University of Idaho football will have new-look offense, defense under first-year coach

When Idaho hired football coach Jason Eck in December, there was excitement.

Then came questions, such as how the team would operate under the new regime.

At South Dakota State, Eck put a heavy emphasis on the running game, utilizing a lot of motion with tight ends at times. The program produced NFL talent such as Dallas Goedert and Pierre Strong Jr.

Eck said during the offseason that the offense this year would not be a carbon copy of the one at South Dakota State, with the coaching staff placing emphasis on building around personnel strengths on each side of the ball.

What the strengths and weaknesses are is a bit foggy, with the departure of starters Charles Akanno, Tre Walker and Tyrese Dedmon, as well as the ongoing quarterback competition between sophomores Gevani McCoy, CJ Jordan and now recent redshirt junior transfer J’Bore Gibbs.

But with Gibbs joining the Vandals, as well as other transfers in redshirt junior linebacker Paul Maola from Notre Dame and redshirt senior Juliano Falaniko from USC, and the return of senior defensive lineman Leo Tamba from injury, the image is becoming clearer.

“I think we’re pretty good with our depth on defense,” Eck said. “I think we’re going to be able to play a lot of guys on defense, which is something I believe in because you keep guys fresh. They’re going to play really, really hard. It’s good to have good rotations and play eight to 10 D-lineman so they can go in, play four plays and play really, really hard, and get a rest.”

Eck said the team would run a 3-4 base defense.

“But we play a lot of four-down fronts,” he said. “So basically, we have a stand-up defensive end on one side that gives us a little flexibility. (Defensive coordinator Rob) Aurich does a good job with mostly a zone coverage team, which we like. We get eyes on the quarterback that way and limit big plays.”

The utilization of multiple defensive players also will include preseason All-Big Sky selection Fa’avae Fa’avae, a redshirt senior linebacker, and redshirt senior defensive lineman Nate DeGraw.

Despite the ongoing quarterback competition, there’s a clearer picture on how the offense will look as well.

“I think we’re probably going to highlight some of our receivers,” Eck said. “I think Terez Traynor and (Hayden) Hatten are really good players. And I think we’ll find ways to get those guys touches and get the ball in their hands. ... We’re still trying to merge our running game (into the offense).”

The Vandals, 4-7 last season, open the 2022 football year across the river at Washington State on Saturday, Sept. 3. Their first home game is Sept. 17 against Drake.

This story was originally published August 1, 2022 at 2:23 PM.