THE FRONT ROW WITH MARK NELKE: April 27, 2014

OK, so Idaho being banned from playing in a bowl game this year isn't quite like a similar banishment for a USC, which usually goes to a bowl game.

It's more like a Washington State, which rarely goes.

It's more like thinking you had a slim chance to date Kate Upton this year, but now you know you'll have no chance.

The bigger kick in the gut that Idaho received Saturday for its low APR score was the four hours of practice time it will lose each week. Most of that time, Vandal coach Paul Petrino said, would be lopped off from "Get Better Sundays," in which younger players and those redshirting got extensive playing time in Sunday night scrimmages.

Which is too bad, because any amount of playing time, especially for a young team with a new coach, is a good thing.

After watching Idaho's final spring football scrimmage on Friday night, one thing's for sure - the Vandals are better this year, in Petrino's second season. More talent. More depth. More playmakers.

Whether that would have been enough to go from 1-11, which they were last year, to six wins and eligibility for a bowl game this year, well, we'll never know.

Petrino and Idaho athletic director Rob Spear both said the Vandals, under Petrino, are making progress in the classroom, and will hopefully be out of APR purgatory next year.

If Idaho can overcome the initial jolt of knowing there is no carrot of a bowl game dangling at the end of the season, the Vandals have a chance to make similar progress on the field.

OTHER VANDAL thoughts, before the APR news went down:

* All for one: At the beginning of spring practice, Petrino said there was no such thing as "his guys," meaning players recruited by the previous coach, and "my guys," meaning those recruited by his staff.

After spring practice, the players seemed to echo that.

"He's never really approached it as, he's trying to get rid of us and he wants to just be nice to his recruits," senior defensive end Quinton Bradley said. "That stigma, if it was there, is gone."

"Everybody's on the same page," sophomore running back (and sometimes wide receiver) Richard Montgomery said.

"We don't bond like other teams do," sophomore wide receiver Deon Watson said. "We usually bond over, you know, throwing up ... that's a different way of bonding."

"I think we're a unit right now," Petrino said. "We've worked hard all offseason to come together, and I feel like we're real close right now. And we've got all summer to get even closer."

* Two for one: Petrino said he likely won't name a starting quarterback until fall camp. The contestants - sophomore Chad Chalich, who started the first seven games last season before suffering a shoulder injury, and redshirt freshman Matt Linehan - received fairly equal reps during the spring. Linehan threw a few more passes in the four scrimmages, as Chalich is still recovering from his shoulder injury.

On Friday, both threw two touchdown passes, though Chalich, the former Coeur d'Alene High standout, had a perfectly thrown deep ball dropped that would have been six points. Chalich might have bit more accurate; Linehan had a few errant throws, mostly high ones. At 6-3, Linehan is three inches taller than Chalich.

Other than that, it looks like Petrino couldn't go wrong with either one. And besides, when you look at last season, when Idaho lost its top two quarterbacks during the season with shoulder injuries, he needs both of them to be ready anyway.

"In this day and age of football, with some of the pass rushers out there, if you can have two quarterbacks that are really good, that's a benefit," Petrino said.

Last year, Idaho went into spring ball with six quarterbacks on the roster - including Linehan, who was ticketed to redshirt. This year, the only other QB other than Chalich and Linehan is Jake Luton, a 6-5 senior at Marysville-Pilchuck High in Marysville, Wash., who is expected to redshirt this fall. Gunnar Amos, from Coeur d'Alene High, is expected to grayshirt this fall, and join the team in January 2015.

Joshua McCain, last year's No. 2 quarterback, moved to wide receiver this spring, where he has thrived despite limited experience. More of a runner than a thrower, he could take some snaps in a pinch, and may do so anyway as part of a change of pace.

* More playmakers: Montgomery was recruited as a running back, but is seeing more and more time at wide receiver. There, he joins a deep group that includes Dezmon Epps, McCain and promising sophomore Jacob Sannon.

"We're not solely dependent on one person. The depth is crazy," Watson said. "It's great when you have depth, not only fatigue wise, but you know you can rely on each other."

Petrino stressed the importance of getting the ball to the speedy Montgomery, wherever he lines up.

"I want to work on getting north and south, instead of just running sideline to sideline," said the 5-8, 180-pound Montgomery. "And I want to put on a little more weight, so I can take on those tacklers, and keep going."

Idaho also has playmakers on the defensive line, with Bradley, QuayShawne Buckley, Maxx Forde and others. And the Vandals are deep at linebacker.

Back to receiver. That depth there also includes Watson, who started as a redshirt freshman last year. In four scrimmages, he caught 38 passes (second on the team) for 679 yards and four touchdowns. He would have had TD No. 5 on Friday night on a 70-yard play, but he was caught from behind and tackled at the 1 by junior cornerback Tyler Douglas, a walk-on from Priest River High.

Still, Watson continues to make strides after he, like Chalich, redshirted in Moscow two seasons ago.

"I feel like I have more confidence in the way I play," Watson said. "I don't know if you noticed, but I'm not the fastest guy out there, but I do like to take pride in being a physical receiver, one that's going to get the ball when his name is called."

* Ready to turn it around: Idaho is just 4-32 over the last three seasons, and the current players are tired of it. Petrino said the future looks bright.

"Quarterback. O-line. D-line. If you want to win championships, that's where it all starts," he said. "That's the biggest thing that excites me this year - we're so much faster. We want to make big plays on both sides of the ball."

"It's night and day (from last year)," said Chalich, who is used to winning, having led the Vikings to a pair of state 5A titles. "There's so much more energy. Guys are fired up; I think we're all ready to start winning. It's been a while. We're ready to turn it around and start winning, and get this thing going."

Kate Upton or no Kate Upton, as it were.

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