1981 Idaho Vandals football team

Coordinates: 46°43′34″N 117°01′05″W / 46.726°N 117.018°W / 46.726; -117.018

1981 Idaho Vandals football
Conference Big Sky Conference
1981 record 3–8 (0–7 Big Sky)
Head coach Jerry Davitch (4th season)
Offensive coordinator Bill Tripp (4th season)
Offensive scheme Veer
Defensive coordinator Leland Kendall
(2nd season)
Home stadium Kibbie Dome
1981 Big Sky football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
#2 Idaho State $^ 6 –1 –0  12 –1 –0
#5 Boise State ^ 6 –1 –0  10 –3 –0
Montana 5 –2 –0  7 –3 –0
Nevada 4 –3 –0  7 –4 –0
Weber State 4 –3 –0  7 –4 –0
Northern Arizona 2 –5 –0  4 –7 –0
Montana State 1 –6 –0  3 –7 –0
Idaho 0 –7 –0  3 –8 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – Division I-AA playoff participant
  • Idaho State earned automatic berth and
    Boise State earned at-large berth in I-AA playoffs.
Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA poll (released before championship playoffs)

The 1981 Idaho Vandals football team represented the University of Idaho in the 1981 NCAA Division I-AA football season. The Vandals, led by fourth-year head coach Jerry Davitch, were members of the Big Sky Conference and played their home games at the Kibbie Dome, an indoor facility on campus in Moscow, Idaho.

Led by sophomore quarterback Ken Hobart in the veer offense, the Vandals finished 3–8 in the regular season but were winless in the Big Sky. In the season finale, Idaho lost to rival Boise State for the fifth straight year, but it was the Broncos' last win over Idaho until 1994, as the Vandals won a dozen straight in the interim.

In August, Sports Illustrated had picked the Vandals as one of the top teams in Division I-AA,[1] but after a fifth straight loss and no wins in six conference games, Davitch was fired nine days before the final game against Boise State. Several weeks later Dennis Erickson was hired and immediately turned the Vandal program around in 1982, reaching the quarterfinals of the 12-team Division I-AA playoffs.

In 1981, Idaho State and Boise State were the top two teams in the Big Sky and both advanced to the 8-team Division I-AA playoffs, won their first-round games, and hosted the semifinals. Boise State was stopped by Eastern Kentucky, whom Idaho State defeated the following week in Texas to win the national title.

Notable players

Sophomore quarterback Ken Hobart of Kamiah changed from an option quarterback in the veer to a prolific passer under Erickson. He led the Vandals to a 9–4 record in 1982 and an 8–3 record in 1983 as a senior, when he was a Division I-AA All-American. Hobart played a season in the USFL with Jacksonville in 1984 and several in the CFL.

Junior linebacker Sam Merriman from Tucson[2] was selected in the seventh round (177th overall) of the 1983 NFL Draft by the Seattle Seahawks. A four-year starter for the Vandals, he played five seasons with Seattle, primarily on special teams.[3][4][5] A serious knee injury in a 1988 preseason game ended his playing career.[6][7][8]

Fallen teammate

At the close of the 1981 spring semester, Vandal wide receiver Joe Keogh, age 20, was killed in a mid-morning automobile accident. En route to Seattle on Saturday, May 16, he was one of four occupants in a vehicle westbound on Interstate 90, west of Ellensburg. The driver, a family friend, lost control and veered off the road and the car ended on its side. Keogh, a 1979 graduate of Gonzaga Prep in Spokane,[9] was the only fatality.[10][11]

Keogh's Vandal teammates wore his number 4 on the right side of their helmets during the 1981 season.[12][13] It was the second death for the football team in less than ten months: prior to his senior season, standout running back Glen White had died in August 1980 after a brief battle with aplastic anemia.[14]

Schedule

Date Time Opponent Site Result Attendance
Sep 05 7:30 p.m. Simon Fraser (NAIA)* Kibbie Dome • Moscow, Idaho W 52–7   10,500
Sep 12 6:30 p.m. at Weber State Wildcat Stadium • Ogden, Utah L  21–42   15,900
Sep 19 7:30 p.m. Northern Iowa* Kibbie Dome • Moscow, Idaho W 59–14   12,000
Sep 26 10:30 p.m. at Hawaii (Div. I-A)* Aloha Stadium • Honolulu, Hawaii L    6–21   43,719
Oct 03 7:00 p.m. at Portland State (Div. II)* Civic Stadium • Portland, Oregon W 56–9     3,000
Oct 10 7:30 p.m. Montana Kibbie Dome • Moscow, Idaho (Little Brown Stein) L  14–16   11,000
Oct 17 1:00 p.m. at Montana State Reno H. Sales Stadium • Bozeman, Montana L  28–29   10,017
Oct 24 1:30 p.m. Nevada-Renodagger Kibbie Dome • Moscow, Idaho L  14–23   14,000
Oct 31 7:30 p.m. No. 3 Idaho State Kibbie Dome • Moscow, Idaho L  14–24   10,500
Nov 07 6:30 p.m. at Northern Arizona Walkup Skydome • Flagstaff, Arizona L    3–24   10,500
Nov 21 7:30 p.m. No. 4 Boise State Kibbie Dome • Moscow, Idaho (Rivalry) L  43–45   14,000
*Non-conference game. daggerHomecoming. #Rankings from NCAA (Div. I-AA). All times are in Pacific time.

Roster

1981 Idaho Vandals football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos.#NameClass
RB 3 Russell Davis So
FL 7 Jack Klein Sr
QB 9 Ken Hobart So
QB 11 Mark Vigil So
QB 16 Carmen Espinoza
QB, RB 30 Dave Jeranko Sr
RB 34 Randy Zimmerman
RB 35 Wally Jones Jr
RB 33 Terry Idler Jr
RB 45 Tim Payne Jr
LG 56 Kima Sua Jr
RG 62 Steve Seman Jr
LT 63 Dave Frohnen Jr
C 64 Bob Wartella Jr
LG 72 Tony Cotta Sr
RT 74 Bruce Fery Sr
LT 76 Greg Diehl Jr
TE Tom Coombs Sr
TE 87 Kurt Vestman So
WR 88 Vic Wallace Jr
WR Curtis Johnson Jr
 Defense
Pos.#NameClass
CB 2 Calvin Loveall Fr
CB 22 Mike Keough Sr
SS 25 Kelly Miller Sr
CB 41 Greg Jennings Sr
FS 42 Boyce Bailey So
CB 43 Howard Wilcox Jr
DE 44 Frank Moreno So
NG 47 Darby Lewis So
LB 52 Sam Merriman Jr
LB 57 Larry White So
DE Jay Hayes Sr
DT Dan Saso Sr
NG 79 Paul Griffin Jr
DT 85 John Fortner Jr
DE 90 Lloyd Williamson So
 Special teams
Pos.#NameClass
KR 2 Calvin Loveall Fr
PK, P 6 Pete O'Brien Sr
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
  • Bill Tripp (OC)
  • Leland Kendall (DC)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured
  • Redshirt
Source:[15][16][17][18][19][20][21]

NFL Draft

Two Vandal seniors were selected in the 1982 NFL Draft,[22][23][24] which lasted twelve rounds (334 selections).

PlayerPositionRoundOverallFranchise
Tom CoombsTE7th181New York Jets
Russell DavisRB11th305Cincinnati Bengals

References

  1. ↑ Mike, DeInagro (August 31, 1981). "Small colleges". Sports Illustrated. p. 64.
  2. ↑ Ramsdell, Paul (November 27, 1982). "Lucky Sam Merriman". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. p. 1C.
  3. ↑ "Sam Merriman". Database Football. Archived from the original on October 10, 2016. Retrieved September 9, 2016.
  4. ↑ Weaver, Dan (July 18, 1984). "Low in the draft, high on the team". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. p. 15.
  5. ↑ Jacobson, Bryan (December 20, 1986). "Like riding a bike". Idahonian. Moscow. p. 25.
  6. ↑ "Seahawks lose Merriman for year". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. August 13, 1988. p. B1.
  7. ↑ Pierce, Oliver (September 14, 1988). "Merriman isn't merry on sidelines". Idahonian. Moscow. p. 9A.
  8. ↑ "Seahawks cut Merriman, two others". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. April 18, 1989. p. C3.
  9. ↑ "Football signings". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. February 22, 1979. p. 5B.
  10. ↑ "Car accident kills UI football player". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. May 17, 1981. p. 3C.
  11. ↑ "13 are killed on highways". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. May 18, 1981. p. 1.
  12. ↑ Emerson, Paul (October 27, 1981). "An instinct for the ball". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. p. 1C.
  13. ↑ "'96 Vandals will sport new look". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. April 28, 1996. p. 6B.
  14. ↑ "UI running back dies". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. August 10, 1980. p. 2B.
  15. ↑ "Probable starters". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). September 5, 1981. p. 5B.
  16. ↑ "Probable starters". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). September 26, 1981. p. 3B.
  17. ↑ "Probable starters". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). October 10, 1981. p. 5C.
  18. ↑ "Probable starters". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). October 31, 1981. p. 3C.
  19. ↑ "Probable starters". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). November 21, 1981. p. 1C.
  20. ↑ Missildine, Harry (November 21, 1981). "Davitch's last Idaho hurrah". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 17.
  21. ↑ Stewart, Chuck (November 20, 1981). "Memories". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 18.
  22. ↑ "NFL teams grab best local talent". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. April 29, 1981. p. 27.
  23. ↑ "Four Cougars, two Vandals picked". Spokane Chronicle. (Washington). April 29, 1982. p. 35.
  24. ↑ "NFL teams add Idaho players in late rounds". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). April 29, 1982. p. 1C.
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