Idaho came out of fall camp thinking it had made great strides since last season, when it finished 2-10.

In 60 minutes Thursday night, that optimism was washed away as Eastern Washington defeated the Vandals 20-3 in the Kibbie Dome in Moscow.

“My hat is off to Eastern Washington,” Idaho coach Robb Akey said. “They did well and we didn’t do well.”

Quarterback Dominique Blackman won the starting job in fall camp, but was in street clothes for the opener. Akey wouldn’t say why Blackman missed the game.

“That’s between he and I and it will stay between he and I,” he said.

Akey said Blackman will start at Bowling Green next Saturday. “He is our starting quarterback,’’ Akey said.

Senior Logan Bushnell got the start and was 10-of-24 for 123 yards and an interception.

“It’s not one kid’s fault,” Akey said. “Nobody better dare try and pin this all on Bushnell.”

The numbers bear that out — Idaho was outplayed in all phases of the game. Eastern Washington gained 152 yards on the ground, while Idaho managed 73 yards on 28 attempts.

The Eagles had 260 yards through the air, compared to 164 for Idaho (Taylor Davis came in late and threw for 41 yards).

Eastern Washington scored two TDs, but Idaho had just two plays that gained more than 10 yards.

“We had opportunities to make things happen,” Akey said. “It is a team effort. It is a whole family effort. We didn’t play well enough.”