1989 Idaho Vandals football team
American college football team season
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.
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.
Hired in early January, Smith had been the defensive coordinator and assistant head coach at Idaho for four seasons (1982–85), all under Dennis Erickson, then went with him in the same capacity to Wyoming and Washington State.
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 Nevada 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.
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