Idaho (2-4) and Eastern Washington (2-4) meet on the red turf on Saturday and, while the game probably won’t mean a whole lot to FCS landscape as a whole, it will mean everything to both the Vandals and the Eagles.
Not so long ago, this matchup would have major Big Sky and postseason implications. Now? Not so much. In fact, it’s incredibly likely that both EWU and Idaho need to run the table at this point to even be considered for the playoffs. Even then, there’s no guarantee that an 8-4 overall record will get it done in an FCS that is full of really good teams. What is almost a sure thing, though, is the fact that each of these teams needs a win in the worst way this weekend or their 2025 season will not go past November.
For Eastern Washington, that would be a result that’s become all too familiar in recent years. Once one of the premier teams out West, the Eagles are a far cry from what they used to be. Aaron Best’s group has not qualified for the FCS playoffs since 2021 and has posted three straight losing seasons since then. Their best record in that span has been 4-8 and this year has been an equally rough one in Cheney as the team has only won two contests midway through.
As has been the big problem lately, the defense has struggled greatly. The Eagles are allowing 35.7 points and a staggering 500 yards per game thus far. Even in their victories, the D has been less than stellar. Earlier this month, Eastern Washington beat a winless Portland State but still gave up 339 passing yards. In their Week 4 victory, the Eagles still let Western Illinois drop 31 on the board and only really won because their own offense outshot the Leathernecks.
EWU, though, has also had its fair share of issues on the other side of the ball and one reason why is the talent they lost there over the offseason. Guys like quarterback Kekoa Visperas and their everything man Michael Wortham transferred out to Tennessee Tech and Montana respectively. To add insult to injury, both of those guys are currently undefeated on their new teams and have been major contributors to those unblemished records. The Eagles are left to try and again put the pieces back together in another rebuild.
Then there’s Idaho; a team that is not used to the stagnancy they are currently experiencing. After losing so many key pieces from last year’s team that reached the quarterfinals, though, it isn’t a total surprise that the Vandals are slipping back a bit this fall. Thomas Ford took over as head coach to replace Jason Eck who left for New Mexico. Eck was clearly a difference-maker as Idaho did not miss the postseason during his three-year tenure and now the Lobos sit at 3-3 and are on pace to reach a bowl game for the first time in nearly a decade.
This situation is not one it appeared that Idaho looked like it would be in last month. Ford and his team nearly beat not one but two FBS opponents as they lost to both Washington State and San Jose State by a combined six points. In those games, the Vandals played gallantly and made it seem like they were going to be a problem for their Big Sky counterparts. That, though, has not been the case in recent weeks.
It certainly does not help that starting quarterback Joshua Wood missed last game with an injury. Without him, the Vandals looked lost against Northern Colorado (a team that only won one game in each of the last two years). Wood’s backup, Jack Wagner, was frazzled against the Bears, tossing two picks and fumbling once. That all resulted in a surprising 49-33 loss at home. A prior loss to Montana a few weeks back means that Idaho is already well behind in the Big Sky race and will almost surely not contend for a conference title now. They were ranked #11 in the national polls last week but the UNC loss will surely see them plummet when the updated Top 25 comes out.
This has all resulted in what feels like a do-or-die game this next weekend. Eastern Washington is desperately trying to stay relevant in a league and subdivision that is rapidly leaving it behind. Idaho is attempting to salvage a season that was supposed to be another exciting one. Whatever transpires in The Inferno, the team on the wrong end of it will surely be headed for a cold and quiet winter.
The Vandals and Eagles will kick off at 7:00 PM (ET) on Saturday evening. The game can be streamed on ESPN+.
