MOSCOW, Idaho – University of Idaho head football coach Jason Eck Tuesday announced the signings of three transfers to the 2022 Vandal football squad. Two players with Power-five experience and one high-level FCS quarterback will make the move to Moscow. 
 
The trio includes former Notre Dame linebacker Paul Moala, former USC edge rusher Juliano Falaniko and former South Dakota State quarterback J'Bore Gibbs.
 
Moala comes to Idaho after playing in 23 games in four seasons for Notre Dame. He tallied 22 total tackles, including a tackle for loss. During the 2019-20 season, he intercepted a pitch against Navy and returned the ball for a touchdown. Prior to Notre Dame, he was a first-team All-State at Penn High School in South Bend, Indiana. He was also named the 2017 InstyStar Mr. Football Defensive Back in 2017 and the Northern Indiana Conference Defensive MVP.
 
Moala will have two years of eligibility remaining.
 
"We are excited to get Paul to Moscow," Eck said. "Watch his tape and you see him showing up and making plays against Georgia. If you see a guy making big tackles against Georgia, you can expect him to make plays in the Big Sky. I also enjoy being around him. He is sharp and I think he'll really be able to help us as a linebacker and as a leader."
 
Falaniko comes to Idaho after playing in 37 games for USC over his career. He has 22 career tackles, including 1.5 TFL and half a sack. He also has one forced fumble. He hails from American Samoa where he was a two-time All-American Samoa First-Team player and the MVP of the All-Poly Camp. He will have one year of eligibility remaining.
 
"Juliano is just a very physical football player," Eck said. "He came highly recommended by Johnny Nansen who was his first coach at USC. I coached with Johnny during my first time at Idaho and I have a lot of respect for his opinion. Juliano has played as a stand-up rush and outside backer for USC and we think he can be a real stout guy who can help us out and be a physical presence for us at defensive end."
 
Gibbs joins Eck, his former offensive coordinator, in the transition from South Dakota State to Idaho. Gibbs played in 10 games for the Jackrabbits, six in 2019 and four in the spring of 2021 before suffering season-ending injuries. He turned heads as a freshman when he led SDSU in a close game against Minnesota. He rushed for a touchdown and passed for another in the 28-21 loss. In six games that season, he passed for 1,058 yards and 10 TDs while rushing for four more before suffering a season-ending injury against North Dakota State. He has two years of eligibility remaining and can potentially appeal for a third due to an injury redshirt.
 
"Coach (Luke) Schleusner and I have a lot of familiarity with him, he was our starting quarterback to start the year in 2019 at South Dakota State," Eck said. "He played very well in the narrow loss to Minnesota in a real tough environment for someone's first college start. He also played very well at Youngstown State and Indiana State but unfortunately tore his ACL against North Dakota State. He tore his other ACL the next year and COVID didn't help his rehab. He's a guy who's battled adversity in his football career and just growing up in inner-city Chicago so he knows how to handle a tough situation. He is really excited to have a fresh start and can come in and compete with Gevani (McCoy) and C.J. (Jordan) for the starting quarterback position."
 
Vandal football has begun summer conditioning drills looking forward to the start of fall camp during the first week of August. The Vandals open the season on Sept. 3 against Washington State with a home opener on Sept. 17 against Drake.