1976 Idaho Vandals football team
1976 Idaho Vandals football | |
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Conference | Big Sky Conference |
Record | 7–4 (5–1 Big Sky) |
Head coach |
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Offensive coordinator | John McMahon (1st season) |
Offensive scheme | Veer |
Defensive coordinator | Andy Christoff (3rd season) |
Base defense | 5–2[1] |
Captains |
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Home stadium | Kibbie Dome |
Seasons |
| Conf | Overall | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 1 Montana State $^ | 6 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 12 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Idaho | 5 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Northern Arizona | 4 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Montana | 3 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boise State | 2 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 5 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weber State | 1 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 9 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Idaho State | 0 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 0 | – | 9 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 1976 Idaho Vandals football team represented the University of Idaho in the 1976 NCAA Division I football season. The Vandals were led by third-year head coach Ed Troxel and were members of the Big Sky Conference, then in Division II. They played their home games at the Kibbie Dome, an indoor facility on campus in Moscow, Idaho.
Season
With quarterbacks Rocky Tuttle and Craig Juntunen running the veer offense,[3][4] the Vandals were 7–4 overall and 5–1 in the Big Sky.[5][6] The only conference loss was to Montana State in Bozeman;[7] the Bobcats went undefeated in the Big Sky and won the Division II national championship.[8]
The season opened with a road win over Boise State,[9][10] the three-time defending conference champions, in the debut of Jim Criner as head coach of the Broncos.[11] Originally scheduled for November 27, it was moved to the opener at BSU's request, so as not to interfere with the Division II playoffs.[12] In the Battle of the Palouse, the Vandals suffered a ninth straight loss to neighbor Washington State of the Pac-8, falling 45–6 at Martin Stadium in Pullman on October 2. The Cougars were led by quarterback Jack Thompson and fullback Dan Doornink.[13]
Outside of the 1971 season (8–3), the Vandals' 7–4 record in 1976 was the best since 1938 (6–3–1).[5] It was Troxel's only winning season as head coach; Idaho slipped to 3–8 in 1977 and he was fired in late December.
Notable players
Center John Yarno of Spokane was selected to the AP All-American team,[14] which included a prime-time appearance on Bob Hope's Christmas show on NBC on Monday, December 13.[15][16][17] The All-America team was headlined by Heisman Trophy winner Tony Dorsett of Pittsburgh.[18] Yarno was also selected to play in the East–West Shrine Game and the Senior Bowl.[19] His number 56 was retired the following year.[20][21] Selected in the fourth round of the 1977 NFL draft, he played six seasons with the Seattle Seahawks, the last five as a starter.
Future actor Bill Fagerbakke of Rupert was a sophomore defensive lineman and was ticketed to redshirt, but was called into action in the fourth game.[22] Head coach Troxel planned on moving him to the offensive line in 1977,[23] but a knee injury in spring drills ended Fagerbakke's athletic career, which turned his focus to theater.[24]
Division I
Through 1977, the Big Sky was a Division II conference for football, except for Division I member Idaho, which moved down to I-AA in 1978. Idaho maintained its upper division status in the NCAA by playing Division I non-conference opponents (and was ineligible for the Division II postseason).
Schedule
Date | Time | Opponent | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
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September 11 | 6:30 pm | at Boise State | W 16–9 | 20,549 | ||
September 18 | 7:30 pm | at Pacific (CA)* | W 31–28 | 11,769 | ||
September 25 | 11:30 am | at Ohio* | L 0–35 | 13,710 | ||
October 2 | 1:30 pm | at Washington State* | L 6–45 | 20,000 | ||
October 9 | 8:00 pm | New Mexico State* | W 33–6 | 10,166 | ||
October 16 | 8:00 pm | Weber State![]() |
| W 45–17 | 15,607 | |
October 23 | 12:30 pm | at No. 7 Montana State |
| L 14–29 | 5,400 | [7] |
October 30 | 7:00 pm | at Idaho State | W 6–3 | 9,625 | ||
November 6 | 12:00 pm | at Colorado State* | L 14–31 | 17,536 | ||
November 13 | 8:00 pm | Montana |
| W 28–19 | 9,396 | |
November 20 | 8:00 pm | Northern Arizona |
| W 31–14 | 7,160 | [5][6] |
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Roster
1976 Idaho Vandals football team roster | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Players | Coaches | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Offense
| Defense
| Special teams
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- Source:[2][25][26][27]
All-conference
Senior center John Yarno was the Big Sky offensive player of the year and one of six Vandals selected to the all-conference team. The other three on offense were running back Robert Brooks, guard Clarence Hough, and tackle Wil Overgaard. The two defensive players were linebacker Kjel Kiilsgaard and end Chris Tormey, a future Vandal head coach (1995–99). Second team selections were tackle Greg Kittrell, noseguard Tim Sanford, and linebacker John Kirtland.[28][29]
NFL Draft
One Vandal was selected in the 1977 NFL draft, which lasted twelve rounds (335 selections).
Player | Position | Round | Overall | Franchise |
John Yarno | Center | 4th | 87 | Seattle Seahawks |
References
- ^ "Troxel claims defense key at Idaho". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. September 7, 1977. p. 42.
- ^ a b Payne, Bob (September 10, 1976). "Idaho goes with Tuttle". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 29.
- ^ "Vandals vs. Cougars: probable starters". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). October 2, 1976. p. 13.
- ^ "Aggies vs. Vandals: probable starters". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). October 9, 1976. p. 13.
- ^ a b c Payne, Bob (November 21, 1976). "Vandals clobber Northern Arizona". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 1D.
- ^ a b English, Sue (November 22, 1976). "Year tabbed "great" by Idaho grid boss". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 31.
- ^ a b Payne, Bob (October 24, 1976). "Dennehy inspires Bobcats". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. D1.
- ^ "Montana State wins title". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. December 12, 1976. p. 4B.
- ^ Payne, Bob (September 12, 1976). "Vandals win opener". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. D1.
- ^ English, Sue (September 13, 1976). "Vandals tame Broncos". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). p. 17.
- ^ "Idaho team underdog against Boise squad". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). September 10, 1976. p. 23.
- ^ Kirtland, Bill (September 10, 1976). "An interesting evening in Boise..." Idaho Argonaut. (Moscow). (University of Idaho). p. 7.
- ^ Payne, Bob (October 3, 1976). "Thompson unloads on Idaho". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington).
- ^ Brown, Butch (July 29, 1977). "John Yarno learns enthusiastically". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 17.
- ^ "Yarno named All-American". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. December 2, 1976. p. 39.
- ^ "Contracts please Yarno". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). May 26, 1977. p. 44.
- ^ Payne, Bob (December 3, 1976). "John Yarno:'Hard to believe'". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 33.
- ^ "Dorsett heads AP's All-America team". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. December 3, 1976. p. 1B.
- ^ "Selection shocks Yarno". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). December 3, 1976. p. 1B.
- ^ "Hall of Famers arrive on campus". University of Idaho Athletics. September 6, 2007.
- ^ "John Yarno named first team All-American". Gem of the Mountains, University of Idaho yearbook. 1977. p. 44.
- ^ "Bad news for Idaho: Joe Pellegrini lost". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). October 5, 1976. p. 16.
- ^ Payne, Bob (November 28, 1976). "Vandals on the rise?". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. D5.
- ^ White, Vera (July 31, 1997). "Football not enough for Fagerbakke". Moscow-Pullman Daily News. (Idaho-Washington). p. 1C.
- ^ "Rosters". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). October 2, 1976. p. 13.
- ^ "Rosters". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). October 16, 1976. p. 15.
- ^ "Rosters". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). November 13, 1976. p. 15.
- ^ "Big Sky all-stars". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). November 25, 1976. p. 27.
- ^ "Six Vandals on Sky stars". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). November 25, 1976. p. 112.
External links
- Gem of the Mountains: 1977 University of Idaho yearbook – 1976 football season
- Idaho Argonaut – student newspaper – 1976 editions