Idaho Vandals
2012 Record: 1-11 (1-5 WAC)

OFFENSE

Scheme: Part of the reason Paul Petrino, Bobby’s brother and the former offensive coordinator at Illinois and Arkansas, is the new head coach is because of his offensive acumen. The Vandals finished second to last in scoring offense last season and rushed for just three touchdowns all season. Three. Really. Not surprisingly, the depth chart was very fluid in the spring as Petrino installed his pro-style offense.

Quarterbacks: The situation here is pretty dire. Last year’s starter, Dominique Blackman, was kicked off the team and the backup graduated so the next QB may have little experience. The one exception is senior Taylor Davis, who threw 70 passes last year. A big guy with a big arm, Davis (330 yards, 54%, 3 TDs, 4 interceptions) was considered a pretty big get when Idaho landed him, but he has yet to put it all together and has thrown more interceptions than touchdowns during his career. He faced stiff competition in the spring from redshirt frosh Chad Chalich, a local boy who was the 2011 Gatorade Idaho Player of the Year but was largely ignored by recruiting services. Chalich is undersized and doesn’t have a big arm, but he proved to be accurate and exited spring as the leader.

Further competition will come from two incoming recruits. JC transfer Anthony Neyer began his career at USC before going the junior college route and has decent overall tools, although he needs to work on his accuracy. True freshman Josh McCain will be given every chance to win the job as well, especially if Petrino is willing to look toward the future and accept that this year is going to be full of growing pains.

Running Backs: Last year’s leading rusher is gone and it appears the Vandals are going to lean on JC transfers to fill the void. Jerrel Brown did not put up big numbers last year in JUCO, but he has the potential, and size, to be a workhorse back who can move the pile and the chains. Kris Olugbode rushed for nearly 1,700 yards last year and has more home run ability, but also good size. They both had solid springs and it appears they’ll be the main guys. Senior James Baker (390 yds, 4.1 average, 2 TDs), a former JC transfer himself, has size and power, but appears to be the third option.

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends: Probably the most talented guys on the offensive side of the ball reside here. Senior Najee Lovett came in from the junior college ranks and immediately paid dividends last year. Lovett (50 receptions, 543 yds) has good hands and running ability, although he isn’t going to hurt anyone deep. Still, he’s steady. One player who blossomed in this offense in the spring was senior Jahrie Level, yet another former JC guy. Level (46 recs, 538 yds, 2 TDs) has good speed and size and lit it up in the spring game. A third senior, Roman Runner, provides another nice piece. Runner (18 recs, 218 yds) has good hands and quickness and will man the slot.

Depth beyond those three is shaky. Sophomore Marquan Major is tall and rangy, but he caught just two passes last year. The coaching staff really needs JC transfer Dezmon Epps, who can also play defensive back, and true freshman Reuben Mwehla to provide immediate help.

At tight end, Idaho has a big body in 6-2, 273-pound senior Michael LaGrone. LaGrone (16 recs, 134 yds, 2 TDs) is often used as a big wideout due to his great hands and ability to essentially box out defenders. Classmate Clayton Hume is more of a blocker, but redshirt freshman Eric Lemke has decent hands and the size to play an H-back position if Petrino so chooses.

Offensive Line: The offensive line was the bright spot on a bad offense last year and could be again this year with five guys who have started at least four games back. That being said, the QBs got sacked a lot in the spring so these guys need to work on pass protection because, given Petrino’s pedigree, the Vandals are going to air it out.

The one for-sure is junior center Mike Marboe, who has 23 career starts. Marboe is consistent, but also has decent ability. The left side of the line also seems set with sophomores Cody Elenz and Dallas Sandberg at LT and LG respectively. Elenz is powerful while Sandberg showed upside last season. The right side of the line is the main concern. Senior RT Jordan Johnson has started 18 times and is powerful, but struggles at times. Junior RG Spencer Beale has mainly been a reserve in his career and has bounced between guard and tackle. Depth is fairly non-existent in terms of talent.

DEFENSE

Scheme: Remember how the offense was bad? Yeah, so was the defense. They were aggressive, but still ranked amongst the worst teams against both the run and pass. New coordinator Ronnie Lee has a tall task ahead, but he was a co-coordinator at Minnesota and helped turn that defense around a few years back so hopes are, at minimum, the coaching will be improved. Lee will run a 4-3 defense, but right now it isn’t clear if he’ll attack or choose to sit back.

Defensive Line: Two starters are gone, but seven guys who appeared in at least 10 games last year return so this unit has some experience. What they lack, though, is size and numbers at tackle. On the flipside, Idaho has a wealth of options at end, although none are all-stars. The closest to that is junior Maxx Forde, one of the few players with good size and skills to match. Forde (37 tackles, 4 sacks) is decent against the run and has okay pass rushing moves. Sophomore Quinton Bradley (21 tackles, 3.5 for loss) was the top backup last year and should earn the other starting spot. Senior Vince Keener (20 tackles, 6 for loss, 2 sacks) is a quality backup with decent size. Junior Marius Burgsmueller, an import from Germany who played in all 12 games last year, and JC transfer Anthony Rice round out the group.

The interior is a big question mark after top tackle QuayShawne Buckley was kicked off the team in February. That leaves only three scholarship defensive tackles. The starters appear to be junior Karel Kearney and sophomore Ryan Edwards. Kearney made just seven tackles last year, but he has good size and quickness. Edwards is one of the team’s strongest players and the coaches think he has good upside. The only reserve is junior Jesse Davis (13 tackles, 3 for loss), who spent most of the spring at offensive line. Davis is athletic and could steal a starting job away. Although undersized, Keener could move over from end if needed.

Linebackers: Former coach Robb Akey was a defensive guy and for many years had solid LB corps. This year, Petrino and Lee will almost have to start from scratch after seven players who saw time here graduated. Granted, a few of those guys mainly played special teams, but that is still a lot of bodies to replace. Petrino hit the JC ranks to shore up this group, but the LB corps is a definite question mark.

In fact, right now it appears all three starting spots may go to JC guys. At MLB, Juan Martinez has the size, speed, and range to have an instant impact. His backup may be another junior college guy, Broc Westlake. Westlake made over 130 tackles at Sierra College as a freshman and he looks like a guy with great range and toughness. Battling to maintain a place is senior Matthew Willis, who was the top backup last year. Willis (36 tackles, 2.5 for loss) has experience, but probably less talent than the new guys.

On the outside, Idaho will turn to Marc Millian and Eric Tuipulotu, also JC transfers. Millian is undersized, but has great speed and athleticism. Tuipulotu is also on the small side at 5-11, 215, but he’s a big hitter who could play on the strong or weakside. Depth will be provided by redshirt freshmen.

Secondary: This is also a unit in a state of flux, with three starters gone. It could be addition by subtraction given how bad the pass defense was, but a distinct lack of experience isn’t necessarily good either.

The one returning starter is SS Trey Williams. A senior, Williams (28 tackles) was a spot starter who has great size and speed, but has rarely made big plays in his career. His running mate at safety will be junior FS Bradley Njouku, the top backup last year. Njouku (43 tackles, 1 int.) has good size and range and decent speed. Despite having less experience than Williams, he is more likely to be the star. Depth is nearly non-existent with just senior D’Mario Carter, who appeared in 10 games last year, as the only other safety on the roster. True freshman Armond Hawkins is listed as a corner, but could play here if needed.

Idaho has more bodies at corner, but no one that special. Sophomores Jayshawn Jordan and Solomon Dixon are the likely starters. Jordan (19 tackles) saw some time last year and has potential as a playmaker. Dixon (36 tackles, 3 ints.) actually started three times last year and has great speed, but lacks size and was too often pushed around. JC transfer Delency Parham will be asked to come in and play right away and many around the program think he could be the #1 guy by the end of summer camp. Hawkins could see time here if he doesn’t play safety.

Special Teams: Idaho had two decent specialists last year, but both have moved on so this unit is starting from scratch. True freshman Austin Rehkow has a big leg (he once made a 67-yarder) and is a good athlete and will handle field goals. Freshman Trent Cowan, the brother of the departed punter, takes over that job and looks like he could be a good one. The return units were awful and need to improve.

Schedule: Considering Idaho is coming off a 1-win season pretty much anything would be hard, but since the WAC disbanded and the Vandals are an independent this year (they’ll join the Sun Belt next year), there are seven road games this season. Not all of them are hard but winning away from home won’t be easy against anyone. And the home games aren’t ideal either, as Idaho faces Northern Illinois, Temple, and Fresno State among their five games in Moscow.

Overall: From everything I’ve read, Petrino has brought a new sense of enthusiasm and energy that was lacking during Akey’s last year or two. However, Idaho is also one of the toughest jobs in the FBS ranks due to a myriad of reasons. One of the issues is personnel. The Vandals are never going to attract elite recruits. Hell, they won’t attract many 3 star recruits so Petrino has to try to win with everyone else’s leftovers. It isn’t impossible, as Akey took the Vandals bowling one year, but it is real hard. With the exception of the WR group and the starting offensive line, the depth chart is littered with players with no experience and/or basically no depth. Petrino’s scheme may improve the offense and the JC transfers could help the defense, but Idaho is in for another long year.

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