | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | First | @ Idaho | 21 | Montana | 7 | Dennis Erickson (1–2) |
| Quarterfinal | @ E. Kentucky | 38 | Idaho | 30 | ||
| 1985 | First | E. Washington | 42 | @ Idaho | 38 | |
| 1986 | First | @ Nevada-Reno | 27 | Idaho | 7 | Keith Gilbertson (2–3) |
| 1987 | First | Weber St. | 59 | @ Idaho | 30 | |
| 1988 | First | @ Idaho | 38 | Montana | 19 | |
| Quarterfinal | @ Idaho | 38 | Northwestern St. | 30 | ||
| Semifinal | @ Furman | 38 | Idaho | 7 | ||
| 1989 | First | E. Illinois | 38 | @ Idaho | 21 | John L. Smith (3–5) |
| 1990 | First | Idaho | 41 | @ SW Missouri St. | 35 | |
| Quarterfinal | @ Georgia So. | 28 | Idaho | 27 | ||
| 1992 | First | McNeese St. | 23 | @ Idaho | 20 | |
| 1993 | First | Idaho | 34 | @ NE Louisiana | 31 | |
| Quarterfinal | @ Idaho | 21 | Boston U. | 14 | ||
| Semifinal | @ Youngstown St. | 35 | Idaho | 16 | ||
| 1994 | First | @ McNeese St. | 38 | Idaho | 21 | |
| 1995 | First | @ McNeese St. | 33 | Idaho | 3 | Chris Tormey (0–1) |
| 2022 | First | @ Southeastern Louisiana | 45 | Idaho | 42 | Jason Eck (1–2) |
| 2023 | First | Bye | Bye | |||
| Second | @ Idaho | 20 | Southern Illinois | 17 | ||
| Quarterfinal | @ Idaho | 22 | Albany | 30 | ||
- I-AA Playoff field: 4 teams (1978–80), 8 teams (1981), 12 teams (1982–85), 16 teams (1986–2009), 24 teams (2022-present)
Bowl games
In their time in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), Idaho participated in three bowl games, all in Boise. The Vandals had a 3–0 record.[5]
| Year | Coach | Bowl | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Chris Tormey | Humanitarian Bowl | Southern Miss | W 42–35 |
| 2009 | Robb Akey | Humanitarian Bowl | Bowling Green | W 43–42 |
| 2016 | Paul Petrino | Famous Idaho Potato Bowl | Colorado State | W 61–50 |
Head coaches
| Coach | Tenure | Seasons | Wins | Losses | Ties | Pct. | Conf. Championships | Playoffs/Bowls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fred Herbold | 1900–1901 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | .643 | 0 | 0 |
| John G. Griffith (a) | 1902–1906 | 5 | 13 | 9 | 1 | .587 | 0 | 0 |
| John R. Middleton | 1907–1908 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | .429 | 0 | 0 |
| John S. Grogan | 1909 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | .400 | 0 | 0 |
| John G. Griffith (b) | 1910–1914 | 5 | 15 | 13 | 1 | .534 | 0 | 0 |
| Charles Rademacher | 1915 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | .250 | 0 | 0 |
| Wilfred C. Bleamaster | 1916–1917 | 2 | 5 | 8 | 0 | .385 | 0 | 0 |
| Ralph Hutchinson | 1919 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | .400 | 0 | 0 |
| Thomas Kelley | 1920–1921 | 2 | 8 | 5 | 1 | .607 | 0 | 0 |
| Matty Mathews | 1922–1925 | 4 | 16 | 14 | 2 | .531 | 0 | 0 |
| Charles Erb | 1926–1928 | 3 | 10 | 9 | 5 | .521 | 1 (1927) | 0 |
| Leo Calland | 1929–1934 | 6 | 21 | 30 | 0 | .412 | 0 | 0 |
