Vandals Get Shot At No. 1 Like Magic, Idaho Makes 1-Aa Playoffs; Faces Mcneese State

Hey Pokey, poof, Idaho’s in.

Boise State football coach Pokey Allen said on Saturday Idaho would have to be “magicians” to make the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs with a 6-4 record.

Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the Idaho Illusionists.

On Sunday morning, the selection committee announced Idaho received an at-large berth. The Vandals will have to play large to advance as they meet No. 1-ranked McNeese State (11-0) on Saturday night at 5:05 PDT at Cowboy Stadium in Lake Charles, La.

“I say, ‘Let’s go play,”’ said UI coach Chris “Houdini” Tormey, still beaming from Saturday’s 33-13 pounding of Boise State. “They’re the best, ranked No. 1. Let’s go see where we stand.”

McNeese State, the top seed, has twice bounced UI from recent playoffs. The Cowboys beat Idaho 38-21 in Lake Charles last year and 23-20 in Moscow in 1992.

Idaho is seeded No. 15 and selection committee chairman Chuck Boone said the Vandals were the last team to make the 16-team field.

The No. 16 seed, Northern Iowa, a 17-14 loser to the Vandals two weeks ago, was one of six automatic qualifiers as Gateway Conference champion.

UI’s selection was somewhat of a surprise, but the committee sounded determined to take two teams from the Big Sky. Idaho was 4-3 in conference and tied for second with Boise State, Weber State and Northern Arizona. UI beat two of those three clubs and also defeated Sky champ Montana.

Sixth-seeded Montana will entertain No. 10 Eastern Kentucky.

After a 1-3 start, Idaho won five of its last six games and defeated three straight ranked foes to end the regular season.

“They beat four ranked teams (overall) and they beat quality competition,” Boone said. “They were strong at the end.”

Idaho had its share of luck as well. Elsewhere, bubble teams such as Richmond, Rhode Island, Indiana State and Northwestern State (La.), lost on Saturday. Richmond and Northwestern State lost their last two games.

Perhaps most crucial was Weber State’s 35-25 loss to Idaho State. A win would have made Weber State 7-4, second place outright in the conference and the Wildcats also defeated UI.

UI quarterback Eric Hisaw was rousted from sleeping by a morning phone call from an assistant coach with the playoff news.

“I thought there’d be a good chance we would go and a good chance we wouldn’t,” Hisaw said. “It’s a Cinderella season.”

Receiver Robert Scott was to fly home on Sunday morning to California for the Thanksgiving holidays. UI coaches were attempting to have Scott paged at the airport. “I don’t know if he’s gone,” Tormey said. “But we’ll get him back.”

McNeese State has many of the same players who have been instrumental in their previous wins over UI. Senior quarterback Kerry Joseph has thrown for 1,954 yards and 21 touchdowns and run for another 392 yards. Senior Henry Fields rushed for 1,008 yards and seven TDs.

The Cowboys’ closest game was a 30-24 win over James Madison, the only team to score more than 16 points against McNeese.

Idaho didn’t submit bids to host any of the three playoff rounds and will almost certainly be on the road throughout its playoff run.

“When the (bidding) came out, that was about Weber State time,” UI athletic director Pete Liske said, referring to the Vandals playoff chances being seemingly dead following a loss to Weber State on Oct. 28.

The UI-McNeese winner will face the victor of Delaware-Hofstra.

, DataTimes