Idaho State is playing its second straight Mountain West Conference opponent. But the first couldn’t be further from the second.

Boise State is an established program coming off a win in the Fiesta Bowl, and there’s no question in ISU coach Mike Kramer’s mind the Broncos are one of college football’s top 25 teams in the country.

Going up against that kind of force was a challenge the Bengals couldn’t overcome in a 52-0 defeat.

UNLV, off three straight losses to open the season, isn’t the same caliber of team. The Rebels have had one winning season since 2001.

“There’s a lot of level evaluations that I have this week,” Kramer said when comparing squads. “We’ll find out how we do Saturday night.”

The 7 p.m. MST kickoff from Sam Boyd Stadium in the City of Lights features two teams trending in the same direction: down. The matchup provides an opportunity for each to flip their negative momentum and start moving in a positive direction as they enter conference play.

So does Idaho State (1-2, 0-1 Big Sky) have a real shot to win in Vegas? Not so fast. The Rebels are rebuilding with first-year head coach Tony Sanchez after Bobby Hauck stepped down at UNLV last November. But it’s not a roster devoid talent.

“Bobby Hauck is as good of a head coach as there is,” Kramer said. “Bobby Hauck was there for four years. And regardless of the win-loss record, he built the foundation of a great program.”

And it’s a motivated program that’s going to take the field with intentions to whip ISU.

Sanchez was at Bishop Gorman High School in nearby Enterprise, Nevada, before taking over at UNLV. The Rebels have lost as many games this season as his prep team did over the past three years. But if UNLV can just win one game, Sanchez’s transformation will be underway.

“I know that once they taste it, they’re not going to want to let it go,” Sanchez said of winning. “That’s one hell of a sweet taste. We’re excited about going out and getting a win.”

So bad team or not, the Rebels are an inspired squad looking at the Bengals like a piece of meat, skewered and ready to be put to the fire.

Here’s the thing, though. This game isn’t about UNLV for the Bengals. Idaho State’s season has veered off course the past two weeks, and this is the last chance to get back on track before playing at Big Sky foes Cal Poly and North Dakota the next two weeks.

From special teams (blocked field goals, poor punting), to offense (no touchdowns since the first half of the Portland State game), to defense (issues at safety, inability to stop the run), Idaho State is juggling issues in all three phases of football.

The way the offense has labored in losses to Portland State and Boise State has been the most surprising storyline. That side of the ball was a consistent, omnipresent source of production that kept them in games a season ago.

ISU junior wideout KW Williams, one of the most honest and insightful players on the team, spoke to a lack of energy at practice some days. They’re still trying to find the edge and spirit they played with a season ago.

“It’s just back to having fun, just playing football, because that’s what it was last year,” Williams said. “The whole game day process, ... coach Kramer describes it as a religious process. It’s so exciting and so fun. Just being with your teammates from right when you wake up to counting down in the locker room after a win. I think we lost sight of how that felt.”