Jones must keep up

MOSCOW, Idaho – He’s left an unmistakable imprint for three years. Ferocious-hitting, emotion-filled and always bold, Shiloh Keo is the backbone of Idaho’s defense for a reason.

It’s been that way since he was a true freshman.

But for the first time in his career, the strong safety’s on-the-field presence won’t be felt Saturday. His streak of 28 consecutive starts will end after he sprained his shoulder last week.

While the defensive captain heals, the Vandals will turn to Jeromy Jones, an almost complete unknown. Does that worry coach Robb Akey?

If it does, he’s not letting on to the media.

“He’s a physical son of a gun who can run,” Akey said of Jones. “It’s getting it all channeled in the right direction. But he’s got very, very good tools. I’m certainly glad he’s with us.”

Two days before fall practice started, Jones had never stepped foot on the UI campus. He didn’t have a scholarship or an idea of what his role would be.

Now he is a starter in Idaho’s secondary.

Yet if he can harness his raw ability, specifically the speed and athleticism Akey raves about, the void left by Keo might not seem so noticeable.

“It’s a big loss,” Jones said of Keo’s injury. “But that’s why they bring good players in to fill holes when somebody goes down.”

The junior walk-on from Arizona Western College landed on Idaho’s radar after coaches recruited several players from his high school.

The Las Vegas native will try to bring energy to a defensive unit that ranks near the bottom in every major statistical category in the nation. The Vandals (1-3) are last in scoring defense and 115th out 119 FBS schools in total defense.

Jones has been inserted in nickel packages throughout the season, but he got his first full dose of playing time when Keo left in the first quarter of last week’s loss at Utah State. That experience, however brief, should do loads of good, he said.

“It was kind of tough last week, because I wasn’t used to playing all those full-speed snaps,” said the 6-foot, 200-pounder who intercepted a pass after coming into the game. “I was getting one every once in a while. But this week it will be way better.”

Let’s skip halftime

For a second straight week, Akey was left answering questions about a tumultuous second half for the Vandals. They’ve dropped back-to-back games in which they led or were tied in the third quarter.

The losses to Western Michigan and USU came by a combined 48 points.

“As an offense, we self-destructed,” Akey said of last week’s setback. “As a defense, we self-destructed a little bit.”

Utah State coach Brent Guy, on the other hand, was pleased with how the Aggies responded to a tense situation.

“We did a great job of handling adversity,” Guy said.

Please play us

In the wake of Boise State’s upset win at Oregon last week, coach Chris Petersen was asked if it will be tougher to schedule BCS conference teams to clash with the Broncos.

“I think it’s hard to schedule, in general, because everyone wants home games and everyone wants them early,” Petersen said.

The Ducks, like Oregon State recently, have agreed to play a home-and-home series with BSU.

Around the league

New Mexico State safety Derrick Richardson leads the nation in tackles (19 per game) after a career-high 21 takedowns against UTEP. … By jumping back into the polls this week, Boise State has made an appearance in the Top 25 each of the last seven seasons. … The WAC will try to get its second win over the Pac-10 when Fresno State meets UCLA on Saturday.