TCY: Idaho Vandals
 

I've been in the mood for TCY lately and thought I'd do a dynasty. There's nothing fancy planned. This will mostly be an old school, simple TCY dynasty.

I picked Idaho because they have a very low starting prestige and a remote location for recruiting.

In order to create a tougher challenge and some fun high scoring football, I can only recruit defensive players ranked lower than #500.

Idaho Team MVP's

2004 - DE Stan Sigman - 35 tackles, 12 assists, 8.5 sacks, 11 TFL
2005 - WR Derek Abeykoon - 67 catches, 982 yards, 17 TD's
2006 - WR Kirk Holmberg - 64 catches, 1052 yards, 11 TD's
2007 - DE Conrad Arteaga - 41 tackles, 7 assists, 15 sacks, 21 TFL
2008 - ILB Will Newton - 115 tackles, 40 assists, 2 sacks, 19 TFL, 6 INT's, 2 TD's
2009 - RB Bob Phillips - 172 carries, 780 yards, 11 TD, 21 catches, 183 yards, 1 TD
2010 - RB Jay Young - 194 carries, 1154 yards, 11 TD, 23 catches, 226 yards, 1 TD
2011 - QB Pete Newsome - 215 for 344 (64.4%), 3231 yards, 32 TD, 11 INT
2012 - QB Pete Newsome - 245 for 406 (60.3%), 4376 yards, 48 TD, 18 INT
2013 - QB Scottie Strickland
2014 - RB Scott Barnes

Idaho Offensive Totals and Rankings

Idaho Defensive Totals and Rankings


Other Rankings and Numbers

Note: First 5 here are rankings. The last 3 are hard numbers.



QB Comparisons

Here's a list of schools sorted by starting prestige. This shows the challenge we are facing, as only two schools outside of the Sol8 Conference have a lower prestige than we do. Also, you can see that I set up 8 Florida schools to participate in the Sol8.

Let's take a look at starting staff. For now, I'll show my main staff and hometown scout.



Atrocious. Will be fired immediately next season.



This dude is pretty good for now.



That lousy congeniality will be tough for recruiting. Would like better development for receivers and linemen.



This guy is pretty good, but defensive scouting is going to be super important, since I'm going to have to find quality players outside of the top 500.

Also of note. The teams in the Sun Belt have changed a bit over the years. The conference in the most recent version of TCY includes:

New Mexico State
Louisiana Lafayette
Troy
Idaho
Louisiana-Monroe
Utah State
Arkansas State
Middle Tennessee State
North Texas

Team Outlook

National Ranking: 118th
Sun Belt Ranking: 8th


I run a single back, passing offense. Williamson is the clear starter here, but none of them are good.


None of these guys will be taking pressure off the QB.


Yikes. I considered redshirting Solorio, but I don't want to completely tank the season.


Pretty good Center. Nothing else to write home about.


When two of your best players are punters... sigh. I redshirt Sanderson. The good thing for our kickers is I doubt we'll be in FG range much.


Interior not so bad, at least for one year. Ends are miserable.


Barlow has great potential, so I give him the shirt.


The strongest unit on my team, which is good because I run a very aggressive man defense strategy that focuses on taking away the run and trusting the DB's to make plays.

Week 1

There is a weird quirk in TCY where in the first season of a career, no teams have scheduled games on week 1. It is not like that for any other season of the dynasty.

Anyways, I focus on recruiting and it looks like it's going to be a rough year on that front. I'm trying to reach for the #12 QB in the country.

Week 2: Idaho (0-0) at Boise State (0-0) -9

We actually keep it close early on, as the defense holds well in some red zone situations. It's only a 3-0 deficit at the end of the 1st and 10-0 at the end of the 2nd. But our offense is stifled for 120 total yards and 0 points for an ugly blowout.


Notable stats:

QB Williamson 13-29-86-0-0
S Garner 7 tackles, 1 Assist

Notes:

*My reward for not redshirting Solorio is that he's injured for 12 weeks.
*Alabama QB Leonard Lacey throws for 477 yards and 9 TD passes (!!) in a 73-30 win over Utah State.

Week 3: Idaho (0-1) at Utah State (0-1) -7

Well this is a much better effort than last week. Williamson is pretty sharp and stakes us to a 14-0 lead. Utah State mounts a comeback and ties it at 17 late in the 4th. With 3:55 left, Williamson drives down the field, converting a crucial 3rd and 16 from his own 22, and sets up Gray for the game winning 18 yard FG as time expires.


Notable Stats:

QB Williamson 15-24-202-1-1
RB Shurtz 8-92-0
WR Bruce 3-64-1
WR Shapiro 3-57-0
S Garrner 12 tackles, 2 assists
DE Stigman 6 tackles, 1.5 sacks
DT Nixon 4 tackles, 1.5 sacks

Notes:

*Amazing performance by Florida Tech ILB Max Dermody, who recorded 18 tackles, 7 assists, 1 sack, and 2 INT's.
*Need to adjust running by position numbers as it has my QB doing it far too often, with little success.

Week 4: Idaho (1-1) at #47 Washington State (1-1)

Uh, yeah. Just going to move on to the next game.


Notable stats:

We were outgained 719-93.

Week 5: Idaho (1-2) at #44 Oregon (1-1)

Well, we held them under 90 this time.


Notable stats:

QB Williamson 2-21-32-0-3

That's not a typo. He completed 2 of 21 pass attempts.

Week 6: Bye

*We lost out on our QB, so I go scrambling for another guy. No other announcements.

Week 7: Louisiana-Monroe (1-3) at Idaho (1-3)

Looked decent at first. Williamson leads a TD drive to tie it at 7 in the 1st quarter. Then he throws three consecutive pick sixes. Then they piled on and we could not stop them.


QB Williamson 11-33-138-1-5
WR McCrary 3-62-0

*All recruits are now visiting. Hopefully we get some commits soon to give us hope for next season.

Hamster Nelson....Nice!

Damn, that Wazzu game tho.

Happy to see a new TCY dynasty, been awhile.

Thanks for following, guys!

Week 8: Lousiana-Lafayette (1-5) at Idaho (1-4)

Probably more of a case that Louisiana-Lafayette sucks than us playing a decent game, but we finally get our 2nd win with a dominating performance. The run game was huge in this one.


QB Williamson 16-34-171-2-2
RB Shurtz 13-112-1
RB Stickney 12-64-1
DE Stigman 3 tackles, 1 assist, 3.5 sacks
CB Bailey 4 tackles, 2 assists, 1 INT

*We get two commits:

WR Kirk Holmberg - #313 Overall, #30 WR
ILB Zach Kennedy - #800 Overall, #41 ILB

*Another big game from a Sol8 player, as Stetson's Bart Wills runs for 289 yards and 4 TD's.
*Ohio State, Georgia, Miami, Nebraska, Colorado, Texas A&M, Maryland, and Boston College are all still undefeated. Arizona and UNC are winless.

Week 9: Idaho (2-4) at Middle Tennessee State (4-2)

The defense actually played well at the start of this one, but Williamson continues to have a terrible season. Despite completing some long passes, he threw 4 picks and completed only a third of his passes.


QB Williamson 13-39-260-2-4
WR Bruce 5-136-2
WR McCrary 2-74-0
RB Shurtz 9-50-0

*Four more commits this week:

S Larry Fisk - #56 S
C Tito Quinn - #43 C
RB Bob Phillips - #80 RB
DT Norm Timms - #12 in Idaho

*There are only 4 QB's worse than Rod Williamson this season. The worst is winless Arizona's Teddy Hartman, who sports a line of 35.3% comp, 3 TD, 17 INT.

Week 10: Idaho (2-5) at Troy (2-5)

I tried to dial up more runs in the offensive strategy and we were only down 13-7 at the half, but Troy built a big lead in the 3rd quarter, the AI switched us to a pass heavy offense, and Williamson sucked once again.


QB Williamson 10-31-159-1-2
RB Stickney 8-30-1, 1-38-1
WR Shapiro 3-62-0
DT Nixon 9 tackles, 8 assists

*No new recruits this week.
*There are now only three QB's worse than Williamson, but no worries; Hartman had another terrible game.
*Maryland lost, but there are still six power conference teams undefeated. Georgia and Ohio State are currently the top 2.

Week 11: Arkansas State (2-6) at Idaho (2-6)

Solorio comes back and we have one of our better games this season. It was tied at the half, but a fluke play where Arkansas State recovered their own fumble for a TD, followed up by a long TD pass gave them a two score lead. We fought back and had the ball with a chance to tie late in the 4th, but 4 straight incomplete passes ended our hopes.


QB Williamson 14-22-187-2-1
WR Solorio 4-101-1
RB Shurtz 12-74-1
ILB Reynolds 9 tackles, 3 assists, 1 sack

*3 New recruits this week:
WR Derek Abeykoon - #586 Overall, #54 WR
G Kevin Sheldon - #599 Overall, #58 G
OLB Warren Coleman - #13 in Idaho

*Lost out on my 2nd QB target. Moving on to the 3rd.
*Ohio State falls from the unbeatens with a 39-34 loss at Michigan State. The other 5 stay alive.
*Arizona and North Carolina are still winless at 0-9.

Week 12: Idaho (2-7) at North Texas (4-5)

We quickly fall into a 28-0 hole as the defense simply cannot stop North Texas' run game (381 yards). The team shows a little fight by scoring 17 points in the last 6 minutes of the 1st half to make it a game again. However, North Texas scores on three consecutive drives in the 3rd quarter to put the game away.


QB Williamson 15-40-221-2-1
WR Bruce 4-96-0
TE Donaldson 4-55-2
CB Eng 3 tackles, 1 assist, 1 INT, 1 TD

*One new recruit

CB Wendell Nutter - #90 CB

*#1 Georgia, #2, Nebraska, #3 Colorado, and #4 Miami are all still unbeaten.
*Arizona and North Carolina lose again and are now 0-10.
*We are currently ranked 113th of 125 teams.
*Solorio got hurt again and is done for the season.

Week 13: Idaho (2-8) at #39 Hawaii (6-3)

I expected worse against a good Hawaii team, but the defense actually held their own. Despite giving up two 1st quarter TD's, they kept it a two score game until midway through the 3rd. If the offense could've done anything, we might've had a chance. However, Williamson has another awful game and the AI doesn't run enough.


QB Williamson 14-34-200-0-2
RB Shurtz 10-79-0, 2-23-0
WR Bruce 3-70-0
WR Shapiro 3-68-0
Davison 7 tackles, 2 assists, 1.5 sacks

*That wraps up our season at 2-9.
*No new recruits, but no denials either.
*All 4 unbeatens and the 2 winless stay that way.

Week 14: Bye

*New Recruits:

DE Patrick Cumming - #67 DE in IL
QB DJ Fassero - #80 QB Overall, #1 QB in Idaho
TE Colin Johnson - #66 TE
T Jermaine Small - #2 T in CT

*#2 Nebraska beat #3 Colorado 31-21.
*#1 Georgia and #4 Miami were on a bye.

Week 15: Bye

*Recruits:
OLB Roman Newman - #94 OLB in PA
FB Bubba Emmons - #87 FB (Academic Recruit)


*#1 Georgia beats LSU 24-17 in the SEC Championship
*#8 Texas beats #2 Nebraska 38-28 in the Big 12 Championship to knock them out of the title game.
*#3 Miami beats Virginia Tech 52-0 to earn their spot in the title game.

Final Season Stats:

Final recruit list. I knew it would be a tough year, but we did land a couple good WR's to hopefully get the passing offense going. We should be in better position next year as out academic ranking improves.

Heisman Trophy: QB Broderick Kassem (271-449-4276-45-21) - An absurd choice over Miami's Keith Kemp, who had 49 TD's and 5 INT's.

Another TCY dynasty! Good stuff. Keep up the good work!

I hope you're enjoying yours as much as I am.

Thanks!

Moving on to 2005, we start off with a staff retirement. My local (NW) has decided to step down. Here is his replacement...



I also hire a new Syndicate Coordinator...




I didn't find any good options for a new OC or DC, so I stick with those guys for another year.

Idaho 2005

National Ranking: 118th
Sun Belt Ranking: 7th

Starters in bold


Fassero isn't ready to start, and probably will never be, so we're in store for another season of Williamson.


Phillips gets the shirt so he can develop. Stickney had some decent moments last season.


Holmberg, Abeykoon, and Johnson will start as true Freshman. Hoping Solorio can stay healthy this season to lead the group.



Quinn and Small get the shirt, but Sheldon will have to start right away because my Guards are atrocious.


Not worried about this group yet. Too many other holes to fill.


Cumming and Timm get shirts because we actually have some depth here.


Kennedy could probably use another season to develop, but I'm gonna give him a chance to show what he can do. Coleman will also start as a true frosh, but his partner Newman will sit the year out.


Well, Larry Fisk has amazing potential and he's gonna get a chance to show it right away. Nutter will also get a chance, but that's more due to horrible options.

Week 1: Kent State (0-0) at Idaho (0-0)


Well, this was a fun one. Williamson is sharp for a change and stakes us to an early 13-0 lead. We hold that lead throughout the first half. Kent State is able to move the ball on the ground and takes the lead back early in the 3rd quarter. However, it is our running game that really shines as Stickney and Seifel combine for 203 yards and we finally pull away late in the 4th quarter.


QB Williamson 18-25-221-4-0
RB Stickney 12-97-2
RB Siegel 6-109-0
WR Abeykoon 7-76-2
WR Holmberg 4-59-1
OLB Barlow 13 tackles
DT Washington 10 tackles, 1 assist
S Fisk 4 tackles, 1 assists, 1 INT, 1 TD

*Recruiting look much more positive this season with our increased academics.
*Abeykoon (Questionable) and Solorio (Probable) are both hurt.

Week 2: Idaho (1-0) at Toledo (0-1)

We kept this one close throughout the first half, going into the break only down 10-7. However, our inability to run the ball and protect Williamson doomed us in the 2nd half as Toledo pulled away.


QB Williamson 18-30-209-0-1
WR Holmberg 8-119-0
OLB Barlow 9 tackles, 2 assists
ILB Kennedy 7 tackles, 6 assists

Week 3: Bye

The challenge for recruiting this season will be the very small budget for travel. I've cast a wider net this season and it's harder for me to talk to everyone I want.

Week 4: Bye

Back to back byes helps get our WR corps healthy again.

Week 5: Idaho (1-1) at North Texas (0-3)

We get off to our best start yet as Williamson throws three TD passes ot give us a 21-0 lead. Unfortunately, our defense is helpless against the North Texas run game and they manage to efficiently move the football up and down the field as we make several mistakes. North Texas scores 43 consecutive points. Williamson (in his best game ever) leads a couple of gutsy 4th quarter drives, but time runs out on our comeback.


QB Williamson 23-38-456-5-3
WR Abeykoon 9-196-3
WR Holmberg 6-123-1
WR Solorio 4-60-1
ILB Kennedy 12 tackles, 3 assists
CB Nutter 8 tackles, 2 assists, 2 INT

*True freshmen are all playing great! Williamson is much better with decent WR's.
*UNC has got a good start (3-1) to the season, but Arizona is still winless in this career, losing 15 straight.
*Arizona's Teddy Hartman is one of the worst QB's I've ever seen. So far this season, he has completed 21 of 81 passes for 246 yards, 0 TD, and 7 INT.

Week 6: Arkansas State (0-3) at Idaho (1-2)

Arkansas State is not a good team, but it's still impressive how thoroughly we dominated them in this one. This is definitely the best game we've played yet. Williamson had another terrific game.


QB Williamson 32-45-468-5-1
RB Stickney 12-58-0
RB Siegel 11-77-0
WR Holmberg 8-109-0
WR Abeykoon 7-68-2
WR Solorio 4-61-1
TE Johnson 5-77-1
Defense - 5 turnovers

*Still no commitments. A little late for that, so getting a bit nervous.

Week 7: Bye

New recruit:

RB Dana Luther - #94 Overall, #9 RB

*Arizona loses 45-7 to fall to 0-6.
*Williamson is currently the 7th highest rated QB.

Week 8: Louisiana-Monroe (0-5) at Idaho (2-2)

We dominate another winless team. I noticed Siegel was playing better than Stickman, so I made him the starter and he responded with a 122 yard performance. Williamson threw 5 TD passes again.


QB Williamson 24-35-331-5-0
RB Siegel 14-122-1
RB Stickney 6-66-0
WR Solorio 8-130-2
WR Abeykoon 6-54-2
WR Holmberg 5-73-0
CB Eng 7 tackles, 1 INT
DT Horne 4 tackles, 2 assists, 4.5 sacks

Three new recruits:

ILB Will Newton #615 Overall, #32 ILB
OLB Dennis Fisk #624 Overall, #39 OLB
CB Calvin Person #71 CB

*Arizona finally breaks their winless streak with a 17-14 win over Oregon State.

Week 9: Idaho (3-2) at Middle Tennessee (2-4)

We put the ball on the ground 5 times in this one. Luckily only one of those was recovered by Middle Tenn, but it did disrupt our offensive momentum. We entered the 4th quarter with a 4 pt deficit, but Williamson stepped up and led the winning TD drive. Then the defense stepped up and shut down Middle Tenn the rest of the 4th to seal the victory.


QB Williamson 20-33-253-3-2
WR Abeykoon 11-153-2

Three new recruits:

G Chester Morrison #386 Overall, #37 G
S Stephen Houlihan #770 Overall, #41 S
C Kyle Wilson #965 Overall, #62 C

*Having trouble getting a WR recruit in this class.
*FSU, USC, Michigan State, and Notre Dame are still undefeated.

Week 10: Louisiana-Lafayette (3-4) at Idaho (4-2)

The team continues rolling. While the running game was unable to get going, Williamson has another solid outing and the defense harassed Louisiana-Lafayette into 3 INT's and 4-16 3rd down conversion.


QB Williamson 27-38-297-4-1
WR Solorio 6-53-0
WR Holmberg 5-77-0
WR Abeykoon 4-47-3
TE Johnson 3-43-0
S Emmons 3 Tackles, 2 INT, 1 TD

2 new recruits:

CB Deon Goetti #699 Overall, #44 CB
DE Conrad Arteaga #795 Overall, #71 DE

*Recruiting has gone fairly well, especially on the defensive side, but we have been unable to recruit any QBs or WRs. That's going to make next season's recruiting pretty desperate.

Week 11: Idaho (5-2) at New Mexico State (2-6)

Williamson TD passes put us out to another quick lead. New Mexico State's running game gives us fits, but cannot keep them in the game. Two late TD's in the 2nd quarter give us a 35-10 halftime lead and that would be all the scoring.


QB Williamson 28-38-376-4-1
RB Stickney 24-90-1
WR Solorio 10-139-1
WR Abeykoon 7-127-2

*New recruits:

T Kendall McClenney #121 Overall, #19 T
WR Leon Branch #93 WR

*We are now ranked #49!
*FSU, USC, and Michigan State are still undefeated and ranked in that order.

Week 12: #49 Idaho (6-2) at Utah State (5-3)

Our good run had to end sometime. We were never really in this one as Utah State took advantage of 6 turnovers by our offense to build a 34-0 halftime lead. The defense didn't play too bad, as they only allowed 257 total yards, but Utah State had an average field position of the 50 yard line.


QB Williamson 12-21-173-1-2
WR Holmberg 6-116-0

*FSU, USC, and Michigan State all win to stay unbeaten.
*Bowling Green and Boise State (who we will face) are also unbeaten, but ranked much lower.

*New recruits:

QB Roy Pientka #84 QB
DT Renaldo Newhart #91 DT

Week 13: Troy (5-4) at Idaho (6-3)

We took a 14-0 lead early in the 2nd quarter, but didn't score again the rest of the game. The Troy pass defense made things difficult for Williamson and our receivers. Troy took advantage by controlling the clock for over 36 minutes as they scored 24 unanswered points.


QB Williamson 18-39-189-1-1
WR Holmberg 7-90-1
WR Abeykoon 6-52-0
DE Washington 10 tackles, 4 assists

*#13 Notre Dame beat #2 USC 45-35.
*Penn State beat #3 Michigan State 30-20
*Currently, USC holds on to the #2 spot for the title game.

Week 14: #10 Boise State (10-0) at Idaho (6-4)

We were definitely outmatched against Boise, but we did put up a pretty good fight. Williamson threw a 67 yard TD pass to Abeykoon in the 3rd quarter to close the gap to 17-14. However, Boise took care of business in the 4th quarter and pulled away.


QB Williamson 13-30-219-1-0
RB Siegel 9-53-1
WR Abeykoon 8-183-1
DT Horne 6 Tackles, 2.5 Sacks

*A win by Georgia in the SEC championship moved them just ahead of USC for the title game spot. They will face undefeated USC.

*No respect for undefeated Boise State or Bowling Green, who end up with Minor Tier bowl games.

Here is the year end wrap up. Definitely showed some improvement this season.


Season Awards

QB Rod Williamson: Sun Belt 2nd Team
WR Derek Abeykoon: National Top Offensive Freshman, National All-Freshman Team, Sun Belt Top Offensive Freshman, Sun Belt 1st Team
G Kevin Sheldon: National All-Freshman Team
DT Norbert Washington: Sun Belt 2nd Team
OLB Myron Barlow: Sun Belt 1st Team
CB Wendell Nutter: National All-Freshman Team, Sun Belt 2nd Team

Not a bad class. A Couple big scores here and some good defensive players that fit into my below #500 house rule. The drawback is the weak QB/WR group coming in, especially with Williamson leaving.

UGA owns FSU in the title game.

Heisman Trophy: QB Lewis James, UCLA - 266-449 (59.2%), 35 TD, 17 INT

Graduating Seniors

QB Rod Williamson

Started every game for the first two years of this dynasty. Had a miserable Junior year where he threw 22 picks and completed less than 40% of his passes, but he rebounded as a Senior once he had some targets and threw 33 TD's with only 11 picks. Will be tough to replace next season as neither of my QB recruits looks to be very good.

2005 All-Sun Belt 2nd Team

DE Corey Huffman

Won't really miss him next year. Started 11 games and only tallied 9 tackles and 5 sacks.

DT Norbert Washington

Without a doubt one of the best players I was given to start this career. Washington was a solid run stopper. As a senior, he recorded 62 tackles, 22 assists, 3.5 sacks, and 12 TFL.

2005 All-Sun Belt 2nd Team

DT Carlos Nixon

Started every game the past two seasons. A decent presence who will be missed. He tallied 25 tackles, 4.5 sacks, and 7 TFL as a senior.

OLB Marshall Guzy

Two year starter, but never made a difference on the field. Wouldn't have been the starter if I didn't keep the shirt on my two OLB recruits. 25 tackles, 12 assists, 0 sacks, 1 TFL as a senior.

CB Everett Eng

Another two year starter. Did not have the best senior season, but he did record 3 INT's.

My report card looks very good this season!

Yeah, I can see a top 100 kid from Virginia wanting spend the next 4 years in Idaho. :lol:

Well, I'm very convincing! Also, I'll probably make him stay 5 years. In a pass first offense. :)

It's time for a new OC. I like this guy's top line numbers, which are always more important to me than the development ratings. And even there, he can develop where my focus is: QB, WR, and OL.

Idaho 2006 Overview

National Ranking: 90th
Sun Belt Ranking: 5th



QB is a super priority for next season. Neither Fassero nor Pientka is the guy to take us to the next level.


I can afford to give Luther the shirt because Phillips is pretty good.


Need some more depth at WR, especially since I haven't been giving anyone the shirt.


Lots of true Freshmen on the line again this year. I can only give Wilson the shirt. Morrison probably needs to sit for a year, but I have no one else worth playing.


Will have to get a Kicker and Punter in the next class.


Can't afford to shirt anyone here either, especially at DT. Will look for two guys there in the next class.


The situation at LB is better, allowing me to shirt all of our Freshmen.


I give the shirt to Lucas, but keep Houlihan as the 3rd Safety, since the other backups can't find the field.

Week 1: Connecticut (0-0) at Idaho (0-0)

Great start to the career of DJ Fassero. He throws three TD passes to stake us to a 31-3 lead. Then when UConn mounted a furious comeback to make it a 4 pt game, Fassero had one last TD drive in him to put it away. Special mention to our defense, which sacked UConn's QB 10 times.


QB Fassero 18-30-326-4-2
RB Phillips 17-89-1
WR Holmberg 7-127-2
WR Abeykoon 2-78-1
ILB Kennedy 9 tackles, 2 assists, 1 sack
DT Newhart 3 tackles, 2 assists, 2 sacks
DE Cumming 2 tackles, 4 assists, 2 sacks
DT Timms 2 tackles, 2 sacks

*Hilariously, we are now ranked #22. TCY's polls are always really wacky after the 1st week.
*Our Academic Rep has improved and the recruiting prospects look pretty good.

Week 2: #14 Toledo (1-0) at #22 Idaho (1-0)

Fassero isn't quite as sharp in this one and we trailed for most of the game. Toledo's kicker had a great game, including a 56 yard FG as time expired at the half. Toledo took a 23-13 lead into the 4th quarter. There great special teams play from P Sanderson and S Emmons got us the ball at the Toledo 18 where we capitalize to make it 23-20. On the next drive, the defense picked off Toledo's QB. We capitalized on another short field to take the 27-23 lead. The defense shut Toledo down to give us a 2-0 start!


QB Fassero 18-31-214-1-2
RB Phillips 17-41-1, 5-64-0
WR Branch 3-71-1
S Emmons 2 tackles, 3 assists, 2 INT

Week 3: Bye

*We fall to #42 in the rankings.

*Arizona continues to suck, even without their awful QB. They've lost their first two games this season and are now 1-23 since this dynasty started. Their Prestige is actually lower than ours at this point.

*Other teams that have performed terribly include UAB (2-22), Indiana (2-22), and Rutgers (3-21).

*The top performing teams are Georgia (26-2), USC (24-3), Texas (23-4), and Bowling Green (24-5).

Week 4: #42 Idaho (2-0) at Troy (1-1)

Well, this is more of the type of game I expected from Fassero at the beginning of the season. It wasn't pretty. He threw 6 picks and our defense was helpless dealing with all the short fields.


QB Fassero 15-37-193-0-6
WR Abeykoon 5-97-0
ILB Kennedy 14 tackles, 3 assists
DT Roosenraad 8 tackles, 3 assists

*This loss drops us to #51 in the rankings.

*Arizona lost to Virginia 48-10.

Week 5: Bye

*New recruit:

P Harvey Devito #243 Overall, #4 P

*We lost out on our top WR recruit. My difficulty at recruiting those after that first great class has been frustrating.

*Arizona lost to Washington 70-6.

Week 6: Arkansas State (0-3) at Idaho (2-1)

Well, Arkansas State sucks. That much is clear. They actually started off with a good drive until an interception in the red zone. On the very next play, Fassero found Abeykoon for a 90 yard TD. An Arkansas State 3 and out was followed by a 43 yard TD pass two plays later. There was no looking back. It got so ugly that Fassero was replaced before halftime.


QB Fassero 7-10-179-4-0
QB Tangeman 13-16-201-2-0
QB Dabrowa 6-6-94-1-0
WR Holmberg 9-140-3
WR Abeykoon 5-170-3
WR Branch 5-89-1
S Emmons 3 tackles, 2 INT
CB Nutter 1 tackle, 1 INT, 1 TD
DE Horne 2 tackles, 2 sacks.

*We are now ranked 44th.

*Arizona lost to California 45-6

*No new recruits this week.

Week 7: Idaho (3-1) at New Mexico State (1-3)

Fassero struggled again, but we were in this throughout. A huge 70 yard fumble return for a TD by true Freshman CB Goetti put us within 1, but the extra point was missed. New Mexico State added a TD and FG to seal the game.


QB Fassero 12-27-220-1-2
WR Abeykoon 2-83-0
OLB Barlow 13 tackles, 4 assists
ILB Kennedy 11 tackles, 5 assists
DT Roosenraad 10 tackles, 4 assists

*Backup OLB Warren Coleman is out for 38 weeks with reconstructive knee surgery.

*No new recruits again. Almost everyone is visiting except my QB target. I start looking for a fallback option.

*Arizona lost to USC 59-0.

*We are now ranked 59th.

Week 8: Louisiana-Lafayette (2-2) at Idaho (3-2)

It's a Jekyll and Hyde act for Fassero as he rebounds with a 400 yard effort and we defeat Louisiana-Lafayette for the third straight year. They hung in there for quite a bit, but Fassero's steady performance helped us pull away in the 2nd half.


QB Fassero 26-45-421-2-1
RB Phillips 16-50-1, 3-31-1
WR Holmberg 8-120-1
WR Branch 6-94-0
WR Abeykoon 4-99-1
DE Cumming 4 tackles, 1 assist, 4.5 sacks
CB Goetti 6 tackles, 2 INT

*Senior WR Solorio is out for 14 weeks, effectively ending his career.
*Senior DE Sean Horne has Repetitive Concussion Syndrome and is out for 64 weeks.
*New recruits this week:

K Corey Copeland - #187 Overall, #5 K
DE Wesley Perkins - #552 Overall, #72 DE
G Henry Clancy - #558 Overall, #47 G
OLB Buddy Malone - #983 Overall, #67 OLB

Week 9: North Texas (1-5) at Idaho (4-2)


Fassero finally put together two strong games in a row and North Texas has no hope of stopping our offense. We really pour it on after having to settle for two early FG's and end up with 566 total yards.


QB Fassero 20-32-445-3-0
RB Phillips 16-58-1
WR Holmberg 7-197-1
WR Abeykoon 6-168-1
DE Arteaga 5 tackles, 2.5 sacks
DE Cumming 3 tackles, 2 assists, 1.5 sacks

*New recruits: (We finally get our QB!)

QB Reuben Stuvaints - #268 Overall, #25 QB
CB Phil Coleman - #565 Overall, #38 CB
S Stanley Walton - #603 Overall, #42 S
T Kenneth Wayman - #651 Overall, #57 T
DT Alvin Niebauer - #750 Overall, #41 DT

*Arizona lost 58-7 to UCLA.

Week 10: Bye

New recruits:

T Steven Wolff - #379 Overall, #35 T
TE Harry Flemming - #780 Overall, #28 TE

*Recruiting has gone pretty much how I wanted it to, except my two WR targets are taking their time.

*Arizona lost 41-27 to Stanford.

*#1 Texas A&M, #2 Notre Dame, and #10 Virginia Tech are all still undefeated.

Week 11: Utah State (4-4) at Idaho (5-2)

Well, we really blew this one. A Fassero TD pass gave us a 14-7 lead with 8 minutes left in the 4th. And we held that lead until 1:18 left in the game, when Utah State completed a 43 yard TD pass to tie it up. On the very next play from scrimmage, Fassero is intercepted. Two plays after that, Utah State scored on a 15 yard run to win it 21-14. Games like this are why I won't feel so bad when Fassero loses his starting job to Stuvaints next year.


QB Fassero 19-40-258-1-2
RB Phillips 16-89-0, 3-35-0
WR Holmberg 5-76-1
OLB Barlow 11 tackles, 5 assists
ILB Kennedy 10 tackles, 3 assists
DE Cumming 2 tackles, 1 assist, 1.5 sacks

*The injuries keep piling up. We lose our best WR, Derek Abeykoon, for the rest of the season.

*New recruits:

WR Danny Gaines - #379 Overall, #36 WR
C Randall McNaught - #556 Overall, #30 C
G Rico Carlson - #609 Overall, #53 G

*Arizona still on track for a winless season with a 34-10 loss against Washington State.

*Virginia Tech falls from the unbeaten ranks with a 31-30 loss against Miami.

Week 12: Idaho (5-3) at Middle Tennessee State (7-1)

We almost blow another one. Despite us leading all game, Middle Tenn scored 10 pts in the final 8 minutes to force OT. Luckily, we came through in the clutch this time. Fassero threw a 25 yard TD pass on the 2nd play of OT. On the very next play, Emmons forced a fumble and Barlow recovered it to seal the victory.


QB Fassero 26-42-345-3-2
WR Holmberg 9-135-3
ILB Kennedy 9 tackles, 1 assist, 1 sack
S Emmons 5 tackles, 2 assists, 1 INT, 1 FF
DE Cumming 4 tackles, 3 sacks

*New recruit:

WR Rob Monroe - #538 Overall, #45 WR

*This wraps up a very successful recruiting year. I was able to snag 16 guys in the top 1000.

*Notre Dame and Texas A&M are still undefeated at the top, with Michigan and Miami as the top 1 loss teams trying to sneak in to the title game.

*Arizona lost to Oregon 34-20.

Week 13: Idaho (6-3) at Louisiana-Monroe (3-7)

Fassero struggles without his top two receivers and we don't focus enough on the run game. It was still a one score game most of the way until Fassero threw an INT to kill a good drive in the 4th. Louisiana-Monroe capitalized to make it a two score game with 2:01 left.


QB Fassero 20-42-293-2-2
RB Phillips 10-65-0, 3-17-1
WR Holmberg 5-93-1
WR Branch 2-69-0
ILB Kennedy 12 tackles, 3 assists
DT Roosenraad 9 tackles, 3 assists, 0.5 sacks
S Emmons 6 tackles, 1 INT

*Arizona finishes their winless season with a 35-3 loss to Arizona State. They now have a 1-32 record over the past three seasons.

*#1 Texas A&M was on a bye.
*#2 Notre Dame stayed undefeated by beating UConn 59-17.
*#3 Michigan beat #11 Ohio State 55-14.
*#4 USC was on a bye.
*#5 Miami beat Duke 41-13.

Week 14: #18 Boise State (8-2) at Idaho (6-4)

I emphasize the run a little bit more, but to no avail as Phillips is stuffed. Not that more passes would've done much because Fassero was picked off three times. However, the defense did an incredible job of keeping us in this game, holding Boise State's QB to 11 for 32, 117 yards, 0 TD, and 4 INT. But we made too many mistakes (4 turnovers) and could not convert on 3rd down (2-14).


QB Fassero 19-34-162-2-3
WR Branch 4-80-0
RB Phillips 23-26-0, 2-16-1
ILB Kennedy 16 tackles, 6 assists, 1 INT, 1 FF
CB Goetti 1 tackle, 2 INT
OLB Newman 3 tackles, 1 assist, 1 INT

*#1 Notre Dame beat #24 Boston College 56-21
*#2 Texas A&M beat #11 Texas 31-17
*#3 Michigan and #4 USC are done for the season and simply waiting to see if one of the top two lose next week.

Week 15: Bye

*Our season is over. No bowl game for us this year.

*We didn't improve on last year's 6-5 record, but at least we didn't regress with the downgrade at QB.

*Notre Dame doesn't fool around and clinches their spot in the title game with an 84-9 beat down of Florida Tech.

*Texas A&M clinches their spot by beating Nebraska 35-27 in the Big 12 title game.

Season Awards and Stats

Team MVP: WR Kirk Holmberg - 64 catches, 1052 yards, 11 TD's

QB DJ Fassero: Sun Belt 2nd Team
WR Kirk Holmberg: Sun Belt 1st Team
K Lawrence Kattus: Sun Belt 1st Team
DT Kelly Roosenraad: Sun Belt 1st Team
ILB Zach Kennedy: Sun Belt 1st Team
OLB Myron Barlow: Sun Belt 1st Team
CB Wendell Nutter: Sun Belt 2nd Team
S Fernando Emmons: Sun Belt 2nd Team

TCY Today gives us the 41st ranked recruiting class. Hopefully this will add some much needed depth to the squad.

Heisman Trophy: QB Dusty Ferguson, Miami (285-419-68.0%-44-15)

Graduating Seniors

WR Lee Solorio

One of the better players I was given to start my career. I decided not to shirt him as a Sophomore, but he ended up spending most of the season sidelined with an injury. He started all 11 games as a junior and had a decent season with 43 catches, 557 yards, and 11 TD. Then his senior season was marred by another injury.

T Bryan Munoz

Three year starter. Not a great player, but was dependable.

P Terrence Sanderson

Was National All-Academic Punter in 2006. Had some good games here and there, but not very good at downing punts inside the 20.

DE Sean Horne

A 3 year starter who had a great junior year with 13.5 sacks. However, he caught the dreaded Repetitive Concussion Syndrome after 6 games as a Senior and his career was over.

DT Kelly Roosenraad

DT was one of my better positions to start off with, so Roosenraad sat on the bench for two seasons. But he produced a very good Senior season with consistently good run defense.

Awards: 2006 Sun Belt 1st Team

OLB Myron Barlow

Was one of the best players I had to start with and one of the few I redshirted in my initial season. Solid two year starter.

Awards: 2005 Sun Belt 1st Team, 2006 Sun Belt 1st Team

S Fernando Emmons

Two year starter. Had a great senior season with 45 tackles, 12 assists, and 6 INT's.

Awards: 2006 Sun Belt 2nd Team

Bad news to start the year. My Offensive Coordinator stepped down after one season. So I have to get another one and he's not as good...

Added a bunch of stats and rankings to the 2nd post in this thread, so we can track how we're improving throughout this dynasty.

Here are your 2007 Idaho Vandals

Pre-season Rankings...

Overall: 81st
Sun Belt: 5th

Starters in bold


Very disappointed at how Stuvaints looks. His Avoid INT rating is terrible and he cannot throw the long ball. His Future Estimate still looks decent and maybe there's some scout error here. Still, I think there's enough pause to let Fassero take the reins for another season and let Stuvaints develop.




Luther looks to be the real deal. I'll have to add more runs and screen passes into my gameplan this season.


No depth at TE means I need to keep the shirt off Flemming. Monroe will be the #3 WR as a true Freshman, while Gaines will get the shirt.


Dept at C, so McNaught gets the shirt. I had a good class of Guards and tackles, so I'm able to let Wayman and Carlson develop.


Copeland looks really good, but could use a year of development, so I'll let Kattus finish his career as the starter. This will also mean I won't need a new K/P in the same class next time around.


And here's where my depth might kill me. Perkins will need to play right away as a backup. Timms was suspended for getting in a bar fight over the summer, so I only have two playable DT's.


Kennedy had a fantastic year, but Newton is just way better. I really don't like the 3-4, so I may try playing Kennedy at OLB while he backs up Newton at ILB.


Luckily, we have some depth here and can shirt both Freshmen. Walton is disappointing in that he has terrible Man to Man defense, which is a majority of the coverages I run.

Week 1: Akron (0-0) at Idaho (0-0)

Some things worked and some things didn't with my new game plan. Luther is the real deal as he put up a 119 yard effort. However, the screen passes didn't work at all and Luther actually ended up with 7 catches for -12 yards. Definitely scratching that. We lead the entire game. Akron keeps it close, but the strong running from Luther and opportunistic defense (4 turnovers) prevents a comeback.


QB Fassero 24-35-213-2-1
RB Luther 22-119-0
RB Phillips 4-69-1
WR Abeykoon 4-61-1
WR Holmberg 3-61-1
ILB Newton 9 tackles, 3 assists, 1 sack
CB Nutter 7 tackles, 1 INT
DE Arteaga 4 tackles, 1 assist, 2.5 sacks
ILB Kennedy 4 tackles, 4 assists, 1 INT, 1 TD

Week 2: Eastern Michigan (0-0) at #22 Idaho (1-0)

Welcome to the Dana Luther show! He completely dominates the Eastern Michigan defense for 205 yards. We still struggled early in this one because our red zone offense had to settle for FG's 4 times and the defense gave up some big runs. But we executed much better in the 2nd half and completely shut them down.


QB Fassero 26-41-294-3-1
RB Luther 22-205-0, 6-27-0
WR Holmberg 5-101-0
WR Branch 3-44-1
K Kattus 4-4 FG's

*Arizona continues their losing ways with a 34-7 loss against Nebraska.

Week 3: Bye

*I'm amused at following Arizona's continued suckitude. Can they ever turn it around? This week they fall to Bowling Green 38-3.

*I focus recruiting on building depth for the defensive line and finding another QB.

Week 4: Bye

*UNLV beats Arizona 45-17.

*Ohio State OLB Horace Thomason has an amazing 5.5 sack performance this week.

Week 5: North Texas (0-3) at #33 Idaho (2-0)

Dana Luther does it again! He goes for 165 yards and Phillips adds 58 of his own as North Texas has no hope against our running offense. The defense is on fire as well with 11 sacks. North Texas threatens to get back in it with 17 consecutive points, but Luther seals it with a 4th quarter TD run.


QB Fassero 15-25-176-2-1
RB Luther 26-165-2, 3-38-0
RB Phillips 8-58-1
WR Gaines 7-81-1
DE Arteaga 6 tackles, 3.5 sacks
CB Nutter 6 tackles, 1 INT
DE Perkins 3 tackles, 2 assists, 2 sacks
DT Niebauer 3 tackles, 1.5 sacks

*Arizona loses to Oregon 41-14.

*Fresno State's Fred Donovan tallies 7 sacks this week.

Week 6: #35 Idaho (3-0) at Arkansas State (0-3)

We really don't play good in this one at all against a terrible Arkansas State team. We fumble the opening kickoff and Arkansas State capitalizes to take an early 7-0 lead. We quickly take the lead back with two 1st quarter TD passes. However, we are not able to put them away. They score twice in the 4th quarter to cut the lead to 20-17 and manage to get the ball to our 41 yard line with 10 seconds left, but Arteaga's 4th sack of the day seals the win for us.


QB Fassero 18-34-197-2-0
RB Luther 26-104-0, 1-7-0
WR Abeykoon 7-64-1
WR Gaines 5-64-0
DE Arteaga 7 tackles, 4 sacks
CB Goetti 5 tackles, 1 assist, 2 INT

*California beats Arizona 51-10

*Another amazing sack performance. BYU's Mitch Logan gets to the QB 8 times this week.

Week 7: Bye

*Still no commits, which worries me this late.

*USC beats Arizona 42-0.

Week 8: #23 Idaho (4-0) at Louisiana-Monroe (1-3)

Well we laid an egg in this one. Luther never gets going as we fall behind early due to numerous mistakes on both sides of the ball. It's 30-7 at the start of the 14th quarter. Fassero manages some big pass plays to close the game to 30-22 (I'm triggered by the fact that we kicked an XP on the 2nd TD). However, Fassero chokes in the clutch as he throws two INT's in Louisiana-Monroe territory in the last 2 minutes.


QB Fassero 16-33-422-2-3
WR Holmberg 5-154-0
WR Branch 2-113-1
WR Abeykoon 4-68-0
ILB Newton 13 tackles, 4 assists
CB Nutter 11 tackles, 2 assists
DE Cumming 4 tackles, 1 assist, 1.5 sacks
DE Arteaga 1 tackle, 1 assist, 1.5 sacks

*New recruits:

T Lewis Connell - #36 Overall, #2 T
WR Terrance Greene - #289 Overall, #19 WR
G Russell Garrison - #638 Overall, #50 G
DE Leon Degley - #755 Overall, #71 DE

*Oregon State beat Arizona 49-6.

Week 9: Middle Tennessee State (3-3) at #39 Idaho (4-1)

Luther gets injured in this one and will be out for 6 weeks. Phillips picks up the slack and records his own 100 yard game. The defense comes up with two pick sixes (and 5 picks in total) and Fassero recovers from last week's choke for a fairly easy victory.


QB Fassero 21-31-365-1-0
RB Phillips 19-100-0
RB Luther 7-45-1
WR Gaines 8-108-0
WR Abeykoon 5-74-0
TE Johnson 3-61-0
CB Nutter 7 tackles, 2 assists, 1 INT
CB Goetti 3 tackles, 1 assist, 1 INT, 1 TD
S Fisk 2 tackles, 4 assists, 2 INT
S Houlihan 2 tackles, 1 INT, 1 TD

*New recruits:

QB Andy Pierce - #297 Overall, #25 QB
CB Andrew Hanks - #553 QB, #42 CB
DT Nick Manning - #595 Overall, #33 DT
WR Steven Harding - #637 Overall, #52 WR
S Chad Isaacson - #771 Overall, #51 S

*Oregon State beat Arizona 62-3.

Week 10: #31 Idaho (5-1) at Louisiana-Lafayette (3-4)

Phillips is stuffed all game long, but Fassero has his best game of the season and we pull away late.


QB Fassero 29-39-398-4-0
WR Gaines 8-108-3
WR Branch 6-110-0
WR Holmberg 5-78-0
OLB Newman 4 tackles, 1 INT
DE Arteaga 2 tackles, 2 sacks
S Houlian 1 INT, 1 TD

*We lose WR Derek Abeykoon for the rest of the season.

*New recruit:

DE Will Brill - #740 Overall, #70 DE

*FSU (8-0), USC (7-1), LSU (8-0), and Texas A&M (9-0) are the top 4 currently.

Week 11: New Mexico State (4-4) at #26 Idaho (6-1)

Sloppy mistakes from our offense and inability to get stops from our defense doomed us in this one. We still almost pulled out a close battle, but a Fassero 4th quarter INT killed our last comeback attempt.


QB Fassero 27-40-413-2-3
WR Gaines 9-170-0
WR Branch 6-72-1
WR Holmberg 5-120-0
ILB Newton 17 tackles, 3 assists

*New recruits:

RB Drew Kemp - #747 Overall, #65 RB
OLB Jose Soper - #908 Overall, #64 OLB

*Arizona almost ended their losing streak, but lost a close one to Washington State, 37-36.

*LSU and Texas A&M are the only remaining unbeatens.

#44 Utah State (5-3) at #35 Idaho (6-2)


Without Luther, our running game can't get going and Fassero struggles. This allows Utah State to build a 20-0 lead. Fassero gets hot int he 4th quarter and throws two TD passes to make it a one score game, but chokes in the clutch once again with an INT on the potential game winning drive.



QB Fassero 15-30-231-2-2
WR Branch 3-74-1
ILB Newton 13 tackles, 6 assists
ILB Kennedy 12 tackles, 3 assists
DE Arteaga 7 tackles, 2 assists, 1.5 sacks

*To make matters worse, we lose WR Kirk Holmberg for 4 weeks.

*New recruits:

ILB Deion Brutley - #642 Overall, #40 ILB
TE Mo Romine - #61 TE

*Stanford beat Arizona 31-14

*LSU and Texas A&M remain undefeated for the top two spots.

Week 13: Idaho (6-3) at Troy (6-3)

Now this was a crazy game. We come out completely flat and Troy builds a 23-0 lead early in the 3rd quarter. We then score 35 consecutive points, including a 91 yard fumble return, to take a 35-23 lead. Troy mounts their own comeback, scoring a TD with 3 minutes left and forcing a three and out. With the ball at their own 27 and 2:01 left, our defense stops Troy on 4 straight plays to clinch the victory. This finally puts us at the 7 win mark.


QB Fassero 22-35-252-2-3
WR Branch 7-81-1
WR Parrish 1-80-1
ILB Newton 13 tackles, 4 assists, 1 INT
ILB Kennedy 10 tackles, 1 assist

*New recruit:

DT Cary McKenzie - #65 DT

*LSU and Texas A&M stay undefeated, but 1 loss Michigan jumps them in the rankings and is now #1.

Week 14: Idaho (7-3) at #14 Boise State (8-2)


We still have some improvements to make before we can beat Boise State. They simply have more talent than us. The game is especially hopeless once Luther goes down in the 1st quarter. Our offense falls apart without him and can only manage some garbage time points.


QB Fassero 15-31-189-1-2
WR Keith 4-62-1
S Fisk 7 tackles, 4 assists, 1 INT
CB Goetti 5 tackles, 3 assists, 1 INT

*Luther will require Reconstructive Knee Surgery and be out for 44 weeks. Oooof!

*Arizona completes another winless season with a 37-0 defeat at the hands of rival Arizona State.

*The big question going into next week's games is if LSU and Texas A&M win their conference championship games, will they jump ahead of idle Michigan for a spot in the title game?

Week 15: Bye

*Our season is over and we don't get invited to a bowl. We finally broke through to the 7 win mark.

*LSU beats Tennessee 40-10 in the SEC championship and jumps up to #1 in the rankings.

*Texas A&M beats Nebraska 21-13 in the Big 12 championship, but that's not enough to move them up to #2.

*Very controversial decision here as 1 loss Michigan makes the title game over undefeated Texas A&M. The decider was strength of schedule: Michigan (25th), Texas A&M (78th).

*FB Zach Woodard agrees to come to Idaho as a walk-on. We don't play FB's, so I recruit academic walk-ons to fill those spots in the depth chart.

Season Awards and Stats

Team MVP: DE Conrad Arteaga - 41 tackles, 7 assists, 15 sacks, 21 TFL

National Freshman Team: DT Alvin Niebauer

Sun Belt 1st Team: CB Wendell Nutter

Sun Belt 2nd Team: QB DJ Fassero, G Kevin Sheldon, DE Conrad Arteaga, ILB Will Newton

*We nab a stud Tackle, a very good QB/WR combo and some quality depth on defense. However, I did have to settle for a couple guys outside the top 1000 to round out the class.

Michigan shut up any doubters about their worthiness by owning LSU 26-0 in the title game.


Heisman Trophy: QB Mel Sanders, Michigan - 219 for 355 (61.6%), 33 TD, 14 INT

Graduating Seniors

C Jermaine Parker

Three year starter who had a terrific senior season in only allowing 3 sacks.

K Lawrence Kattus

Decent over the last couple seasons, making 28 of 36 FG attempts.

RB Jay Stickney

Ran for 531 yards as a Sophomore, but fell down the depth chart as more talented recruits came in and only had 70 yards as a Senior.

2008 Idaho Roster and Rankings

Definitely our best squad yet.

National Ranking: 65th
Sun Belt Ranking: 3rd

Starters in bold


Tough decision to be made here. Fassero had a boost in his ratings (same scout). Stuvaints has more overall potential, but also a much worse Avoid INT rating. I was really hoping to move on from Fassero, but I think I'll have to let him start the season. Pierce is the QB of the future and will get the shirt.


Luther's injuury was so bad that he has 11 more weeks to heal, so Phillips will get the start at first. Kemp will be needed as a backup right away.


Finally some depth at WR and I'm able to give the shirt to both Freshmen. My new TE recruit is terrible. I will look for a good one next recruiting class.


We finally have some depth on the line and I'm able to redshirt all of my recruits.


Special Teams look to be good this year.


I still lack depth here, but since I was able to get two recruits at both DE and DT, I'm able to shirt one and play the other. Brill and McKenzie get the shirt.


Very strong group here. Newton is a stud. Both freshmen get the shirt.


Person was suspended for getting into a bar fight over the summer. This will leave me with only 3 CB's. I still give Hanks the shirt and will pull it if injuries pile up. Isaacson also gets the shirt.

Week 1: Navy (0-0) at Idaho (0-0)

Well the tough decision I had about QB was made easier this week. Fassero earned himself a demotion with a miserable game where he threw 5 INT's, including two pick sixes. This was a very winnable game and a terrible way to start the season.


QB Fassero 20-41-244-2-5
RB Phillips 17-82-1, 6-55-0
WR Holmberg 4-75-0
ILB Newton 15 tackles, 5 assists
OLB Fisk 9 tackles, 3 assists, 1 INT, 1 TD
CB Nutter 3 tackles, 3 assists, 1 INT

*We lose backup ILB Zach Kennedy for 6 weeks.

*UNLV beats Arizona 47-0.