Idaho to be on ROOT SPORTS
With Idaho football’s return to the Big Sky Conference this fall, a new TV contract is also in tact for the Vandals as well.
Idaho will be featured three times this season in ROOT SPORTS Game of the Week this upcoming season.
ROOT SPORTS and the Big Sky announced the broadcast schedule for the upcoming season on Monday, beginning with Montana State (Oct. 13), at Eastern Washington (Oct. 27) and Montana (Nov. 10) for Idaho’s home finale.
This is the seventh year ROOT SPORTS and the Big Sky Conference have been in a partnership and now Idaho football will play a part in the mix.
All 10 Big Sky conference football games will be showcased on the network as well as being available in many areas of the Pacific Northwest.
Idaho looks to dominate in their return to the Big Sky after a historic run from 1963-1996, where the Vandals won eight straight conference titles throughout that time.
ROOT SPORTS will announce game times this coming summer, with many Idaho fans getting a better opportunity to watch Vandal games on television.
Vandal award sweep
The 56th North Idaho Sports Banquet was held Saturday night in Coeur d’Alene with Vandal Athletics stealing the show.
Idaho Athletics was a huge winner on the night, taking home many awards throughout the night with Male and Female Athlete of the Year amongst the rest.
Idaho men’s basketball senior Brayon Blake won Male Athlete of the Year after averaging 17 points and a conference-best 9.6 rebounds per game. Blake finished the season with 52 3-pointers on the season while shooting 44.8 percent from beyond the arc.
Idaho women’s basketball junior Mikayla Ferenz took home Female Athlete of the Year after her historic season for the Vandals. Ferenz averaged nearly 23 points a game as well as 6.4 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game, while becoming a CoSIDA Academic All-American. Ferenz set a school-record, scoring 742 points on the season, while ranking first in the conference and 11th in the NCAA in scoring.
Vandal Basketball continued with the awards with Idaho Men’s Basketball Head Coach Don Verlin taking away Co-College Coach of the year. Idaho football legends Sherriden May (1991-94) and Sam Merriman (1979-82) were inducted into the Idaho Athletic Hall of Fame on the night as well.
Idaho women’s basketball adds one
Idaho women’s basketball added another addition to the coaching staff Tuesday when Head Coach Jon Newlee added Drew Muscatell to the squad.
Muscatell has spent the last three seasons as an assistant at the University of Portland, and now hopes to have success here at Idaho.
“I am very excited to add Drew to our Vandal family,” Newlee said in a news release. “He is going to bring a ton of energy and passion to the position. I feel like he will be a huge asset to our program.”
Before his time with Portland, Muscatell was a video coordinator at San Jose State, as well as a practice player during his collegiate years at the University of Oregon.
Muscatell hopes to help Idaho improve next season, while help bring new recruits to the Idaho Vandals.
UI awaits decision from SBOE
The Idaho State Board of Education is set to meet beginning April 18-19 to discuss an array of topics, including the budget proposal put forth by President Chuck Staben. The plan proposes to waive the $1 million deficit cap in order to avoid further deficit. UI would add three no-scholarship, limited-cost sports to generate revenue. If the SBOE decides against the proposal, UI would be forced to cut three sports — women’s soccer, men’s golf and women’s swim and dive — to cut costs immediately.
The meeting begins Wednesday and concludes Thursday in the Bruce M. Pitman Center. The SBOE will discuss the budget during the Thursday session which starts at 8 a.m. and is open to the public.
Chris Deremer can be reached at [email protected]