Idaho meets Lehigh for first time since 1993 in first round of FCS playoffs
MOSCOW, Idaho – Two teams from opposite coasts. They last played 31 years ago. Now they meet again in the second round of the Football Championship Division Subdivision playoffs.
Idaho’s 77-14 victory against Pennsylvania’s Lehigh University at the Kibbie Dome in 1993 is probably a faint memory for Vandals fans. But it bears little relation to the team Idaho will face Saturday in Moscow.
Lehigh fashioned a 9-3 record (5-1 in the Patriot League) and managed a fourth-quarter comeback against favored Richmond in the FCS first round a week ago.
The Mountain Hawks are a sound bunch that won’t beat themselves but do not physically overmatch the Vandals, according to Idaho coach Jason Eck and Vandals players.
The matchup might turn on big plays, and Idaho is more than capable of producing those. But if the game comes down to a pair of players having big days against Lehigh, look to wide receiver Jordan Dwyer and defensive end Keyshawn James-Newby.
James-Newby, an All-Big Sky Conference first-team member and a finalist for the Buck Buchanan award honoring the top defensive player in FCS football, is sitting on 54 tackles this season, including 8.5 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks . He has been challenged by Eck to get another sack. Not the biggest rush end at about 240 pounds, James-Newby has also been forced to manage a chronic shoulder injury that might require surgery after the season. James-Newby said his mindset in dealing with the injury is to not let it control what he does on the field and to play freely.
“The more you think about it, the harder it is to manage,” he said.
Not merely planning to meet Eck’s challenge, he is looking for two or three sacks against Lehigh and its freshman quarterback, Hayden Johnson.
“We have got to stop the run first, then we can have some fun,” James-Newby said.
He characterizes the Mountain Hawks as fundamentally sound.
“But they are not the biggest team we have faced,” he said. “We can’t take them lightly … No hatred. No disgust.”
Dwyer has 60 receptions for 837 yards and a team-leading eight touchdowns. He is a second-team All-Big Sky member.
Eck said that as injuries forced Idaho to go deep into its quarterback depth chart this season, Dwyer played with three starting quarterbacks, unlike the All-Big Sky Conference first-team members who finished ahead of him.
“Ever since I have been playing football, I have had a knack for making big plays,” Dwyer said.
In Idaho’s quarterfinal game against Albany a year ago, Dwyer grabbed a 36-yard pass from Gevani McCoy for a touchdown in a game that ended the Vandals’ season with a 30-22 setback.
Dwyer got some revenge for that loss by catching a pair of touchdowns this season when Idaho rolled over the Great Danes 41-13 in a rematch.
His resume also includes touchdown catches against Football Bowl Subdivision opponents Washington State and Indiana.
“It is an awesome feeling getting a touchdown in the playoffs,” Dwyer said. “To do it in front of the home fans is awesome.”
James-Newby said the ability to alter a game rests on a foundation of bringing your best every play and taking advantage of offensive linemen either caught out of position or not as focused as you are.
“Urgency and consistency,” he said. “If you have both of them, good things are going to come your way. … some things (in line play) are uncontrollable. But if you can, don’t let them make the choice.”
For Dwyer, trying to run away from defenders can go different ways.
“Sometimes I think, ‘I can make a big play here,’ ” Dwyer said. “Sometimes, it just happens.”
In the second round of the playoffs, with a couple of 9-3 teams that don’t have much history with each other, both teams feature many abilities.
Idaho’s game against Lehigh may be determined by one team having more confidence. For the Vandals, James-Newby and Dwyer are solid choices to make the big play happen and propel Idaho to a win.