Saving Idaho From The FCS: NCAA ‘14 Dynasty

[OBinKC]

The Narrative Pt 2


Coach Fitz had his staff in the War Room after a mediocre Spring Game.


“Well, we learned that either our running game is very smooth or our defense is REALLY bad”, said Fitz. “And I think it’s the latter. How are we going to get pressure from the edges if one of our most capable defensive ends is a 347 pound space eater?”, referring to sophomore LE Noah Elliss. Noah’s father, Luther Ellis, was the former D line coach, but he quit as soon as he learned they were switching to the 4-3 defense.


“We could switch to the 3-3-5”, suggested defensive coordinator Mike Breske. “Get the pressure from our outside backers and spur safeties.”


“That’s the thing, Mike”, replied Fitz. “We’re fooling ourselves if we think this defense is built for any specific system. It’s not built for anything!”


“I’ll try to work with him”, chimed in new defensive line coach Deacon Strahan. “But if I can’t get him exploding off the edge, we may need to blitz heavily from that side. Either way, we can figure out a way to create chaos.”


“Ok, good”, said Fitz. “I think we’ll need to blitz a linebacker on every play until we get some serious talent on the ends.


“Now on to the offense. Remember, Kris (looking to offensive coordinator Kris Cinkovich), we’ve gotta make sure Mason recognizes when the defense plays the run. We’ve gotta use the screens and bubbles to constrain them. And I promise you, something this simple can and will move the chains. I know you got this. So everything else going ok?”


“Yes. I think we’ve found the guy for years to come in Khalil Forehand”, said Kris of the redshirt freshman running back. “But can we PLEASE throw the ball downfield more than five times a game? Our guys are gonna get beat up out there!”


“No”, replied Fitz.

[Nunyerbiz]

Ohhh... this one could get juicy... I find your house rules intriguing and would like to subscribe to your newsletter.

[OBinKC]

Quote: Originally Posted by Nunyerbiz

Ohhh... this one could get juicy... I find your house rules intriguing and would like to subscribe to your newsletter.

Haha!! I think it's a good setup for a story now that Idaho is ranked in the 50s and not even in the FBS anymore. Thanks for following!

[OBinKC]

Idaho Vandals Outlook 2019
by Tex Colorado August 10, 2019 10:00pm


The 2019 College Football season is right around the corner, and to say that the Idaho Vandals have an uphill battle this year is an understatement. Hondo’s College Football Metrics website has the University of Idaho football team rated 53 overall out of a possible 100. They are actually rated lower than most FCS schools now. Why they haven’t already dropped to the FCS and joined the Big Sky Conference remains a mystery, but maybe this season will convince them. Let’s dive into the Vandals roster for the breakdown.


Quarterback

True senior Mason Petrino (62 overall) will be the lead signal caller for this squad and he brings a decent amount of experience. He’s rated at 90 awareness which may not be too big of an asset considering the run-heavy style that head coach Pat Fitzkennedy is installing, but it could serve well if he is forced to audible out in certain situations. He is also rated at 71 speed which makes him a decent threat in the triple option.



Running Back

Redshirt freshman Khalil Forehand is taking the majority of snaps at halfback during practice as well as in the Spring Game, so he looks to be the main workhorse for the Vandals’ running attack. Redshirt sophomore Roshaun Johnson will probably be the backup and will be very active in this system. Therefore, you should also see Aundre Carter get some action. And although they don’t have a registered fullback on the team, we’ve seen redshirt senior tight end Luke Hyde fill in for that position.



Receiving Corps

Coach Fitzkennedy deserves his due respect for recognizing the lack of talent at wide receiver and employing a run-heavy scheme. There isn’t a clear cut number one on this receiving corps, but senior Jeff Cotton (67 OVR, 78 SPD) has stepped up to take that role. Senior Jante Boston (67 OVR, 81 SPD) is also making plays and will likely be a starter. From there it’s a free-for-all, but redshirt sophomore Cutrell Haywood (67 OVR, 78 SPD) should also see some time. And again with this system, you probably won’t see a lot of plays made by these guys.



Offensive Line

As a collective unit, this line averages out at an overall rating of 59.4 with the only bright spot (relatively speaking) being sophomore right tackle Logan Floyd (64 OVR, 85 STR). It will be interesting to see if these guys can hold up to any defense even in the run game.



Defensive Line

Fitzkennedy runs a 4-3 defense and will rely on a scheme that won him titles as a high school coach. But the big question is whether or not that can work with the talent level of this defensive line. Defensive tackles Rahsaan Crawford (65 OVR, 88 STR) and 353 lb Jonah Kim (65 OVR, 92 STR), both juniors, will be relied on to hold the gaps in the middle. But Fitz is also relying on junior defensive end Leonick Tamba (60 OVR, 65 SPD) to be a disruptive edge rusher. On the other side, there’s 347 lb sophomore Noah Elliss (70 OVR, 91 STR), who is rumored to be moving to defensive tackle once they can get some talent at left end to fit their scheme. So this may look brutal out there on Saturdays.



Linebackers


This is another lackluster corps, with junior middle linebacker Jalan Jenkins (65 OVR, 73 SPD) leading the unit. They will lean on him to clean up anything in the wake of blitzing linebackers, where juniors Robert Miller (61 OVR, 73 SPD) and Charles Akanno (61 OVR, 67 SPD) will be called upon for those duties.



Secondary

This coaching staff better hope that pressure comes through, because it’s not a reach to say there is an awful secondary behind them that need all the help they can get. Rated at an average of 65.6 as a unit, that number is boosted by the bright spot on defense, senior free safety Davontae Ginwright (77 OVR, 78 SPD). The starting cornerbacks, senior Lloyd Hightower (62 OVR, 80 SPD) and redshirt freshman Christian Nash (62 OVR, 81 SPD) will have trouble hanging with most receivers in the FBS, so maybe coach Fitz is on to something with always wanting more pressure.



Special Teams

Junior punter Cade Coffey (84 OVR) will be handling both kicking and punting duties this season due to his being much better at both jobs than anyone else on the team. As far as return specialists, Fitz has run most of the skill position players back there to find out who is best. Looks like we may have to wait until closer to opening day to find out who lands that job.



Final Outlook

The chances of this team going 0-12 are quite real this year, and it’s almost a lock that the Vandals will be in the FCS a year from now. Let’s hope that they can at least keep the fan base entertained in their down year.



2019 Vandals Football Schedule

8/31 - at North Texas
9/7 - Temple
9/15 - BYE
9/21 - at #23 Washington State
9/28 - Northern Illinois
10/5 - Fresno State
10/12 - at South Alabama
10/19 - at Arkansas State
10/26 - Old Dominion
11/2 - at Wyoming
11/9 - Texas State
11/16 - BYE
11/23 - Nevada
11/30 - at New Mexico State

[Deuce2223]

So are you from Idaho, or you just like to punish yourself and make yourself play with the worst team

[OBinKC]

Quote: Originally Posted by Deuce2223

So are you from Idaho, or you just like to punish yourself and make yourself play with the worst team

Haha, I’m not from Idaho. I chose this team because of the challenge for sure. This is as cupcake of an OS roster team that I think has ever existed. I want to see if I can build this team in a certain way and it’s as close to a blank slate as you can get!

[OBinKC]

Week 1 Preview

Idaho at North Texas


North Texas leads this series 6-4, and have won their last five meetings. The last time they met was in 2013 when the Mean Green demolished the Vandals 44-6.


“This is what it’s all about!”, said Idaho head coach Pat Fitzkennedy. “You practice and game plan all offseason long for the day that you get to go out and show the world what you’re made of. And we’re ready. We are ready to leave it all out on the field and know that we all did everything in our power to win this game!”


North Texas Mean Green Scouting Report


We look to be outmatched in every facet of this game. Their quarterback Mason Fine is a capable Air Raid type quarterback who can also make plays with his feet. If we have any chance at all of stopping him, we’ll need to put pressure on him.



Their running back Deandre Torrey is speedy and dangerous. This isn’t the type of guy we can just read-and-react to. We need to be aggressive and try to disrupt the flow. Even if we miss, it’s a better chance than trying to contain him and get burnt anyway.


Although they have a strong interior line, it looks like their main weakness is at their tackles. It may be a perfect opportunity to get edge pressure and throw them off their game.

[OBinKC]

Vandals receiver Jeff Cotton dives into the end zone for a touchdown catch.




Dog Fight!
Rabid Vandals defense shuts down North Texas, win 14-9


by Tex Colorado August 31, 2019 5:45pm

Denton, TX — The North Texas Mean Green walked off the field Saturday in complete shock of what just happened. Idaho came onto Apogee Stadium with an overly apparent chip on their shoulder and went after Mean Green quarterback Mason Fine, sacking him seven times and holding the home team to only 236 total yards in a 14-9 victory.


“They never let us get our rhythm going”, said Mean Green head coach Seth Littrell. Every time we felt a drive percolating, Mason had another guy in his face. We need to do a much better job of protecting our quarterback.”


One of those guys was Vandal defensive end Noah Elliss, who has been under scrutiny for not being considered the right fit for this system. But he turned out to be the man of the day with four sacks.



“I had to prove to the doubters that I have a role on this team”, said the 347 pound redshirt sophomore Elliss. “The coaches worked with me and I worked hard all summer and through camp, and we made it happen today.”


North Texas had the ball to start off the game and got a couple of first downs. But they were squelched by the pressure of the Vandals defensive line. So they had to punt the ball away and that’s when Idaho took their shot.


This would then turn into a back-and-forth stalemate where neither team could score. But North Texas finally broke through and kicked a field goal in the second quarter to go up 3-0. This would be the score until just before halftime when the other Mason, Vandal Mason Petrino found receiver Jeff Cotton for a 21 yard touchdown pass with 52 seconds left to make it 7-3.


Idaho got the ball to start off the second half and went on a slow, run-heavy drive, mostly conducted by halfback Khalil Forehand who ended the day with 23 carries for 136 yards on the ground. That drive resulted in a 10 yard touchdown run by halfback Roshaun Johnson, making the score 14-3.


The fourth quarter would go the way of the Mean Green as they scored again, when Fine found Greg White for a touchdown. But that was the end of their comeback run as they failed on the extra point attempt, and failed the onside recovery to secure an Idaho win, 14-9.


“I’m proud of our guys”, said Vandals head coach Pat Fitzkennedy. “But I’m especially proud of Noah. He played his heart out and was the reason we won today.


“I will say that North Texas also took us lightly today. Nobody gave us a chance this season and I think they bought into that narrative. We may have changed some minds today.”


Petrino finished the day with an efficient 7 of 9 for 95 yards and a touchdown. Forehand also led the receivers with 2 catches for a total of 27 yards.



In the Mean Green’s losing effort, Fine went 15 of 20 for 150 yards and the touchdown, and halfback Deandre Torrey ran for 93 yards on 16 carries.