Idaho football coach Paul Petrino said there was a time when it appeared he might get to coach Derek Carr, Fresno State's standout senior quarterback.

But today, he'll be coaching against him when Carr and the Bulldogs, ranked No. 23 by The Associated Press and No. 21 by USA Today, travel to Moscow to play the Vandals at the Kibbie Dome.

"At one point they thought he was going to go to Illinois, and I would have coached him," said Petrino, who was offensive coordinator at Illinois in 2010 and '11.

"He's probably as good as any quarterback that is out there in college football this year. He can make all the throws, very accurate, big arm, fast. He's got a couple of receivers that are good receivers. Offensively, it kind of all comes down to that quarterback and their passing game."

Carr has thrown for 1,445 yards and 14 touchdowns with three interceptions in four games this season, and is completing 69.2 percent of his passes.

Carr, younger brother of former Fresno State and NFL quarterback David Carr, crossed one item off his bucket list earlier this season when he finally guided Fresno State to a victory over Boise State, 41-40 on Sept. 20.

Petrino said he hadn't seen enough of David to compare the two, but said in general, "most little brothers are better than their big brothers, anyway."

Notes: Fresno State is the first ranked team to come to Moscow since fourth-ranked Boise State came to the Kibbie Dome and plastered the Vandals 52-14 on Nov. 12, 2010. ... Petrino said the Bulldogs' defense likes to mix things up, trying to confuse the offensive line and the quarterback "It'll be a challenging game, but we're at home, and we've played very well at home," he said. ... Davante Adams is Fresno State's leading receiver, with 36 catches for 311 yards and four touchdowns. The Bulldogs average 9.9 yards per completion. By comparison, Idaho averages 11.5. ... Today's game is being televised, but only back to the Fresno State market by The Bulldog Sports Network.