MOSCOW, IDAHO - The anticipation is palpable for the first playoff game in the P1FCU Kibbie Dome for 30 years. The fourth-seeded Vandals host a talented Southern Illinois team with a stingy defense and solid passing attack. Idaho received a bye to go along with its seed while SIU hosted Southland champion Nicholls and dismantled the Colonels, shutting them out and holding them to just 252 total yards while picking up two interceptions and scoring 35 points. The Salukis and the Vandals are two of the best pass defenses in the country. The is the lone second round game to be picked up for linear TV and will be broadcast on ESPN2.

ABOUT IDAHO: Idaho dominated Idaho State, running up a 56-0 lead at halftime before calling off the dogs in the second half en route to the 63-21 win. In relief for the injured Gevani McCoy, Jack Layne tied the Idaho record with six touchdown passes and the Vandals grabbed four interceptions. McCoy is expected to return Saturday and he is one of the most efficient passers in the FCS and is among the leaders in the Big Sky for passing yards and touchdowns. Hayden Hatten is among the leaders in the FCS in receiving yards and has scored a touchdown in each of the last five games. Anthony Woods is sixth in the nation in rushing TDs and leads the Big Sky in a bevy of categories. The Vandal defense is a solid unit, among the leaders in FCS in passing yards allowed and total defense. Tre Thomas and Freshman Xe'Ree Alexander lead Idaho with 60 total tackles. Keyshawn James-Newby has a team-high five sacks, but missed multiple games with an injury. 

ABOUT SOUTHERN ILLINOIS: Southern Illinois is back in the playoffs for the third time in four years under head coach Nick Hill. The Salukis (Suh-lew-keys) are 8-4 and, along with the Vandals, are one of four teams to earn a win over and FBS foe this season (14-11 over Northern Illinois). SIU went 3-0 in non-conference play, but 4-4 in MVFC play, winning games against Missouri State, Murray State, Western Illinois and Indiana State, all teams that failed to advance to the postseason. Their only win over a FCS playoff team before last week was a non-conference win over United Athletic Conference Champion Austin Peay. Quarterback Nic Baker has passed for 2,543 yards, 17 touchdowns with just six interceptions this season. Izaiah Hartrup is his primary target with 48 catches for 689 yards and six touchdowns this season. Ro Elliott has 470 rushing yards to lead the ground attack, including 111 against Nichols. PJ Jules leads SIU with 104 total tackles and 12.5 tackles for loss. He was the only Saluki to earn MVFC First-Team Honors.
1. ECK'S VANDALS AGAINST RANKED TEAMS: Against Montana State, Idaho picked up its third win over a top-5 team in head Coach Jason Eck's  22-game tenure as a head coach. The Vandals controlled the time of possession, limiting Montana State to just 27 offensive plays and won all three phases of the game to pick up the 24-21 win over then second-ranked Montana State Saturday. Idaho previously won games over No. 3 Montana last season and No. 4 Sacramento State  earlier this year. Idaho is 3-1 against top-5 teams in 2022 and 2023, with his only loss coming in a last-second loss to #2 Sacramento State a season ago. Against ranked teams, Idaho is 4-2 in the same span. Prior to Eck's arrival, Idaho was 2-10 against ranked opponents and 0-4 in games against top-5 foes since returning to the FCS. 

2. RECORD SETTING FORM: Hayden Hatten's two fourth-quarter touchdowns against Montana gave the redshirt junior the Idaho Career Receiving Touchdown Record with 28. He broke Jerry Hendren's mark of 27 which was set in 1969. Hatten now holds the single-game (four), single-season (16) and the career receiving touchdown (33) records. He is also now fifth in the career total touchdown top 10 and third on the career receiving yards list. He surpassed the 3,000-yard mark for his career against Weber State.  Idaho running back Anthony Woods has 985 yards rushing on the season and is 15 yards from becoming the 14th Vandal ever to go over 1,000 yards in a season. With 14 touchdowns this season, he is already tied for seventh all-time in the single-season TD record book. 

3. IMPACT TRANSFERS: Eleven transfers joined the Idaho roster since the conclusion of last season. Eight of the 11 transfers are listed on the Vandal two-deep and three players, edge rusher Tylen Coleman, linebacker Tre Thomas and edge rusher Keyshawn James-Newby are listed as starters for the Vandals. Jahkari Larmond has made his presence felt with disruptive play in the middle of the Vandal defense. Thomas brings three-years of starting experience from South Dakota and James-Newby racked up nine sacks and 14.5 tackles, leading the NAIA's Frontier Conference while at Montana Tech. Turon Ivy Jr. started game two and took the opening pass 75 yards for a touchdown.  

4. STURDY SCHEDULE: Massey Ratings has Idaho's current schedule listed as the 10th-toughest schedule in all of the FCS. The Vandals have played seven road games so far this season, including two against FBS teams, going 1-1 in those games. Three of Idaho's regular-season home games were played against top 10 opponents in Montana State, Montana and Sacramento State and played a ranked Eastern Washington team on the road. 

5. MORE BEEF IN THE TRENCHES: The biggest difference year-to-year on the offensive line and defensive line for the Vandals may be improved strength and weight. Of the nine returners on the Vandal two-deep for the offensive line, the weight gain is over 11 pounds on average per player. Last year, not a single player who started a game at defensive tackle weighed over 270. This season, not a single player on the defensive line two-deep weighs less than 275. 

6. OUTGAINING OPPONENTS: Idaho is 8-3 on the year, but has outgained every opponent they have faced, including power-five Cal. In the three losses, Idaho outgained Cal 376-370, Montana 394-334 and Weber State 418-291. The Vandals are averaging 428.5 yards per game to just 292.7 yards for their opponents. Idaho did lose the turnover battle in all three losses.