Nov. 13—MOSCOW, Idaho — Shut out of the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs for the first time after a three-year run that included back-to-back trips to the quarterfinals, Idaho (4-6, 2-4 in the Big Sky Conference) is looking to make the best of a disappointing year in which the Vandals failed to live up to preseason predictions as a top 10 FCS team.
They have two games remaining against Sacramento State and Idaho State to draw even overall and in the Big Sky, and the first of those, against the Hornets, is setting up as a playoff game of sorts.
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The Hornets, in third place in the league at 4-2, 6-4 overall and winners of four of their last five games, have a chance to make the playoffs themselves with a strong finish against Idaho and University of California Davis. For Idaho to play the role of spoiler, though, it will have to cope with two of the most dynamic players in the league. Rodney Hammond Jr. is a terror as a running back. He had 240 all-purpose yards against Portland State in the Hornets’ last outing, including 191 rushing yards to become the Big Sky Offensive Player of the Weeki, and the week before, against Eastern Washington, he went off for 208 rushing yards. For the season, the senior transfer from Pitt has 953 yards rushing and 11 rushing touchdowns.
Hammond is the pick of a talented litter.
“They have three or four kids in their tailback room who can play for anybody in our league,” says Idaho coach Thomas Ford Jr. “They are physical up front with the mentality they want to grind you.
“You have to prepare like it’s a street fight. There are no rules.”
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Idaho brings the third-best defense in the conference to try to stop this rushing attack. The Vandals are giving up an average 372.8 yards per game, including 143.8 rushing yards.
Sacramento State can also take the top off a defense with Ernest Campbell. The redshirt freshman transfer from TCU is only 5-9, 145 pounds, but he can fly. A sprinter on the track team, he has run 10.02 for 100 meters. No one else in the Big Sky comes close. Campbell is a true deep threat with 30 pass receptions for 683 yards with seven touchdowns.
The only place Idaho wants to see them is on the sidelines.
“Our defense and front seven against their offense and running backs is going to be crucial,” says Ford.
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“We have really got to do a good job of staying on the field, and when we get in the red zone we have got to score.”
Vandals’ quarterback Joshua Wood missed two games and played a half with a sprained knee. But he is back to full strength. For the season, Wood has thrown for 1,663 yards and 14
touchdowns. He has also run for 443 yards and six touchdowns. Senior running back Elisha Cummings also fought through nagging injuries this season but has recovered. He has a season high of 106 rushing yards against EWU and for the season is averaging 5.2 yards per carry. He has also caught 24 passes for 302 yards and three touchdowns.
A third Vandal is rounding into shape as the season draws to a close. Senior wide receiver Michael Graves played in only six games this year because of a persistent foot injury. Against UC Davis, however, in Idaho’s most recent game, a 28-14 loss, Graves accounted for both Vandals touchdowns on receptions of 34 and 68 yards. Playing against the Hornets is a homecoming for Graves, who is from Sacramento.
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Ford says of a tightly bonded Vandals team what every coach says as the end of a season draws near.
“Let’s send these seniors out on a high note. Our senior class has been part of something special here.”
At the same time, he looks at a disappointing season marred by injuries to key contributors and a four-game losing streak as a school of hard knocks that will pay off in the future. Because of the injuries, Idaho was forced to play many young players who now have 500 to 1,000 snaps. Ford said he told sophomore safeties Hayden John and Matt Irwin “how much better we are than week two, how much better will you be in a year?
“You only lose if you don’t learn.”
