Idaho State coach Mike Kramer wants Saturday’s scrimmage (10 a.m.) to be as difficult as possible for his quarterbacks.

He’s set it up to be a hard, up-hill battle from the very start.

“Playing quarterback is not playing catch in your backyard,” Kramer said. “It’s against 11 guys snorting and trying to get to you and tear the ball out of your hands.”

MORE IDAHO STATE FOOTBALL COVERAGE

ISU’s three quarterbacks, two of them inexperienced sophomores and the third a true freshman, each threw a pick during Idaho State’s first scrimmage of the spring on April 11. They were sacked 15 times and had 20 negative-yardage plays in the first 36 snaps of the scrimmage.

Tanner Gueller, the freshman, took all the first-team reps and did throw one touchdown pass. But he wasn’t good enough. Whether it was slow reads, taking sacks in the red zone or ill-advised throws, Gueller and the Bengals offense struggled for large chunks of time.

“Negative plays were more of an issue than how we played at quarterback or the speed we played,” Kramer said. “We just cannot have negative plays. That’s a tribute to our defense. Our defense did a wonderful job getting after the quarterback and making plays.”

Don’t expect scrimmage No. 2 to get any easier. The defense will be as aggressive as ever, and Idaho State will not rely on the run to help set up the pass.

That’s part of the challenge.

ISU’s defense knows what’s coming, and it’s up to the quarterbacks to navigate the chaos and move the chains anyway.

“I hope the defense blitzes our offense every single play,” Kramer said. “Because every rep then is a positive rep for the quarterback. It gives him a chance to show he can play under duress.”

Three other things to watch for in Idaho State’s second scrimmage:

JOSH COOK RETURNS

One factor that should provide a boost for Idaho State’s offense is the return of Josh Cook.

The junior tight end missed last week’s scrimmage because he was dealing with a personal matter back home in Southern California.

Cook caught 37 passes for 524 yards and three touchdowns as ISU’s starting tight end last season. But it’s not his production the Bengals missed in the opening scrimmage. It was his leadership and poise.

“He’s everything. He has such a great presence on the field, off the field, in the locker room, in the weight room,” Kramer said. “On the field on game day, he’s a performer. And that’s what separates Josh Cook maybe from all the other guys on our offense. Our offensive line and Josh Cook, they just about determine the direction we’re going almost every day.”

OFFENSE WANTS TO GIVE IT TO THE DEFENSE

Like any team with a bunch of competitors, Idaho State’s offense doesn’t like the defense. And the defense feels the same way.

Especially in the spring when they’re battling one another every single day.

So when the defense forced five turnovers, got after the quarterbacks and smothered ISU’s vaunted aerial assault, the offensive players were left with a bitter taste in their mouths.

“It’s huge because we like to be the dominant (unit) on the team,” Cook said. “As a crew, we’ve been here longer as an offense than the defense. We think we should be better at all times.”

MANU IS OUT BUT THE DEFENSE NEEDS A REPEAT PERFORMANCE

Maybe the defense did win the last scrimmage. But they also had a major loss.

Starting senior strong safety Taison Manu was injured at the very end of the scrimmage, and Kramer confirmed the former Highland star isn’t slated to get back on the field in the spring.

Senior Kamino Ward will start in Manu’s place.

Manu and free safety Cody Sorensen are the two quarterbacks of ISU’s defense. With one gone, the duty falls on everyone else to help communicate the defensive calls and figure out what’s happening on the field.

“That was definitely a big blow, having Taison go out,” said senior linebacker Kurt Karstetter. “But I think Kamino will definitely step up and come in ready to go and take on the spot.”