Conference Big Sky Conference Home stadium Kibbie Dome | 1985 record 9–3 (6–1 Big Sky) | |
Head coach Dennis Erickson (4th year) Offensive coordinator Keith Gilbertson (2nd year) Defensive coordinator John L. Smith (4th year) | ||
The 1985 Idaho Vandals football team represented the University of Idaho in the 1985 NCAA Division I-AA football season. The Vandals, led by fourth-year head coach Dennis Erickson, were members of the Big Sky Conference and played their home games at the Kibbie Dome, an indoor facility on campus in Moscow, Idaho.
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The Vandals won their first outright conference title since 1971 (the 1982 team tied for the title, but lost the head-to-head tiebreaker to Montana). Led first by redshirt junior quarterback Scott Linehan and then by senior Rick Sloan, Idaho finished the regular season at 9–2 and 6–1 in the Big Sky.
The 1985 season marked the first time in school history that the Vandals had four consecutive winning seasons in football.
Notable games
The Vandals opened the season with a 15-point loss at Oregon State in Corvallis, whom they had defeated the year before in Moscow. After six straight losses to Nevada-Reno, Idaho recorded its first conference victory over the Wolf Pack, who joined the Big Sky in 1979. The Vandals defeated rival Boise State for the fourth consecutive year, the fourth of twelve straight over the Broncos. A key one-point road loss at Idaho State in late October prevented the Vandals from attaining an important first round bye in the I-AA playoffs.
Division I-AA playoffs
After a two-season absence, Idaho returned to the 12-team I-AA playoffs, hosting independent Eastern Washington, whom they had defeated four weeks earlier by three touchdowns. The Eagles won the rematch, a back-and-forth contest before a sparse crowd at the Kibbie Dome, two days after Thanksgiving. (EWU joined the Big Sky in 1987, raising league membership to nine institutions.)
For the following season in 1986, the I-AA playoffs expanded from 12 to 16 teams, which eliminated the bye week for the top four seeds.
Notable players
The 1985 team included two future NFL head coaches: quarterback Scott Linehan and offensive lineman Tom Cable. Future NFL players with lengthy pro careers included guard Mark Schlereth (redshirt freshman) and true freshman John Friesz, a future collegiate hall of fame quarterback as a three-year starter (1987–89), but inactive in 1985 as a redshirt.
Coaches
This was the fourth and final season at Idaho for head coach Dennis Erickson and defensive coordinator John L. Smith. Offensive coordinator Keith Gilbertson returned to that position after three spring seasons in the USFL with the L.A. Express. Following Erickson's departure for Wyoming in December, Gilbertson was promoted to head coach for 1986. Smith followed Erickson to Laramie and back to the Palouse at Washington State in 1987, then returned to the Vandals in January 1989. He succeeded Gilbertson, who left after three seasons for an assistant's position in Seattle, as offensive line coach under head coach Don James at Washington.
Schedule
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