Led by first-year head coach Jason Eck, the Vandals were 7–4 in the regular season (6–2 in Big Sky, third) and played their home games on campus at the Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho.

Idaho defeated rival Montana for the first time since 1999 and made their twelfth appearance in the FCS playoffs, the first since 1995 (the program was in FBS from 1996 through 2017).

Hired in December 2021, Eck was previously the offensive coordinator at South Dakota State; earlier, he was an assistant coach at Idaho for three seasons (2004–06).

During the virtual Big Sky Kickoff on July 25, the Vandals were predicted to finish eighth by the coaches, and ninth by the media.

[1] The Vandals had one player selected to the preseason all-Big Sky team.