So we overestimated Idaho and Boise State a little bit, and underestimated Washington State and Eastern Washington a tad bit.

Here's a look at how we thought those four teams might fare this year, and how they actually did - or are.

Idaho: Filled with the optimism of August, I picked the Vandals to finish 4-8. Instead, Idaho finished 1-11 after a 24-16 loss to New Mexico State on Saturday.

The Vandals' lone win came at home over a Temple team which finished 2-10. New Mexico State had just one win before beating Idaho on Saturday - not exactly the momentum the Vandals were hoping to build heading into the offseason.

The Vandals' schedule turned out to be tougher than it looked on paper at the beginning of the season - eight teams are bowl eligible, and two of them could wind up in BCS games.

Still, there were some other winnable games, but Idaho lost 40-6 to North Texas, 48-24 to Arkansas State and got lit up by Old Dominion in a 59-38 loss.

Who knew Florida State was going to return to national prominence this season, after about a year of mediocrity - at least by the Seminoles' standards?

Still, giving up 80 at FSU wasn't nearly as embarrassing as losing 66-0 at North Carolina, then 70-28 at Louisiana Tech last year - the final game of former coach Robb Akey's Vandal career.

So, with that as a barometer, the Vandals did make some progress this year. Fifteen freshmen played this year, and if they get a little better next year, and Petrino's second class of recruits are able to contribute as well, Idaho should at least be competitive in their return to the Sun Belt Conference.

Boise State: The Broncos were 7-4 heading into Saturday night's regular season finale against 3-8 New Mexico - but it doesn't matter, win or lose, BSU fell short of the 11-1 I predicted.

This after they bolted the Mountain West because they thought joining the Big East would give them a better shot at a BCS game. They were smart enough to get out of the Big East before it was too late when that league disintegrated, wrangled some extra TV money out of the Mountain West this year - but weren't able to even earn a berth in the conference's title game.

Losing in the season opener at Washington wasn't a total surprise, but getting pasted 38-6 was a bit telling.

Boise State's second loss was a one-pointer on the road vs. Fresno State, this year's Mountain West Flavor of the Month. The Broncos were dominated by BYU, then lost last week at San Diego State.

Life without Kellen Moore - as well as a dominating defense - hasn't been all that good in Boise.

Washington State: I picked the Cougars to improve to 5-7 this year - two more wins than last year - but fall just short of a bowl.

After Friday's hard-fought loss to the Huskies in the Apple Cup, WSU is 6-6 - bowl eligible, but not guaranteed a bowl bid.

It would be so WSU to be bowl eligible and not go to a bowl. Still, this is the kind of season we thought they'd have last year, and bowl bid or not, the Cougs are on the path back to being relevant in Mike Leach's second year as coach.

Eastern Washington: The Eagles head into the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs next week at 10-2 - I had 'em at 9-3. I'm sure a lot of people had them upsetting Oregon State in Corvallis in the season opener.

EWU went undefeated in the Big Sky Conference, the big wins coming at Montana and last week at home vs. Portland State - that back-and-forth thriller which saw the visiting Vikings almost win the game, only to see the Eagles keep coming back.

Which shows that, once again, as long as Vernon Adams is quarterbacking Eastern, the Eagles will never be out of any game. That's why a return trip to the championship game - where EWU won in 2010, isn't out of the question.

They might have to go through Sam Houston State to get there, and that's a team that beat them last year in the semifinals, as well as this year in the regular season.

But it might be time for that Eagle magic from three seasons ago to return.

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via email at mnelke@cdapress.com. Follow him on Twitter at CdAPressSports.