Northwest Notes Aug. 11, 2026

New Spokane radio station to air Vandal football, men's basketball games

After a few years off the airwaves locally, Idaho football and men's basketball games will once again air on the radio in the Coeur d'Alene/Spokane area. 

Learfield’s Idaho Vandal Sports Properties, in conjunction with Idaho Athletics, has reached an agreement with News Radio KBNW to carry Vandal football and men’s basketball for the 2026-27 and 2027-28 seasons.

The agreement means all regular-season and postseason games for both programs will be broadcast live on 107.1 FM and 1230 AM News Radio KBNW. Idaho head coaches Thomas Ford Jr. (football) and Alex Pribble (men's basketball) will make weekly appearances on Spokane Morning News during their respective seasons, and KBNW will also carry the weekly coaches' shows at Forty Two Bar Kitchen in Moscow.

Vandal games have aired elsewhere in North Idaho, such as by stations in Sandpoint and St. Maries, but not in the Coeur d'Alene area in recent years.

"It is a nice addition to our current group of affiliates across Idaho," Idaho athletic director Terry Gawlik said. "As with the radio world, this broadens our listening audience in areas we have not been able to reach.”

Both stations went on the air May 8.

Inland Northwest Sports Hall of Famer Dennis Patchin begins his eighth season as the “Voice of the Vandals,” providing play-by-play coverage for both programs as well as hosting the weekly coaches shows, which will feature appearances from coaches, players, and staff members representing football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball. Trent Cowan, an all-Sun Belt tight end during his playing days at Idaho, will continue to join Patchin in the booth as a color commentator for all football contests.

Both stations are 100% simulcast.

News Radio KBNW produces 28.5 hours of local news per week, including Spokane’s Morning News (Monday–Friday, 6-9 a.m.) and Spokane’s Afternoon News (Monday–Friday, 4-6 p.m.). Locally developed news content is focused on Spokane, Coeur d’ Alene and communities throughout the Inland Northwest with sports, traffic and weather together on the 7s, and business news. KBNW features local updates at the top and bottom of each hour following ABC Network News or Associated Press Network News. A weekly public affairs program (My Inland Northwest This Week) airs Saturday mornings at 8:05 a.m. Talk programs featured on News Radio KBNW include Armstrong and Getty, Lars Larson’s Northwest program and the Dave Ramsey Show.

“We are excited to partner with Idaho Vandals Sports Properties to bring Idaho football and basketball game broadcasts to the Spokane/Coeur d’ Alene market,” News Radio KBNW Market Manager Roger Nelson said. “The Vandals have a rich history in football and men’s basketball and have long been a leader in the Big Sky Conference. Approximately 16 percent of the University of Idaho’s alumni base reside in the Spokane/Coeur d’Alene metro, and we look forward to developing a strong partnership with the Vandals and their fans.”

For those trying to tune into both stations, the FM signal is temporarily at low power due to the area wildfires, said Keith Shipman, president and CEO of Horizon Broadcasting Group. 

"When at full power you can hear 107.1 all the way to Fourth of July Pass reliably," he said.

Shipman said the AM signal is in the process of being improved.

"We'll be on a new tower soon which will serve the entire metro," he said.

Idaho will open the 2026 football season at Cal Poly on Friday, Aug. 28 (pregame show at 6 p.m. PDT, kickoff at 7).

Pac-12 Olympic sports will be free to watch on YouTube this fall

The Pac-12 announced that home Olympic sports broadcasts throughout the fall season will be available free to watch on the Pac-12 YouTube channel, providing fans with a way to follow women’s soccer, men’s soccer and volleyball competition across Pac-12 member institutions.

Beginning this week, fans will be able to access scheduled home broadcasts at youtube.com/pac12, with coverage spanning competition throughout the season. 

No paid subscription or credit card is required to watch the fall season streams on YouTube. Fans can access broadcasts through the YouTube app on mobile devices, computers and most connected TVs, or cast from a compatible mobile device to a television.

Pac-12 Enterprises will support the conference’s fall broadcasts through centralized production capabilities.

Fans can visit youtube.com/pac12 to find upcoming live events through the channel's Live tab. Fans can also subscribe to the official @pac12 YouTube account to receive notifications and updates, although a YouTube account or subscription is not required to watch public streams.

Additional information regarding future Pac-12 platforms and a director-to-consumer offering will be shared at a later date, upon finalizing product developments.