Vandals gear for more passing

Idaho’s defense was shredded last week for 494 yards by previously winless Colorado State, including 386 through the air.

The Vandals (2-2) figure to face another aerial assault today, when they travel to Kalamazoo, Mich., to play MAC foe Western Michigan (1-2) at 11 a.m. PDT (SWX, ESPN3.com, KVNI 1080, KGA 1510) on the FieldTurf at 30,200-seat Waldo Stadium.

The Broncos are fourth in the country in passing offense (332 yards per game), and 112th in rushing (75.67). Sophomore quarterback Alex Carder leads the nation with 48.67 pass attempts per game, and has passed for 921 yards and eight touchdowns.

“They’re throwing the ball a ton, and they’ve got some good players to throw the ball to,” Idaho coach Robb Akey said. “They’ve got an experienced offensive line, the quarterback does a good job getting the ball out, and he won’t hesitate to take off and run when he needs to.”

His favorite targets are wide receivers Jordan White (27 catches, 392 yards, 3 TDs) and Juan Nunez (25 catches, 204 yards, 1 TD).

“We better be ready to get after the quarterback, and play some tighter coverage than we played (last) Saturday,” Akey said.

Notes: The teams have only met twice before, with Western Michigan winning both games, including a 51-28 victory at the Kibbie Dome in 2008 ... Western Michigan plays at Notre Dame in two weeks.