# 2022 Idaho Vandals football team

The 2022 Idaho Vandals football team represented the University of Idaho in the Big Sky Conference during the 2022 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by first-year head coach Jason Eck, the Vandals were 7–4 in the regular season (6–2 in Big Sky, third) and played their home games on campus at the Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho. It was the program's first winning season in six years.
Idaho defeated rival Montana for the first time since 1999 and made their twelfth appearance in the FCS playoffs, the first since 1995 (the program was in FBS from 1996 through 2017).
Hired in December 2021, Eck was previously the offensive coordinator at South Dakota State; earlier, he was an assistant coach at Idaho for three seasons (2004–06).

## Preseason
### Polls

During the virtual Big Sky Kickoff on July 25, the Vandals were predicted to finish eighth by the coaches, and ninth by the media.
Coaches poll :
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | Montana | 111 (3) |
| 2 | Sacramento State | 110 (4) |
| 3 | Montana State | 109 (5) |
| 4 | Weber State | 84 |
| 5 | UC Davis | 82 |
| 6 | Eastern Washington | 76 |
| 7 | Northern Arizona | 62 |
| 8 | Idaho | 45 |
| 9 | Portland State | 42 |
| 10 | Cal Poly | 33 |
| T-11 | Idaho State | 19 |
| T-11 | Northern Colorado | 19 |
Media poll :
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | Montana | 356 (14) |
| 2 | Montana State | 352 (13) |
| 3 | Sacramento State | 335 (4) |
| 4 | Weber State | 261 |
| 5 | UC Davis | 255 (1) |
| 6 | Eastern Washington | 236 |
| 7 | Northern Arizona | 191 |
| 8 | Portland State | 146 |
| 9 | Idaho | 142 |
| 10 | Cal Poly | 85 |
| 11 | Northern Colorado | 71 |
| 12 | Idaho State | 66 |

### Preseason All–Big Sky team

The Vandals had one player selected to the preseason all-Big Sky team.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 3 | 6:30 p.m. | at Washington State* | | Martin StadiumPullman, WA (Battle of the Palouse) | P12N | L 17–24 | 25,233 |
| September 10 | 5:00 p.m. | at Indiana* | | Memorial StadiumBloomington, IN | BTN | L 22–35 | 46,785 |
| September 17 | 12:00 p.m. | Drake* | | Kibbie DomeMoscow, ID | ESPN+ | W 42–24 | 6,852 |
| September 24 | 1:00 p.m. | at Northern Arizona | | Walkup SkydomeFlagstaff, AZ | ESPN+ | W 27–10 | 7,022 |
| October 1 | 6:00 p.m. | Northern Colorado | | Kibbie DomeMoscow, ID | ESPN+/SWX | W 55–35 | 10,759 |
| October 15 | 12:00 p.m. | at No. 3 Montana | | Washington–Grizzly StadiumMissoula, MT (Little Brown Stein) | ESPN+ | W 30–23 | 26,314 |
| October 22 | 12:00 p.m. | Portland State | No. 17 | Kibbie DomeMoscow, ID | ESPN+/SWX | W 56–21 | 7,357 |
| October 29 | 6:00 p.m. | at No. 2 Sacramento State | No. 14 | Hornet StadiumSacramento, CA | ESPN+ | L 28–31 | 17,241 |
| November 5 | 12:00 p.m. | Eastern Washington | No. 15 | Kibbie DomeMoscow, ID | ESPN+/SWX | W 48–16 | 11,811 |
| November 12 | 4:00 p.m. | UC Davis | No. 15 | Kibbie DomeMoscow, ID | ESPN+/SWX | L 26–44 | 7,681 |
| November 19 | 12:00 p.m. | at Idaho State | No. T–21 | Holt ArenaPocatello, ID (rivalry) | ESPN+ | W 38–7 | 7,706 |
| November 26 | 4:00 p.m. | at No. 17 Southeastern Louisiana* | No. 18 | Strawberry StadiumHammond, LA (FCS First Round) | ESPN+ | L 42–45 | 3,174 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from STATS Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Pacific time ||||||||

## Game summaries
### at Washington State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vandals | 10 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
| Cougars | 0 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 24 |
at Martin Stadium • Pullman, WA
* Date: September 3, 2022
* Game time: 8:00 p.m. PDT
* Game weather: 70 °F (21 °C) Sunny
* Game attendance: 25,233
* Referee: Steven Strimling
* TV announcers (P12N): J. B. Long (play-by-play), Ryan Leaf (analyst)
Game information :
First Quarter
IDHO – Marcus Harris 45 Yd Fumble Return (Logan Prescott Kick), 11:11. Drive:1 play, 3 yards, 0:10.
IDHO – Ricardo Chavez 27 Yd Field Goal 3:28. Drive: 11 plays, 69 yards, 6:24.
Second Quarter
WSU – Renard Bell 3 Yd pass from Cameron Ward (Dean Janikowski Kick), 3:13. Drive: 6 plays, 19 yards, 1:28.
WSU – Dean Janikowski 26-yard field goal, 0:06. Drive: 9 plays, 80 yards, 3:06.
Third Quarter
WSU - De'Zhaun Stribling 13 Yd pass from Cameron Ward (Dean Janikowski Kick), 8:17. Drive: 8 plays, 58 yards, 2:29.
Fourth Quarter
WSU - Jaylen Jenkins 8 Yd pass from Cameron Ward (Dean Janikowski Kick), 10:33. Drive: 5 plays, 39 yards, 1:07.
IDHO - Jordan Dwyer 23 Yd pass from Gevani McCoy (Ricardo Chavez Kick), 6:05. Drive:8 plays, 75 yards, 4:28.
Top passers
IDHO – Gevani McCoy – 21/32, 212 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT
WSU – Cam Ward – 26/41, 228 yards, 3 TD
Top rushers
IDHO – Anthony Woods – 9 rushes, 50 yards
WSU – Nakia Watson – 18 rushes, 117 yards
Top receivers
IDHO – Jermaine Jackson – 6 receptions, 113 yards
WSU – Donovan Ollie – 7 receptions, 67 yards :

### at Indiana

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vandals | 0 | 10 | 0 | 12 | 22 |
| Hoosiers | 0 | 0 | 23 | 12 | 35 |
at Memorial Stadium • Bloomington, IN
* Date: September 10, 2022
* Game time: 8:00 p.m. EDT
* Game attendance: 46,785
* TV: BTN

### vs Drake

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bulldogs | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| Vandals | 7 | 13 | 14 | 8 | 42 |
at Kibbie Dome • Moscow, ID
* Date: September 17, 2022
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. PST
* Game attendance: 6,852
* TV: ESPN+

### at Northern Arizona

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vandals | 7 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 27 |
| Lumberjacks | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
at Walkup Skydome • Flagstaff, AZ
* Date: September 24, 2022
* Game time: 1:00 p.m. PST
* Game attendance: 7,022
* TV: ESPN+

### vs Northern Colorado

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bears | 6 | 14 | 8 | 7 | 35 |
| Vandals | 10 | 14 | 21 | 10 | 55 |
at Kibbie Dome • Moscow, ID
* Date: October 1, 2022
* Game time: 6:00 p.m. PST
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 10,759
* Referee: Steve Hanni
* TV: ESPN+
Game information :
First Quarter
IDHO – Jermaine Jackson 26-yard pass from Gevani McCoy (Ricardo Chavez kick), 13:25. Drive: 4 play, 75 yards, 1:35.
NCU – David Afari 14-yard run, 9:04. Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 4:21.
IDHO – Ricardo Chavez 21-yard field goal, 0:40. Drive: 15 plays, 67 yards, 8:18.
Second Quarter
NCU – Ty Arrington 31-yard pass from Dylan McCaffrey (Devin Bale kick), 7:19. Drive: 3 plays, 71 yards, 1:03.
IDHO – Elisha Cummings 27-yard run (Ricardo Chavez kick), 4:12. Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 3:07.
NCU - Elijah Dotson 2-yard run (Devin Bale kick), 1:21. Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 2:51.
IDHO - Elisha Cummings 25-yard run (Ricardo Chavez kick), 0:35. Drive: 5 plays, 75 yards, 0:46.
Third Quarter
IDHO – Anthony Woods 15-yard run (Ricardo Chavez kick), 10:35. Drive: 6 plays, 59 yards, 2:50.
NCU – Elijah Dotson 8-yard pass from Dylan McCaffrey (Ty Arrington pass), 6:43. Drive: 11 plays, 75 yards, 3:52.
IDHO - Hayden Hatten 35-yard pass from Gevani McCoy (Ricardo Chavez kick), 5:08. Drive: 4 plays, 75 yards, 1:35.
IDHO - Hayden Hatten 9-yard pass from Gevani McCoy (Ricardo Chavez kick), 0:36. Drive: 7 plays, 34 yards, 3:13.
Fourth Quarter
IDHO - Elisha Cummings 12-yard pass from Gevani McCoy (Ricardo Chavez kick), 7:49. Drive: 12 plays, 88 yards, 6:22.
IDHO - Richard Chavez 39-yard field goal, 5:02. Drive: 4 plays, 5 yards, 2:14.
NCU – Ty Arrington 11-yard pass from Jacob Sirmon (Devin Bale kick), 0:51. Drive: 9 plays, 71 yards, 4:03.
Top passers
NCU – Dylan McCaffrey – 17/26, 264 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
IDHO – Gevani McCoy – 22/27, 298 yards, 4 TD
Top rushers
NCU – Elijah Dotson – 17 carries, 77 yards, TD
IDHO – Anthony Woods – 17 carries, 96 yards, TD
Top receivers
NCU – Ty Arrington – 4 receptions, 56 yards, 2 TD
IDHO – Hayden Hatten – 8 receptions, 131 yards, 2 TD :

### at No. 3 Montana

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vandals | 3 | 9 | 10 | 8 | 30 |
| No. 3 Grizzlies | 6 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 23 |
at Washington–Grizzly Stadium • Missoula, MT
* Date: October 15, 2022
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. PST
* Game attendance: 26,314
* TV: ESPN+

### vs Portland State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vikings | 14 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| No. 17 Vandals | 14 | 7 | 14 | 21 | 56 |
at Kibbie Dome • Moscow, ID
* Date: October 22, 2022
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. PST
* Game attendance: 7,357
* TV: ESPN+/SWX

### at No. 2 Sacramento State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 14 Vandals | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 28 |
| No. 2 Hornets | 7 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 31 |
at Hornet Stadium • Sacramento, CA
* Date: October 29, 2022
* Game time: 6:00 p.m. PST
* Game attendance: 17,241
* TV: ESPN+

### vs Eastern Washington

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 3 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 16 |
| No. 15 Vandals | 7 | 28 | 3 | 10 | 48 |
at Kibbie Dome • Moscow, ID
* Date: November 5, 2022
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. PST
* Game attendance: 11,811
* TV: ESPN+/SWX

### vs UC Davis

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Aggies | 14 | 17 | 3 | 10 | 44 |
| No. 15 Vandals | 7 | 0 | 12 | 7 | 26 |
at Kibbie Dome • Moscow, ID
* Date: November 12, 2022
* Game time: 4:00 p.m. PST
* Game attendance: 7,681
* TV: ESPN+/SWX

### at Idaho State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 21T Vandals | 7 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 38 |
| Bengals | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
at Holt Arena • Pocatello, ID
* Date: November 19, 2022
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. PST
* Game attendance: 7,706
* TV: ESPN+

## FCS Playoffs
### at No. 17 Southeastern Louisiana – first round

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 18 Vandals | 7 | 14 | 0 | 21 | 42 |
| No. 17 Lions | 7 | 10 | 7 | 21 | 45 |
at Strawberry Stadium • Hammond, LA
* Date: November 26
* Game time: 6:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Cloudy
* Game attendance: 3,174
* Referee: Rick Wayne
* TV: ESPN+