(Pictured above: Idaho Senior LB Rob Siavii during game week preparation for Louisiana State)
Not much has gone right for Idaho in 2012 in terms of wins and losses. A 1-9 record means Idaho is bowl-less for the third consecutive season, and even has a loss to an FCS school on the season resume.
Still, that doesn’t mean there still isn’t something left to play for. Idaho hosts Texas-San Antonio Saturday afternoon at the Kibbie Dome in what will be the final career home game for 19 Vandal seniors.
“A win would mean so much,” senior receiver Justin Veltung said. “This season obviously has been hard for us. For all of us seniors that have been trying our hardest to win games and putting it all on the line it would be great to win this last game at home.”
A win is a realistic expectation. The roadrunners of Texas-San Antonio may be 6-4 on the season but it’s a misleading 6-4. Two of those victories come against Division II schools, two have come against FCS schools, one has come against FBS-transitional South Alabama and the other was to New Mexico State. The roadrunners are 1-3 in WAC play.
The program is only in its second year of existence and is headed for Conference-USA in 2013, which will be its first season as a full FBS member. Considering the program wouldn’t be bowl-eligible in 2012 regardless of who it played, the six-wins are impressive enough. It should also be noted the head coach is Larry Coker, a former national champion at Miami.
The Vandals starting units are Senior heavy, especially on the defensive side of the ball.
Seniors we project to start are S Gary Walker, S Thaad Thomspon, CB Aaron Grymes…The entire linebacking core — Rob Siavii, Su’a Tuala and Homer Mauga, and DE Benson Mayowa.
On the offensive side of the ball Idaho fans will be saying farewell to Wide-receiver standouts Mike Scott, Justin Veltung, RB Ryan Bass and OG A.J. Jones.
QB Logan Bushnell should get his fourth start of the season. It’s a fitting end to Bushnell’s career, who arrived on campus in 2008 as a walk-on and was finally awarded a scholarship this August.
Of course, the two standout kickers will also be graduating — P Bobby Cowan and K Trey Farquhar.
Here’s what Cowan, Veltung and Siavii had to say about the week. (The video is actually only 6:30 long)
Opposing viewpoint
We caught up with Jared Kalmus of Coker Chronicles, who do a great job covering the young UTSA program, to find out a little bit more about the roadrunners.
(On quarterback play) – For Vandal fans unfamiliar with the UTSA offense, starting quarterback Eric Soza is a bit of a dual-threat guy. He’s a threat to keep the ball on option plays and does a terrific job of scrambling away from pressure in the pocket. His elusiveness can drive defensive linemen nuts. Soza doesn’t have the strongest of arms but is fairly accurate and makes wise decisions with the ball. Expect to see a multitude of formations from Offensive Coordinator Kevin Brown, everything from five wide sets to offset heavy power looks.
(On the birth of UTSA’s football program) – UTSA’s rise to relevance has been a lot of fun to follow. Previous to UTSA’s transition to FBS classification, San Antonio was the largest media market without Division I football and of course there is also no NFL team in the Alamo City. With over 30,000 students and a market hungry for top-tier football, it seems every goal the administration has set for itself has been grossly surpassed. UTSA broke the NCAA record for both single game attendance and average attendance for a start up program and sold over 12,000 season tickets this season. They are the fastest program to ever move into FBS after just one year of play. After the WAC crumbles this offseason, UTSA will slide over to Conference USA where they hope to develop in-state rivalries with the likes of UTEP, Rice and North Texas.
(On UTSA’s record) – You’re correct that UTSA’s 6-4 record is a bit misleading. The Roadrunners have played two Division II teams and two FCS teams, accounting for four of the wins. The other two wins come against two of the worst programs in FBS– New Mexico State and South Alabama. Nonetheless, six wins is a gigantic accomplishment for a second-year program with just six seniors on the squad. Larry Coker’s squad is healthily competing against teams with ~15 more scholarship players which I think speaks volumes to the coaching staff’s recruiting and player development. Fan expectation was very restrained coming into the season with most expecting 5-6 wins in the 12 game schedule. With six wins secured and two winnable games left on the schedule, it appears likely that the Runners will finish with at least seven wins. It will be interesting to see how fan confidence shifts next season with over 90% of the roster returning while entering a conference that is traditionally more competitive than the WAC.
(On expectations for this weekend’s game) – Most fans seem to be predicting a narrow victory for the Roadrunners. Vegas has set the line at around a touchdown in favor of UTSA. The loss of Blackman and Akey seem to have sent the Vandals into a tail spin while the young Roadrunners have gained a little bit more confidence each week. The team has played very well on the road this season and should continue to take care of business. I’ve seen many fans voice concerns about UTSA looking past the Vandals as the team’s huge rivalry match up with Texas State looms next week. It’s definitely something that could negatively factor in to the team’s preparation this week. Personally I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Vandals come out fired up on senior night and take advantage of the UTSA defense’s aggressiveness to build an early lead. I feel like Gesser has a couple of tricks up his sleeve.
(Final score prediction) – I’ll take UTSA 27-21.