MOSCOW, Idaho - The Idaho Vandals travel to Bloomington Indiana to face their second power five opponent in as many weeks. Idaho is 0-1 while Indiana is 1-0 on the year. It is the second meeting of the two teams after playing a year ago , a game Indiana won 56-14.

ABOUT IDAHO: The Vandals fell 24-17 in a hard-fought Battle of the Palouse, pushing Washington State to the final whistle before the Cougars sealed the game with an interception at the goal line in the final second. The energy is clearly different under first-year head coach Jason Eck and an entirely new Vandal staff. It was the first one-score game against a power-five team since 2011. Redshirt freshman Gevani McCoy played well in his just the second start of his career going 21-32 for 212 yard with a TD against a very good WSU defense. 

ABOUT INDIANA: Indiana is 1-0 after a 23-20 win in a Big Ten game against Illinois in its season opener. Tom Allen leads the Hoosiers in his seventh season and he is 12-1 in non-conference games. Connor Bazelak had a solid performance at QB going 28-52 for 330 yards, a touchdown and an interception.  Like Idaho, Indiana also forced three fumbles, but also added an interception on defense.
  1. QB QUESTION ANSWERED: After a four-wide QB battle throughout the fall, Gevani McCoy earned the starting spot in the season opener against Washington State. The redshirt freshman played well against a very good WSU defense, throwing 21-32 for 212 yard with a TD. J'Bore Gibbs and C.J. Jordan are listed as backups on the week two depth chart. It was the second start ever for McCoy after starting one game against Montana last season and played in two other games Gibbs, a transfer from South Dakota State, played two seasons under head coach Jason Eck and offensive coordinator Luke Schleusner at SDSU. He played in 10 games and has passed for 1,071 yards and 10 touchdowns while running for four more. Jordan has played in five total games with 381 yards passing and a pair of TDs. True freshman Jack Layne also saw time with the first team offense this fall. 

2. WELCOME FRESHMEN: True freshmen running back Anthony Woods and wide receiver Jordan Dwyer made their collegiate debuts to impressive results. Woods rushed nine times for 50 yards to lead all Idaho rushers. Dwyer caught three passes for 39 yards, including a 23-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter. 

3. PRESEASONS HONORS: Preseason honors were slim for the Vandals. Senior linebacker Fa'Avae Fa'Avae was the lone Vandal to earn preseason All-Big Sky honors. The senior tallied 76 total tackles a season ago, including four TFLS and 1.5 sacks. He has 123 total tackles in his two seasons at Idaho. 

4. IMPACT TRANSFERS: Five new transfers are listed on the Vandal defensive two-deep, two transfers are listed on the offensive list and one special teams player a and made an immediate. Paul Moala, a linebacker transfer from Notre Dame  forced a fumble on the openine drive and Juliano Falaniko, a defensive end transfer from USC had four tackles and a sack. Mathias Bertram a safety from New Mexico had nine total tackles. Former NAIA All-American Jason Hahlbeck, a transfer from Morningside College, is expected to start at right tackle after missing the season opener with an injury.  Junior college transfer Ricardo Chavez made an impact on special teams with his punting and a 28-yard made field goal.

5. RECEIVERS: The Vandals have depth in the wide receiver corps. Terez Traynor tallied 50 receptions last year for 737 yards and three touchdowns, including three games with over 100 yards receiving. Hayden Hatten played in three games a season ago before injury and had 215 yards and three touchdowns. He scored two against Indiana. He has over 1000 yards for his career. Jermaine Jackson is an emotional and vocal leader for the Idaho receivers. He played limited action in 2021 because of injury but looks to make an impact this season. 

6. VETERAN RUNNING BACKS ROOM: Four Vandal running backs enter the season with considereable experience. Senior Roshaun Johnson has 1,011 career yards and 15 career touchdowns. He also holds the Idaho single-game touchdown record after scoring six times against Southern Utah last season.  Aundre Carter has 849 career yards and 14 touchdowns. Nick Romano has 699 career yards and three touchdowns. Eli Cummings has 373 yards and a touchdown.

7. NEW BUT VETERAN STAFF: With the coaching staff change, head coach Jason Eck changed the entire staff. Among the 10 assistant coaches, seven have served as a coordinator in a college football setting and running backs coach Thomas Ford is a former DII head coach. Stanley Franks Jr. and Matt Linehan both had outstanding careers as players at the University of Idaho.