Vandals hunt down Wolfpack in dominant win

After a 33-6 win over Nevada, the University of Idaho football team is 2-0 for the first time since 1998.  

Redshirt sophomore quarterback Gevani McCoy led the Vandals to their first FBS win since 2017. He put up 313 yards, completing 15/21 attempts. He also threw for two touchdowns, including one for 75 yards to graduate student tight end Turon Ivy Jr. on the first play.  

“We had that scheduled as our first play,” McCoy said. “It was a great way to start the game off with the first play being a touchdown. It doesn’t get much better than that.” 

Idaho dominated in every facet of this game, leading in every statistical category other than sacks and total tackles. The Vandals put up 463 total yards on offense while the Wolfpack finished with 266. Idaho’s secondary also led on the defensive side of the ball with two interceptions and a forced fumble recovery.  

Mathias Bertram led on defense for the Vandals. The redshirt junior linebacker racked up eight total tackles, 2.5 of which were tackles for loss.  

Not far behind Bertram was redshirt freshman LB Dylan Lane. Lane had the best game of his young career, putting up four tackles, three broken-up passes and one interception. 

Although it wasn’t for long, Dylan wasn’t the only Lane to take the field. His twin brother, redshirt freshman QB Jack Layne, came in for the final few minutes of the game. He had one rush for nine yards, which eventually led to a first-down conversion.  

Nevada’s senior wide receiver Jamaal Bell was one of head coach Jason Eck’s biggest concerns coming into this game. He racked up eight receptions for 67 yards.  

One of the players passing to him, redshirt freshman QB AJ Bianco, had more than the game of football on his mind. His family’s home burned during the deadly wildfire in Lahaina, Hawai’i, just a few weeks before the game against Idaho. To support his family, Bianco and the Nevada football team are partnering to sell Lahaina strong t-shirts. 

With a 2-0 start behind them, the Vandals now look toward what may be their toughest opponent of the season, The University of California, Berkley. However, McCoy is confident in his teammates and their ability to win games. 

“We have a lot of playmakers, especially (in) our receiver room,” McCoy said. “We have so many weapons, it’s not fair.” 

Idaho will take on the California Golden Bears for their final non-conference game on Sept. 16. Cal comes in 1-1 after a defensive battle with Auburn, which ended in a 14-10 loss. The game will be available on the Pac 12 Network.  

James Taurman-Aldrich can be reached at [email protected] or on X @jamesaldrich25