FACTS & STATS: Site: Mackay Stadium (31,545) -- Reno, Nevada. Television: ESPN Game Plan. Home Record: Idaho 3-0, Nevada 2-1. Away Record: Idaho 3-1, Nevada 1-2. Neutral Record: Idaho 0-0, Nevada 0-0. Conference Record: Idaho 3-0, Nevada 2-0. Series Record: Nevada leads, 17-9.

GAME NOTES: The Western Athletic Conference-leading Idaho Vandals gun for their sixth straight victory this weekend as they visit the Nevada Wolf Pack at Mackay Stadium in Reno.

Since losing to Washington in the second game of the season, the Vandals have ripped off five straight wins, thanks in part to a 35-23 triumph over the Hawaii Warriors at home last Saturday. The win over the Warriors was the first for Idaho since the program joined the WAC back in 2005 and also pushed the group to a 3-0 mark in league play, which is good enough for first place, ahead of even Boise State which is nationally ranked at number six this week. Although the end of the regular season is still a long way off, Idaho also made itself bowl eligible with the win on Saturday, a huge feat considering the team's record the past few seasons.

Meanwhile, the Wolf Pack appears to have found an answer to what ails them because they've fought back from an 0-3 start to the campaign to now post a 3-3 mark, 2-0 in league action. Last Saturday, Nevada took care of Utah State on the road by a score of 35-32 to finally make it to .500 on the season.

Idaho trails in the all-time series with Nevada by a count of 17-9, falling by a 49-14 score a year ago. The Vandals have dropped four in a row to the Pack, allowing no less than 37 points in any one of those contest, with the last Idaho win being a 42-33 decision back in 1999 on the road.

DeMaundray Woolridge powered his way to 81 yards rushing and four touchdowns on 17 carries last Saturday as he and the Vandals took care of the visiting Warriors at the Kibbie Dome. Princeton McCarty chipped in with a game-high 89 yards rushing, while Nathan Enderle converted 14-of-17 passes for 226 yards and a score. The team finished with 420 yards of total offense, averaging seven-and-a-half yards per play, and also converted an impressive 8-of-10 on third down. This offense has been nothing but consistent so far this season, scoring at least 21 points in every game and averaging 29.6 ppg to rank third in the WAC. All of a sudden Woolridge is the top scorer in the WAC and is tied for seventh in the nation with his 10.3 ppg, thanks to 12 rushing touchdowns. But more than just his scoring, Woolridge makes the running attack go by averaging close to six yards per carry, which means the group as a whole is coming up with nearly 4.5 yards per attempt. Enderle is converting a sensational 64.4 percent of his passes, making confident decisions in the pocket that have led to nine touchdowns and close to 250 ypg.

The pass defense for the Vandals was subjected to one of the most productive passing attacks in college football again this season as Hawaii signal-caller Bryant Moniz threw for 360 yards and a score. However, Idaho still gave the young quarterback a run for his money as the home team picked off a pass and sacked Moniz four times. All of those sacks led to a loss of 23 yards on the ground and meant Hawaii was credited with just 77 net rushing yards in the contest. Aaron Lavarias, who was named the WAC Defensive Player of the Week, was the star of the game on defense for the Vandals with his two sacks and one forced fumble. Strangely enough, those two sacks are the first of the season for Lavarias, which makes it easier to understand why the Vandals are not that strong in that particular area, averaging just 1.43 sacks per game to rank fifth in the conference and 86th in the nation this week. Nevertheless, the run defense has been superb, limiting opponents to just 95.6 ypg, which helps to offset a pass defense that has been far too easy in allowing opponents 268.4 ypg, a number that has the Vandals ranked second-to-last in the WAC and 113th in the country this week.

The top-ranked rushing offense in the nation was at it again last Saturday as the Wolf Pack generated a massive 313 yards on 46 attempts in the narrow win against Utah State on the road. Vai Taua led the way with his 147 yards and a score on 21 attempts, followed by Luke Lippincott with 104 yards and a touchdown on eight carries as both running backs had runs of at least 67 yards in the triumph. Colin Kaepernick chipped in with 77 yards on the ground and another 189 yards and three TDs through the air. After six games, the Wolf Pack is averaging 292.8 ypg on the ground, but a paltry 186.7 ypg through the air as Kaepernick continues to run through his progressions and opt for tucking the ball away and trying to make something happen on his own. Nevertheless, the Nevada offense is still ranked first in the conference and fourth in the nation with just under 480 ypg. Unfortunately, with so many running plays, ball carriers are bound to be stripped now and again and so far opponents have recovered 11 Nevada fumbles, a huge part of the team ranking 119th in the country in turnover margin (minus-2.0 per game).

While the Nevada offense was running wild against the Aggies, Utah State's backs were watching holes close before their eyes. Robert Turbin who scored the lone rushing TD for USU, was limited to just 36 yards, which meant the top ground gainer for the Aggies was quarterback Diondre Borel with his 48 net yards after being sacked five times. The Nevada pass defense did allow 353 yards and three touchdowns through the air, but in the end it all worked out for the Pack as Kevin Basped logged 2.5 sacks for the visitors and Dontay Moch added 1.5 sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss. Thanks to Moch and his FBS-leading 2.58 TFLs per contest thus far, the Wolf Pack are fourth in the country in that category as a group with 8.83 stops behind the line per game. Moch and Basped have combined for 9.5 sacks, the rest of the team a mere 2.5 sacks, and yet the Pack is still first in the WAC with two sacks per outing. The pass defense for the Pack has been up and down this season, holding a pair of opponents to less than 200 yards but also giving up a hefty 414 yards to Missouri in September, which is why the group is now ranked last in the WAC and 116th nationally with 282.3 ypg allowed.

This might be the time that the Vandals run into an unstoppable opponent, especially now that it seems that Nevada has finally put it all together on the offensive side of the ball. However, to count out Idaho completely might be a bit premature, especially considering how much confidence the Vandals have gained from their recent success.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Idaho 42, Nevada 35

Saturday, October 24th, 4:05 p.m. (et).