Idaho vs #11/11 Eastern Washington
Saturday, Sept. 21 | Noon PT
Moscow, Idaho | ASUI Kibbie Dome
WATCH: ROOT SPORTS
LISTEN: Vandal Radio Network | Vandal Xtra | TuneIn App | TuneIn
LIVE STATS: GoVandals.com/FBstats
MEDIA INFORMATION: Idaho Game Notes
 
Idaho football returns home this week to take on No. 11 Eastern Washington in a nonconference matchup Saturday, at the Kibbie Dome. Kickoff is at noon PT, and will be televised on ROOT SPORTS.
 
ABOUT IDAHO: Saturday's game against Eastern Washington will be Idaho's first against an FCS opponent this season. The Vandals (1-2) have played two FBS opponents and one Division II foe. Idaho's upset bid at Wyoming last week fell just short, as the Cowboys escaped with a 21-16 win.
 
ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON: The Eagles enter the week ranked No. 11 in both national polls. Eastern Washington (1-2) is coming off a 49-45 road loss to nationally-ranked Jacksonville State. Quarterback Eric Barriere was one of 25 players named to the Walter Payton Award Watch List prior to the season. Barriere has thrown for 1,027 yards and 11 touchdowns through three games.
All-Time Series: Idaho leads 15-7. Eastern Washington earned a 38-14 win last season in Cheney.
 
TACKLE CANCER: Saturday is Idaho football's annual Tackle Cancer Game. The Vandals have lost three members of their program to the disease in the last five years. Most recently, wide receiver Collin Sather lost his battle with renal cancer in February, less than a month after being diagnosed. In 2016, Jace Malek passed away after a year-long fight with cancer. Malek was diagnosed on the eve of National Signing Day in 2015. Paul Petrino and the Vandals honored his scholarship and made Malek a student assistant coach. Late director of football operations Mark Vaught passed away in 2014, at the age of 31. All three will be honored with a moment of silence prior to the game. Sather's family will serve as honorary captains and Noah Johnson will receive the Mark Vaught Memorial Scholarship Award.
 
ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE: Idaho will honor its highest-achieving student-athletes Saturday, during a halftime ceremony. All 188 Vandals who achieved at least a 3.0 grade-point average during the spring 2019 semester will be recognized on the field. Idaho Athletics posted a department GPA of 3.15 in the spring, the 11th consecutive semester at or above 3.0.
 
VS RANKED TEAMS: Idaho is 29-35 all-time against nationally-ranked FCS/I-AA opponents, including a 26-29 mark when the Vandals are playing at the FCS/I-AA ranks. The last time Idaho knocked off a team ranked 11th or better was 1999, at No. 4 Montana. The last time an FCS Idaho team did so was against No. 6 Montana in 1995.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Idaho outgained and out-possessed Wyoming, but came up just short of outscoring the Cowboys in a 21-16 loss Saturday, in Laramie. The Vandals scored the first 10 points, but a long punt return helped Wyoming take the lead before halftime and an 80-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter kept the Cowboys in front.
 
DOME SWEET DOME: Idaho finished its 2018 home slate with a 4-1 record. It matches the 2016 squad's 4-1 mark for the best home winning percentage since 1996 when the Vandals went 5-0 in the Dome - their last year without a home loss. Idaho football has recorded six unbeaten home seasons since the Kibbie Dome opened in 1975 (1976, 1982, 1988, 1994, 1995 and 1996).