1. Stay on assignment

Idaho State head coach Rob Phenicie said Western State operates a zone-read offense, which can disguise the ball carrier and confuse a defense.

Western State utilized 14 ball carriers last season — five of which netted 40 rushes or more. Redshirt sophomore running back Ty Leyba returns as the team's leading rusher after recording 266 yards on 79 attempts (3.4 yards per carry) last season. Western State's quarterbacks also combined to amass 113 totes.

“Their offense is going to present some problems to us,” Phenicie said. “They do a lot of the zone-read stuff that people are doing these days.”

2. Start fast

Idaho State opens its season against a Division II team that is a heavy underdog and has nothing to lose.

Western State went 1-10 last season, struggled in nearly every facet, and brings a 2-deep chock-full of underclassmen to Pocatello. The Bengals can't let the eager Mountaineers hang around, as ISU did in last year's 30-28 upset win at Nevada.

The Bengals trailed Division II Western Oregon 6-3 at halftime last season before winning 37-6.

“They're going to be a team excited to come in here and knock off a Big Sky Conference team,” Phenicie said. “We are not going to overlook this opponent, not take them likely. We're not in a position right now to be able to do that to anybody as it is.”

3. Get stops on third down

Idaho State struggled to end defensive series last season, allowing opponents to convert 44.5 percent of their third-down plays (110th in the FCS).

Western State's offense equally struggled on third downs, stalling out on 71 percent of possessions last season. Idaho State can't afford to be sloppy on third down and give Western State extra chances to feed the Mountaineers' upset hopes.