Vandals Fill Holes With Huge Linemen Cv’s Beck One Of Two 300-Pounders Signed By Idaho; Kicker Will Help, Too
Most of the names on Idaho’s football recruiting list won’t show up on the field for a few years.
But there’s a simple reason for the ones who will play this fall: They fill holes exposed in Idaho’s biggest losses last season.
Ben Davis, a Coeur d’Alene High grad who booted a 62-yard field goal for Ricks College last year, was signed to boost a kicking game that proved costly on numerous Saturdays in 1997.
And the defensive line, bullied in crushing Big West Conference losses to Utah State and Nevada, was restocked with five players, the most of any recruited position.
Line additions include 300-pound Wil Beck from Central Valley High and 298-pound junior-college transfer Ietitaia “Eddie” Lologo Jr., who will challenge for playing time and test the tongue of longtime Vandals radio broadcaster Bob Curtis.
“We have some talented defensive linemen, but we didn’t really have the size to dominate the line the way we needed to,” UI coach Chris Tormey said.
Tormey’s latest class has 19 high schoolers and five JC transfers. Area signees are Davis, Beck, Gonzaga Prep quarterback Kevin O’Connell, Lewiston linebacker Grant Wright and Cheney tight end/linebacker Romanus Chodorowski.
JC players, obviously, figure to contribute the quickest with Davis, Lologo Jr. and swift wide receiver Cleavon Bradshaw, who played as a true freshman at Idaho State before transferring to Miami Dade Community College.
Ricks College quarterback Gregory Robertson (6-foot-2, 217 pounds) is similar in size to sophomore Ed Dean, the favorite to replace Brian Brennan.
Lewiston redshirt freshman Brad Rice and O’Connell could be moved to other positions to utilize their athleticism, Tormey said.
Idaho signed 10 prep prospects from Washington.
“We saw what Eastern Washington did with its program with Washington recruits and it was a great year in the state of Washington,” said Tormey, adding that two assistant coaches who recruited in California left Idaho for jobs at Louisville.
Chodorowski, two-time All-Frontier League, was courted by “a lot of Pac-10 schools,” Tormey said.
Tormey considers two names not on the list as new recruits, in essence. Mao Tosi, a 270-pound specimen on the men’s basketball team, will turn out, probably at defensive end.
And standout running back Joel Thomas was awarded a sixth year of eligibility after missing last season with a severe knee injury. Thomas’ return might prompt promising sophomore Anthony Tenner to redshirt.
Five players are in-state, one with impeccable bloodlines. Parma running back Jordan Kramer is the son of former Vandals and Green Bay Packers star Jerry Kramer. Matt, another of Kramer’s sons, is a UI defensive end.
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