The 2016-17 Idaho State athletics season is upon us. I thought it’d be interesting to take a step back and look at each individual ISU sport and answer a simple question: Is this team trending up or down? Or another way of putting it … is Idaho State men’s basketball, for example, better situated this upcoming season to compete for a Big Sky title compared to the previous season?
IDAHO STATE FOOTBALL
Trending: EVEN
Briefly encapsulating the Mike Kramer years …
2011-13
The Bengals got their butts kicked on the field, but Kramer and Idaho State were working just as hard away off of it to reformulate a program that was a complete mess.
2014
Justin Arias. Xavier Finney. Madison Mangum. Points, points, points. ISU won games on the road, went undefeated at home and was a few plays away from knocking off Eastern Washington and/or Montana State — which would have almost certainly sent Idaho State to the playoffs.
Kramer was named national coach of the year by one publication and the Big Sky Conference coach of the year. Don Bailey was tabbed as the nation’s top FCS coordinator. Arias should have been the league MVP (http://www.idahostatejournal.com/me...cle_8575c39c-76c5-11e4-b2b2-836201196f66.html)
2015
Finney, Mangum and just about everybody were back. But Bailey jumped at the Hawaii job. Arias was gone and — at least for a year — his absence was absolutely irreplaceable.
2016
Where is the Bengals football program today? Bailey leaving, in just this poster’s opinion, forced Kramer to reshuffle his staff, and it never seemed to come together. Sheldon Cross is an energetic guy and a good coach, but did Kramer ever really trust him with the offense?
Following 2014, it seemed like the Bengals had fostered an identity. They were going to score 30-plus points a game — good luck stopping that. And on defense, the 3-4 formation was steadily improving. They didn’t have the personnel to shut opponents down, but the team’s aggressive nature could force turnovers.
Now Cross is gone, replaced by Matt Troxel. If Kramer can step back and let Troxel implant his own personality, this could be a major improvement from ’15.
But while Troxel’s move to the offensive coordinator was (hopefully) a net positive, it also means the Idaho State offensive line, which lost three starters, is no longer led by Idaho State’s best young coach.
Then there’s the defense. Taison Manu and Mario Jenkins returning is a huge deal. The bad news with the defense, however, is that the defensive line and most of the defensive backs are unproven.
And then there’s the special teams. Good gosh. The Bengals can’t punt, return punts, cover kickoffs or return kickoffs well. They miss extra points and field goals. It’s just a part of the game where Idaho State completely and utterly capitulates. Is it going to get any better in ’16?
So we’ve got a brew going here: One ingredient is an offense on its third coordinator in as many years. The second ingredient is the defense, a group that hasn’t been good in a long, long time. And the special teams … oy … the special teams … Add in a daunting schedule, and it seems like the best ISU football can hope for in the coming season is a slight improvement on the two-win 2015 campaign.
But wait, why are you so negative!!!
OK, OK … it’s not all bad for the Bengals. Kramer has struggled mightily for a variety of reasons to win in Pocatello, but he is committed to the Bengals. That counts for something. And if Gueller plays well this season and Troxel earns Kramer’s trust to handle the offense … then 2017 and 2018 look very interesting.
IDAHO STATE SOCCER
Trending: EVEN
Maria Sanchez, the most talented player in Idaho State history — if not the entire Big Sky Conference — dumped the Bengals, and the divorce didn’t go well. But that’s in the past, and how does it impact this year’s team?
Remember, Idaho State didn’t beat a Division I opponent a season ago with Sanchez setting offensive records. The team’s defense was a disaster. Coach Allison Gibson had to rely on a ton of underclassmen. Unfortunately, that situation isn’t much better in ’16. On the bright side, it’s hard to imagine the Bengals will be any worse than a year ago … even without Sanchez’s goal-scoring prowess. And Gibson seems to have a very nice staff in place. So while Sanchez’s departure is devastating, and it’s too bad the breakup happened in such a public fashion, don’t count out Gibson.
IDAHO STATE VOLLEYBALL
Trending: DOWN
Pretty simple with this one. Head coach Rick Reynolds is no Chad Teichert.
IDAHO STATE MEN’S BASKETBALL
Trending: UP
Two words –- Ethan. Telfair. He may have single-handedly saved Bill Evans’ head coaching career. This is a fun team to follow.
https://twitter.com/MGuernsey_ISJ/status/691107830837805056
IDAHO STATE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Trending: UP
Seton Sobolewski is the best coach on Idaho State’s campus. With Montana’s Robin Selvig retiring, Sobo might be the best coach in the Big Sky. His current staff is top-notch. Oh, and the team is stocked with talent. If Isabel Vara de Rey can develop into a quality starting point guard as a sophomore, Idaho State is one of the league’s top contenders for a conference championship (though not the favorite).
IDAHO STATE TENNIS
Trending: DOWN, DOWN, DOWN
This: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/may/24/orin-duffin-mormon-tennis-player-sues-idaho-state-/.
IDAHO STATE GOLF
Trending: UP/DOWN/DOES IT MATTER?
That’s a cruel way of putting it. Let’s phrase it this way: Idaho State golf is utterly irrelevant in the Big Sky Conference from a competitive standpoint. It’s a program that just sort of exists to exist.
IDAHO STATE CROSS COUNTRY
Trending: UP
Idaho State (in this poster’s opinion) whiffed in the recent hiring of volleyball’s Reynolds and softball’s Candi Letts. It doesn’t seem like that’s the case with Nate Houle.
IDAHO STATE TRACK & FIELD
Trending: UP
It was time for Dave Nielsen to retire. He’d obviously done a lot for the Bengals track program and deserved the right to choose the time when he wanted to retire. But it was time for a change.
IDAHO STATE SOFTBALL
Trending: DOWN
Early indications are that Letts is a significant step down from Julie Wright. Expect recruiting to suffer and the program to slowly fade into mediocrity in the next few years. ISU softball facilities are good, but the stench of a player mutiny during the conference tournament stinks.
IDAHO STATE FOOTBALL
Trending: EVEN
Briefly encapsulating the Mike Kramer years …
2011-13
The Bengals got their butts kicked on the field, but Kramer and Idaho State were working just as hard away off of it to reformulate a program that was a complete mess.
2014
Justin Arias. Xavier Finney. Madison Mangum. Points, points, points. ISU won games on the road, went undefeated at home and was a few plays away from knocking off Eastern Washington and/or Montana State — which would have almost certainly sent Idaho State to the playoffs.
Kramer was named national coach of the year by one publication and the Big Sky Conference coach of the year. Don Bailey was tabbed as the nation’s top FCS coordinator. Arias should have been the league MVP (http://www.idahostatejournal.com/me...cle_8575c39c-76c5-11e4-b2b2-836201196f66.html)
2015
Finney, Mangum and just about everybody were back. But Bailey jumped at the Hawaii job. Arias was gone and — at least for a year — his absence was absolutely irreplaceable.
2016
Where is the Bengals football program today? Bailey leaving, in just this poster’s opinion, forced Kramer to reshuffle his staff, and it never seemed to come together. Sheldon Cross is an energetic guy and a good coach, but did Kramer ever really trust him with the offense?
Following 2014, it seemed like the Bengals had fostered an identity. They were going to score 30-plus points a game — good luck stopping that. And on defense, the 3-4 formation was steadily improving. They didn’t have the personnel to shut opponents down, but the team’s aggressive nature could force turnovers.
Now Cross is gone, replaced by Matt Troxel. If Kramer can step back and let Troxel implant his own personality, this could be a major improvement from ’15.
But while Troxel’s move to the offensive coordinator was (hopefully) a net positive, it also means the Idaho State offensive line, which lost three starters, is no longer led by Idaho State’s best young coach.
Then there’s the defense. Taison Manu and Mario Jenkins returning is a huge deal. The bad news with the defense, however, is that the defensive line and most of the defensive backs are unproven.
And then there’s the special teams. Good gosh. The Bengals can’t punt, return punts, cover kickoffs or return kickoffs well. They miss extra points and field goals. It’s just a part of the game where Idaho State completely and utterly capitulates. Is it going to get any better in ’16?
So we’ve got a brew going here: One ingredient is an offense on its third coordinator in as many years. The second ingredient is the defense, a group that hasn’t been good in a long, long time. And the special teams … oy … the special teams … Add in a daunting schedule, and it seems like the best ISU football can hope for in the coming season is a slight improvement on the two-win 2015 campaign.
But wait, why are you so negative!!!
OK, OK … it’s not all bad for the Bengals. Kramer has struggled mightily for a variety of reasons to win in Pocatello, but he is committed to the Bengals. That counts for something. And if Gueller plays well this season and Troxel earns Kramer’s trust to handle the offense … then 2017 and 2018 look very interesting.
IDAHO STATE SOCCER
Trending: EVEN
Maria Sanchez, the most talented player in Idaho State history — if not the entire Big Sky Conference — dumped the Bengals, and the divorce didn’t go well. But that’s in the past, and how does it impact this year’s team?
Remember, Idaho State didn’t beat a Division I opponent a season ago with Sanchez setting offensive records. The team’s defense was a disaster. Coach Allison Gibson had to rely on a ton of underclassmen. Unfortunately, that situation isn’t much better in ’16. On the bright side, it’s hard to imagine the Bengals will be any worse than a year ago … even without Sanchez’s goal-scoring prowess. And Gibson seems to have a very nice staff in place. So while Sanchez’s departure is devastating, and it’s too bad the breakup happened in such a public fashion, don’t count out Gibson.
IDAHO STATE VOLLEYBALL
Trending: DOWN
Pretty simple with this one. Head coach Rick Reynolds is no Chad Teichert.
IDAHO STATE MEN’S BASKETBALL
Trending: UP
Two words –- Ethan. Telfair. He may have single-handedly saved Bill Evans’ head coaching career. This is a fun team to follow.
https://twitter.com/MGuernsey_ISJ/status/691107830837805056
IDAHO STATE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Trending: UP
Seton Sobolewski is the best coach on Idaho State’s campus. With Montana’s Robin Selvig retiring, Sobo might be the best coach in the Big Sky. His current staff is top-notch. Oh, and the team is stocked with talent. If Isabel Vara de Rey can develop into a quality starting point guard as a sophomore, Idaho State is one of the league’s top contenders for a conference championship (though not the favorite).
IDAHO STATE TENNIS
Trending: DOWN, DOWN, DOWN
This: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/may/24/orin-duffin-mormon-tennis-player-sues-idaho-state-/.
IDAHO STATE GOLF
Trending: UP/DOWN/DOES IT MATTER?
That’s a cruel way of putting it. Let’s phrase it this way: Idaho State golf is utterly irrelevant in the Big Sky Conference from a competitive standpoint. It’s a program that just sort of exists to exist.
IDAHO STATE CROSS COUNTRY
Trending: UP
Idaho State (in this poster’s opinion) whiffed in the recent hiring of volleyball’s Reynolds and softball’s Candi Letts. It doesn’t seem like that’s the case with Nate Houle.
IDAHO STATE TRACK & FIELD
Trending: UP
It was time for Dave Nielsen to retire. He’d obviously done a lot for the Bengals track program and deserved the right to choose the time when he wanted to retire. But it was time for a change.
IDAHO STATE SOFTBALL
Trending: DOWN
Early indications are that Letts is a significant step down from Julie Wright. Expect recruiting to suffer and the program to slowly fade into mediocrity in the next few years. ISU softball facilities are good, but the stench of a player mutiny during the conference tournament stinks.
