Just a couple things to add or clarify - first Kem's comment on UM dropping to D-II - I wonder how many remember in the late '70's when the Missoulian ran an editorial suggesting Montana should drop football, and send all of the state's emphasis and funding for football to MSU, since Montana's stadium was inadequate and the Griz would never be successful in football anyway? My point is that 30 years ago Montana's program was under the same pressure as Idaho is now. Fortunately the leadership at the University and some of the fans and boosters rallied behind the team, and stepped Montana up instead of down. Reading some of the comments here about win or drop I wonder if when Montana hits a rough patch again if there will be the same commitment as there was during the dark days of the late '70's and early '80's.
Regarding the comment about Idaho moving up just to follow Boise, that is an absurd distortion of history. Idaho fought the move down to the Big Sky conference the entire time they were in the conference, and repeatedly petitioned the Idaho board of regents to let them move to a I-A (or University level conference) and were repeatedly denied by the regents who backed ISU and Boise State and didn't want to be left behind.
Although Idaho was a charter member of the Big Sky in 1963 they didn't even play a Big Sky conference football game until 1965 (when they won the conference). In 1973 Idaho was so sure the regents would approve a move they had already upped the level of scholarship players so they could compete at the next level. When news of this got out the Boise regents used this as an excuse to keep Idaho from moving up and leaving them behind. Meanwhile Idaho continued to play a I-A (or University level) schedule to maintain their I-A status even though they had about 1/2 of the scholarships the teams they were playing against, while the rest of the Big Sky was D-II. Finally with re-organization Idaho was forced to drop to I-AA in 1978. Of the 118 years Idaho has been playing college football less than 20 of those years were they classified at a lower level.
Finally by the late '80's Boise was ready to move up, and Boise and Idaho regents worked together to leave Idaho State behind. in 1993 Dennison handed them the perfect opportunity when he got a resolution passed to reduce BSC scholarships to the D-II level. Finally the BSC had become so unacceptable that the regents let Boise and Idaho move up.
By 1994 Idaho had won 4 BSC titles in the last 10 years, and been to the playoffs in 9 of 10 years. Boise by contrast had 1 BSC title in 1994, and 3 playoff appearances in the last 10 years (along with 3 losing seasons). To say Idaho was trying to keep up with Boise, or that Boise had the more successful program at that point is just ignorant of the history, and in fact upon moving up Idaho had more immediate success at I-A, with a winning season in 1996 and winning the Big West in 1998, while Boise state posted back to back losing seasons in their first 2 years at I-A. Good thing for Boise the fans and administration didn't look at those 2-10, 5-6, and 6-5 seasons while Idaho was winning and call it quits and move back down to the BSC, but instead stepped up and built their program.
I don't know what Idaho will do in the future, or even what is best for their program, but if we are going to pass judgement on their program I feel we should at least know their history, and acknowledge that throughout history success is fleeting, and 1 bad coach, or bad decision by the administration can change a program immensely and have lasting consequences.