BOZEMAN — On Friday night, Montana State hits the road to face Idaho.
The Bobcats are looking to extend their 19-game winning streak and the Vandals are looking for their first win of the season, something Montana State head coach Brent Vigen isn't overlooking.
"I do think for a team that hasn't won a game, they are a very scary team," Vigen said. "It's a team that you can see making strides."
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One of the key players for the Vandals is their leader on the offense.
"The quarterback, Joshua Wood, is a guy that can make a ton of plays in every which way," Vigen said. "He's a runner, he's a guy that has a knack for the big play. He's got a great arm."
And on the other side of the ball, Vigen has made observations of Idaho's defense in their first few games.
"I think they've played hard, they're physical," Vigen said. "I think they've played a lot of guys, so they're probably trying to find who their best combinations are. They've got good size up front. But they do have a lot of guys that are capable of playing."
This is not the same Vandal defense that the Bobcats last saw.
"I know they had quite a bit of turnover roster-wise," Vigen said. "Definitely from the last time we saw them here in '24, it's a lot of turnover, and we didn't see them last year, so I think they're finding their footing."
The Vandals' record and stats also include an FBS game, which was their only game of the season decided by more than one score.
"The Utah game in the midst of their four games is one that breaks the stats up," Vigen said. "Utah ran it for a lot and they threw for a lot. They scored a lot that day, so you take that out (and) they've obviously been very competitive."
Montana State will again be without quarterback Justin Lamson and receiver Taco Dowler, who both missed last week's game versus Northern Arizona. Patrick Duchien and Carter Dahlke are expected to start in their places.
Montana State (5-0 overall, 2-0 Big Sky) and Idaho (0-4, 0-1) are scheduled to kick off Friday at 8:30 p.m. Mountain Time from Moscow, Idaho. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.
