THE FRONT ROW with MARK NELKE: There's optimism with Vandal football, as should be expected

Spring football games aren’t the best way to judge how good a team will be in the fall.  

Nowadays, teams don’t want to show much to teams they will be facing in the fall. And while you’d like the key players to remain sharp, it’s not worth risking them to injury. And if they’re already banged up, no need to make it worse. 

In recent years at Idaho spring games, a few kids who shined on that Friday night in late April weren’t even on the roster in the fall. 

So you have to judge a team’s progress by the entirety of its spring practices — and take the team's word for it. 

“I think we got what we wanted accomplished,” second-year Idaho head coach Thomas Ford Jr. said. “Brand new schemes, offense, defense and special teams. We did a good job of installing what we wanted to get done.” 

(Of course, most coaches are going to say that. When was the last time you heard a coach say, "Boy, we stunk this spring. We might not win a game this fall. I need some more help from the transfer portal.") 

AFTER THREE straight appearances in the FCS playoffs, the Idaho Vandals are coming off a 4-8 season resulting partially from injuries and partially from inexperience. 

Jason Eck left after those three seasons as Vandal coach to take the New Mexico job. Several key players went with him, and several other key players left for other places.

Ford was part of two of those Idaho playoff teams before joining the staff at Oregon State in 2024, so he knows what Idaho can do. He is banking on last year’s inexperienced players to become this year’s experienced players, based on all the reps they got last year. 

He brought in new coordinators on offense (Ian Shoemaker), defense (Lee Stalker) and special teams (Joe Begnal).  

Last year Idaho’s offensive line, coached by former Lake City Timberwolf Loren Endsley, was a strength. 

While the Vandals lost their top lineman from last year, Nate Azzopardi, who is in rookie camp with the Seahawks, most of the rest of the bunch returns.  

And while Idaho lost most of its top running backs, Ford brought in Damonte Bias from El Camino College, who broke a 40-plus yard run on the first play of the spring game. 

“Davonte Bias is a really great player, he struggled early; junior college football is a little bit different,” Ford said. “It took him a little while to adjust. But once that kid found his groove, you could see the reason we brought him here, he’s explosive, and he’s going to be a weapon for us for sure.” 

So too, Ford hopes, is Ferrari Miller, from Diablo Valley College, who missed the spring game after suffering an ankle injury the week before, as well as freshman Kenny Golston. 

And include two returnees in Hayden Kincheloe, who scored a touchdown in the spring game, and Carlos Matheney. 

“Run game should be strong again,” Ford said. “We feel good about our run game; we should be able to run in between the tackles, and Damonte should be able to do a little bit more down the field too.” 

Two of Idaho’s top returning receivers, Ryan Jezioro and Tony Harste, were slowed by hamstring injuries in the spring, though Harste caught a TD pass in the spring game. 

While they were limited, a couple other returnees got more reps, including Marquawn McCraney and Nolan McWilliams.  

The Vandals are solid at quarterback with the return of a healthy Joshua Wood — then added Israel Carter of Corona, Calif., to add depth and competition at the position.

Last year, after the spring game, Ford brought in Wood and eventually named him the starter.

In any event ... 

"I think we’re going to have a lot more efficient passing game," Ford said.

DEFENSIVELY, FORD said it looks as if the Vandals will be able to get after the passer more this year, mentioning the Augustus twins, Jamarion (a transfer from Northern Iowa) and Javen (a transfer from Coastal Carolina), as well as Oregon State transfer Kai Richardson. 

“And our secondary was a lot more active this spring,” Ford said. 

So we’ll see how all this translates in the fall. 

As for the spring ... 

“By the end, our players had a much better understanding of the ‘Why?’” Ford said.  

“Very excited about this group, and they did a heckuva job getting better this spring.”

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 208-664-8176, Ext. 1205, or via email at [email protected]. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @CdAPressSports. 

    MARK NELKE/Press Idaho running back Damonte Bias (7), a transfer from El Camino College, runs in the first half of the spring game last Friday at the Kibbie Dome.
  

    MARK NELKE/Press Idaho right tackle Alex Green (54), a redshirt junior from Lake City High, during the Vandals' spring game last Friday at the Kibbie Dome.