1968 Idaho Vandals football team
The 1968 Idaho Vandals football team represented the University of Idaho in the 1968 NCAA College Division football season. The Vandals were led by first-year head coach Y C McNease and played in the Big Sky Conference. Home games were played on campus at Neale Stadium in Moscow, with one home game in Boise at old Bronco Stadium at Boise Junior College.
| 1968 Idaho Vandals football | |
|---|---|
Big Sky co-champion | |
| Conference | Big Sky Conference |
| Record | 5–5 (3–1 Big Sky) |
| Head coach |
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| MVP | Jerry Hendren |
| Captains |
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| Home stadium | Neale Stadium |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Idaho + | 3 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Montana State + | 3 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weber State + | 3 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Idaho State | 1 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Montana | 0 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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This was the last season for Neale Stadium, which opened 31 years earlier in 1937. It hosted only two games in 1968, and the final one was a win over Weber State on November 2. Due to soil erosion, the wooden grandstands were deemed unsafe the following summer and home games were moved to Rogers Field in Pullman for two seasons.
After fullback Ray McDonald won the NCAA rushing title in 1966, the Vandals were involuntarily dropped by the NCAA to the college division in 1967. After two seasons, Idaho returned to the university division in 1969.
Hired in early January, McNease was previously an assistant coach at Michigan under Bump Elliott. For the second straight season, Idaho allowed 77 points at the Astrodome in Houston.