Vandals set to move up to WAC

For once, University of Idaho football coach Nick Holt doesn’t feel like he’s playing catch-up.

It’s the recruiting season, really the most important season for rebuilding programs such as Idaho’s, which is coming off its fifth consecutive losing season. Holt, hired roughly a year ago to the day, got a delayed start on his first recruiting class.

Not so this time around.

“We’re kind of on top of it,” Holt said. “If we had 50 scholarships, it’d be awesome.”

As it is, Idaho has approximately 21 scholarships available. “It’s really important we take the right guys,” Holt said. “We have a lot of interested kids.”

And a lot of holes to fill. Idaho, 3-9 in 2004, needs a lot of everything – speed, strength and size. The Vandals are seeking immediate help with five to eight junior college players.

The biggest needs are at receiver, defensive back and on the defensive front, but don’t be surprised if Idaho taps into the J.C. ranks for everything from a quarterback to a kicker. Idaho played 17 true freshmen from Holt’s first class – it would have been 18 if defensive tackle Alex Toailoa had been healthy. However, classes that were on campus before Holt’s arrival are thin.

“The freshmen class was excellent, but unfortunately we had to ask a lot of kids to play and some probably weren’t ready physically,” Holt said. “They did an admirable job. Now we have to keep recruiting well.”

That task might be made somewhat easier by Idaho’s move into the Western Athletic Conference. Still, 2005 could be another tough year on the field with the WAC a couple of rungs higher on the I-A ladder compared to Idaho’s previous home in the Sun Belt.

“We just need bigger and faster guys, but being in the new conference will allow us to be on that type of kid,” Holt said.

Idaho lost to Boise State, No. 8 in the BCS standings, 65-7 and to Hawaii 52-21. Fresno State is bowl bound and Louisiana Tech won six games. Nevada appears to be on the rise. UTEP, which will play in the EV1.net Houston Bowl, and WAC also-rans Tulsa, SMU and Rice are departing for Conference USA. WAC holdover San Jose State and newcomers Utah State and New Mexico State will have new head coaches.

“I know Hawaii put 40 points on a lot of people; they’re excellent offensively,” Holt said. “Boise is undefeated. Fresno State is in the top 20 year in and year out. La Tech is a heck of a team. After those, the rest of us are kind of battling around.”

If you thought Idaho was young in 2004, wait until 2005. The Vandals might only have two senior starters on offense (quarterback Michael Harrington and center Jarrod Schulte) and possibly 2-4 on defense (end Mike Anderson, tackle Jeff Edwards and linebackers Cole Snyder and Nate Nichols).

The undersized defensive line lost several players to injury at different segments of the season and didn’t have the depth to compensate adequately.

Siua Musika, who started as a true freshman, and Toailoa could be fixtures at tackle for years. Edwards, a Lake City grad, played well in the eight games he was healthy.

Idaho loses its most productive lineman in senior end Brandon Kania. Anderson struggled at times in adapting to his move from linebacker to end. He forced and recovered three fumbles but didn’t register a sack.

“In conference we played pretty good defensively early on but as the season went on and without any bye weeks, it really wore on us and we were depleted up front,” Holt said.

The linebackers return intact, but there could be some shuffling. Snyder was steady in the middle. Incumbent starters Nichols and Robert Davis will face challenges from Ben Alexander and David Vobora, both of whom made spot starts as true freshmen. Sophomore-to-be Josh Bousman, who had 32 tackles in limited duty, also could be a factor.

The secondary loses three senior starters in cornerbacks J.R. Ruffin and Chris Nathan and safety Simeon Stewart. Ruffin figures to be the toughest to replace.

Reggie Jones and Chris Meadows are possible starters at cornerback. Jones had seven tackles in four games as a true freshman. Meadows will be a redshirt freshman. Herb Cash, a J.C. transfer who added depth, is in the picture.

Strong safety Daniel Dykes, who started every game as a true freshman and was Idaho’s third leading tackler, could be joined at free safety by Jevon Butler, who played in six games as a true freshman. Other options are Brandon Mascorro and Brandon Nystrom.

Mike Barrow can expect to face a challenger or two after making 4 of 12 field goals. He averaged 38.8 yards per punt.

There were some bright spots on offense. Harrington narrowly missed out on Idaho’s single-season completion percentage record. He finished at 68 percent, just behind Rick Sloan’s record 68.1 in 1985. With one more completion, Harrington would have finished at 68.1.

Harrington directed a low-risk offense that relied on short, underneath routes. The Vandals would like to stretch defenses, but they need improved down-field accuracy from Harrington and more speed at receiver to do so.

Wendell Octave, who is scheduled for surgery on both knees, will be a primary threat. Desmond Belton and Christian Populis combined for 15 catches as true freshmen. Belton showed considerable promise late in the season.

Sophomore-to-be Ryan Heacock, a Central Valley graduate, contributed 10 catches, including the longest reception of the season – a 46-yarder against Washington State.

“We’ve got to get some speed on the perimeter,” Holt said.

The ground game was impressive in Idaho’s three wins.

The Vandals had 250 yards rushing against Louisiana-Lafayette, 297 versus Arkansas State and six rushing touchdowns against Eastern Michigan. Jayson Bird (859 yards), Rolly Lumbala (614) and speedy Antwaun Sherman (73) return.

Tight end Luke Smith-Anderson, another Lake City grad, shared team-high honors with three touchdown receptions.

Up front, Jade Tadvick, Hank Therien, Nate VanderPol, Jarrod Schulte, Ryan Waage, Marcis Fennell and Desmond Clark have starting experience.