FIRST ROW with MARK NELKE: Despite all their losses last year, the Vandals are back to their usual place

They lost their two-year starting quarterback to the transfer portal with two years of eligibility remaining.

The same goes for their stud running back.

They lost their top three receivers, two to NFL camps, one to the portal.

They lost three defenders to the portal.

But here are the Idaho Vandals, back in the FCS playoffs, their second straight year with a top-eight finish and a first-round bye into the 24-team event.

Pretty amazing performance for the Vandals, in the playoffs for the third straight season under third-year head coach Jason Eck.

Of course, credit goes to the defense, which brought back several key players last year and replaced departed DBs, leading the Vandals to FBS No. 1 in the season opener. 1 Oregon held and a big reason why was Idaho winning several other games this year.

Idaho (9-3), the No. 8 seed, will host unseeded Lehigh (9-3) next Saturday at 6 p.m. at the Kibbie Dome in Moscow.

AT THE QUARTERBACKGevani McCoy won the 2022 Jerry Rice Award as the best freshman in the FCS. After last season, he transferred to Oregon State, where he started the Beavers’ first seven games before being replaced.

His backup last season, redshirt sophomore Jack Layne, was given the starting job. Layne started two games in his first two seasons — both against Idaho State — when McCoy was injured.

When Layne suffered a broken collarbone in the season opener at Oregon, redshirt freshman Jack Wagner stepped in and led the Vandals to a win at Wyoming.

When Wagner was struggling, freshman Nick Josifek came off the bench, played well and started the Montana State game.

A fourth QB, freshman Rocco Koch, became the running quarterback before his injury.

Anthony Woods rushed for 1,182 yards and 16 touchdowns as a sophomore with the Vandals, including a rush for 213 yards and five touchdowns at Eastern Washington.

However, he traveled to Utah after last season and missed the Utes’ 2024 season due to injury.

Elisha Cummings ran for 475 yards and four touchdowns in 2022, then sat out last season. He and South Dakota transfer Nate Thomas formed an impressive one-two punch early in the season before injuries struck.

But two other defenders showed up: redshirt freshman Deshaun Buchanan and redshirt freshman Art Williams from Rocky Mountain High in Meridian.

These two have also been injured in recent weeks; Now anyone who is healthy in a given week receives a majority of the transmissions.

As a receiver, Hayden Hatten was in camp with the Seattle Seahawks and recently signed with the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League. Jermaine Jackson is on the New Orleans Saints practice squad.

McCoy’s throws to Hatten and Jackson or handoffs to Woods were a big part of the Vandal offense last year.

But redshirt freshman Mark Hamper has emerged as a finalist for the Jerry Rice Award. And Jordan Dwyer, who showed flashes two years ago but has since been limited by injuries and the depth chart, has teamed with Hamper for a nice 1-2 combination at wideout.

“(Hamper) and Jordan Dwyer have really made a lot of progress,” Eck said. “These are big shoes to fill. They’ve done a good job and been great for us this year.”

SO WE WILL see.

Eck is optimistic that a bye this week will help some players who missed last week’s win at ISU – Cummings, Buchanan, Williams and even edge rush star Keyshawn James-Newby – get ready for the game on will be back next Saturday, although he said James-Newby would likely be questionable for next week.

If Idaho wins next week, the Vandals would likely face No. 1 seed Montana State in the quarterfinals. In October, Montana State defeated Idaho 38-7 in Bozeman.

But the vandals cannot look forward.

Last year, No. 4 seed Idaho needed a blocked field goal at the end of regulation to eventually escape with a 20-17 overtime win over Southern Illinois in the second round. Then, with a trip to South Dakota State (where Eck was an assistant for six seasons before coming to Idaho) on the line, the Vandals were defeated 30-22 at home by No. 13 UAlbany.

Of Idaho’s three losses this year, two were against undefeated teams (Oregon and Montana State) and the third was against UC Davis, which has lost twice.

One thing is for sure: Despite all the offensive firepower Idaho lost last season, the Vandals have done a pretty good job putting together a productive offense this year.

Mark Nelke is sports editor at The Press. He can be reached at 208-664-8176, ext. 2019, or by email to [email protected]. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @CdAPressSports.