Defensive coordinator Craig Bray (1st year) | 1989 record 9–3 (8–0 Big Sky) | |
Offensive coordinator Dan Cozzetto (1st year) | ||
The 1989 Idaho Vandals football team represented the University of Idaho in the 1989 NCAA Division I-AA football season. The Vandals, led by first-year head coach John L. Smith, 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 third consecutive conference title (fourth in five years), and made the I-AA playoffs for the fifth consecutive season, under a third head coach. Led by senior All-American quarterback John Friesz, Idaho finished the regular season at 9–2 and 8–0 in the Big Sky.
Notable games
Following two non-conference road losses to open the season at Washington State and Portland State, the Vandals won nine straight, which included an undefeated conference record of 8–0. It was the only time in school history that the football team has posted an unblemished conference record.
The Vandals defeated Montana, their only conference loss the previous season, on a Thursday night in the Kibbie Dome in late September, televised by ESPN. Idaho beat long-time nemesis Nevada-Reno for the third straight year, only the fourth time in the twelve meetings since the Wolf Pack joined the Big Sky in 1979. The Vandals defeated rival Boise State for the eighth consecutive year, the eighth of twelve straight over the Broncos before a record crowd of 17,600 in the Kibbie Dome.
Division I-AA playoffs
For the fifth consecutive season, Idaho returned to the 16-team I-AA playoffs. The Vandals, on a nine-game winning streak, hosted Eastern Illinois at home but lost 21–38. The game was played before a sparse crowd at the Kibbie Dome two days after Thanksgiving and ended the Vandals' season at 9–3.
Notable players
The 1989 team included John Friesz, a future collegiate hall of fame quarterback as a three-year starter (1987–89). Friesz was the winner of the Walter Payton Award in 1989 and was selected by the San Diego Chargers in the 1990 NFL Draft. He was in the NFL for the next decade with four teams.
Schedule
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