 When hired as the Vandals' new head coach, Akey stated that he was opposed to holding the Battle of the Palouse rivalry game with Washington State every year.He said he preferred it as a "once-in-a-while thing," to minimize possible "off-field" problems between rival programs only eight miles apart.The annual game was revived in 1998 and played for ten consecutive years; it was last played in Akey's first season of 2007 and was renewed for a game in 2013.