“Vandals earn first-round bye and home playoff game”.

“Really excited to get the bye in the first round,” Eck said Monday. “I think that’s exactly where you want to be in this tournament – ​​to be one of the top eight teams. I know the committee has a really difficult job putting everything together, so we are very grateful for the departure.”

Not many FCS teams have had a tougher schedule than the Vandals this season. According to Massey Ratings, the Vandals have the sixth strongest team in the FCS this year.

Idaho’s three losses this season came against No. 1 Oregon, the top team in all of college football; Big Sky champion and top seed Montana State; and fifth-seeded UC Davis.

“I think our schedule was as tough as any,” Eck said. “If you look at it, there are only two (undefeated) teams left in Division I football — Montana State and Oregon — and those are two of our three losses.”

How about this fun fact: Idaho played two FBS teams this season – the Ducks and Wyoming. The Vandals lost to the Ducks by 10 points – the fewest of any team not named Boise State, Ohio State or Wisconsin.

And UI beat Wyoming 17-13 on Sept. 7 — the exact same score by which BSU beat the Cowboys on Saturday. This is a BSU team that is 10-1 and currently projected to get a bye in the College Football Playoff.

The determined Vandals persevered and won games when it mattered most to them. The only real goosebumps were the 38-7 loss to then-No. 1-3 Montana State on ESPN2 on Oct. 12. But each team is allowed one mulligan per season, especially considering the injuries the Vandals have suffered.

Idaho went 1-1 in the 2023 postseason and lost its 2022 opener.

The path through the playoffs won’t be any easier this season.

A win against the Richmond-Lehigh winner could lead to UI facing MSU in a rematch.

But for now, UI will focus the next two weeks on getting healthy and preparing for another game in front of the home fans.

That’s enough for the black and gold-clad faithful to be thankful for this turkey season.

Wiebe can be contacted at (208) 848-2260, [email protected] or on Twitter @StephanSports.