The last remaining Rocky Mountain Football League member finally closed down following the 2022 season after 26 years of football.  The Mustangs won three RMFL titles during their tenure.  The only team to reach the playoffs in every year of existence including a one-year stint with the Utah Football League where they were eliminated in the second round, the Mustangs had been a beacon of consistency in Southeast Idaho.

Originated by Hall of Famer Jared Neumeier, who also served 10-years as RMFL commissioner, spent his early years as the Idaho Falls signal caller at quarterback.

That inaugural season of 1997 for both the Mustangs and RMFL was a four-team rumble all season as Idaho Falls finished 4-3 with all three losses coming at the hands of the Rocky Mountain Bulls, twice in regular season play and finally in the 1997 Championship.  The Mustangs would take a giant leap in year two.  After two pre-season losses to the Bozeman Kodiaks and a Utah League all-star squad, the team settled in a ran the RMFL table to the championship, exorcising the three losses from 1997 to the Bulls by beating them all three times including the semi-final playoff game.  Idaho Falls dominated the Portneuf Valley Dragons 32-0 to win the 1998 RMFL crown.

The RMFL expanded dramatically in 1999 cutting into the Mustangs dominance and the team slipped to 3-9 with four losses coming by 10-points of less.  The Mini Cassia Bulldawgs snuck out one of those in a 7-6 playoff upset to end Idaho Falls season.

Idaho Falls rebounded in 2000 with an 8-5 season.  Slowed by a 1-3 start to the season, the Mustangs rallied to win 7 of 8 and make a return trip to the RMFL championship.  Utah's Wasatch Wildcats ran away with the title, their third victory of the season over Idaho Falls.

The RMFL merged with the Utah Football League in 2001 making it one of the largest leagues in the country.  The Mustangs posted a 10-4 season, but suffered a 47-7 loss in the semi-finals to Snake River, adding to their in-season win over Idaho Falls.

Returning as the Rocky Mountain League in 2002, the Mustangs lost to Snake River and the Pocatello Silverbacks during the regular season, but finished 4-0 with a title game win over the Silverbacks 28-21 to return as 2002 RMFL Champions.  After a 3-0 start to the 2003 season, the Silverbacks exacted their revenge from the title game loss with a 22-14 win that sent Idaho Falls on a three-game skid evening the record at 3-3.  The Mustangs got back on track, picked off the Silverbacks in the opening round of the playoffs and then dominated the Madison Lionz and dumped the Snake River Rebels in the title game, both teams had jumped on Idaho Falls during the three-game skid, and the 'Stangs avenged all three defeats in the post-season to finish 7-3 and back-to-back RMFL champions.

Looking to defend their back-to-back titles, week three of 2004 saw the return of the South Ogden Rhino-Raiders to the schedule for the first time since 2001 and the results did not change as the Raiders punched the first loss of the season to the Mustang resume.  A four game run was halted by the Lionz in the regular season finale, but Idaho Falls found themselves facing an all-Utah playoff run to the championship game.  The Layton Pitbulls and Utah Wolverines gave stiff resistance, but were defeated to set up Idaho Falls for their third consecutive championship game appearance, however, it was the Rhino-Raiders waiting who dominated 46-20 solidifying South Ogden's status as an RMFL dynasty.

The next few years would be competitve and lean at times and 2018 would be the next appearance in an RMFL championship game.  The Mustangs would make eight consecutive playoff appearances through the 2012 season following the championship game appearances.  Sean Powell, former 2x RMFL Offensive Player of the Year would take over the reigns as head coach for the 2009 season.  2011 was the best season of that run as Idaho Falls was 10-0 before being upset in the semi-finals by the Snake River Sabercats 30-18.  That season would be followed by the first losing season in franchise history as the team hovered just above .500 until the offensive wheels evaporated in the regular season finale and playoff round losing 22-7 and 34-6 to the Arco Anarchy and Bitterroot Blaze respectively finishing 4-5.  The 2013 team would miss the playoffs altogther in a 4-4 season, and followed up 2014 closing out another .500 outing with the Uintah Basin Oilers knocked Idaho Falls out of the playoffs.

2015 marked the beginning of the Mike Jensen coaching era as the former Mustang original eased out of his player roll into the head coach position.  A back and forth two seasons finishing 9-10 with 1-2 playoff record set the table for a resurrection of Idaho Falls to the RMFL title game in 2018.  5-1 during the regular season, the one loss was avenged in the playoff round as the Anarchy were defeated 17-6, however it was again a Utah team, the Davis Vipers taking the title.

2019 would be the final season for the Mustangs in the Rocky Mountain League and they made it count.  Rocking a stellar defense that allowed only 28 points all season long to go with eight shut-outs, Idaho Falls knocked out the Vipers in the playoffs, the demolished Montana's undefeated Billings Xtreme 42-0 to secure the first RMFL title in 16 years.  The team was recognized as the Greater Northwest Region Champions for their 10-0 season with even greater accomplishments yet to come.

With the RMFL on hiatus, the Mustangs joined the Idaho Contact League for the 2020 and 2021 seasons generating an immediate rivalry with western Idaho's Black Tide, the reigning 2019 champions and heir to the Idaho Tribe's 4-year dynasty in the Boise-based league.  The ICFL teams were no match for the Mustangs as the team reeled off seven-straight shut outs never scoring fewer than 50 points in a game setting up a showdown with the undefated Black Tide for the crown.  The Tide would not repeat as Idaho Falls dominated 46-6, the first points given up on the season.  The following week, the South Sound Nighthawks, Washington's top team from pre-Covid shut downs rolled into town sporting three former GNFA Players of the Year, and possibly the best skilled offensive players in the region.  The Northwest Invite for the Greater Northwest Region Championship game would see the Nighthawks take an early lead and look to dominate, but it was that defense of the Mustangs and a punishing ground game that churned out an 18-14 come-from-behind victory to seal the 19th consecutive victory and back-to-back GNFA Crowns to go with the ICFL Championship.

The 2021 team was even better, setting scoring and defensive records along the way, the ICFL had no answer as the Mustangs rolled to 11-0, another 68-0 win over the once-beaten Black Tide for back-to-back ICFL titles.  Morris Bunn set rushing records as the first back to run for 2200 yards in a season and a new benchmark of 33 rushing touchdowns besting the previous record by 12 set in 2018 by Harry Peoples.  Bunn would be named player of the year in back-to-back seasons after posting 48 touchdowns and over 3,400 yards rushing over two seasons with much of his game time over by halftime.  Another post-season champion versus champion game pit the Mustangs on the road to Wasatch, Utah to take on the Revolution, champions of the Utah League.  Idaho ground out a 22-6 win and earned an invitation to National Football Events Bowl weekend in Orlando, Florida to be played in January.  The Mustangs had won 31-straight games, three league titles and again claimed the GNFA Regional Championship.  During that spread, Idaho had defeated the best teams from four western states (Washington, Montana, Idaho, and Utah) who combined had 2 losses on their records.

Some internal turmoil began to rise which caused the Mustangs to pull out of the January Bowl Game in Florida and the formation of the Mountain West Football League, which was attempting to resurrect a version of the Rocky Mountain Football League, pulled the Mustangs from the ICFL along with fellow eastern Idaho teams, Blackfoot and East Idaho Wolfpack.

Idaho Falls picked up where they left off winning their first four games in shut-out fashion after a tumultous April that saw two games canceled before a trip to Salt Lake City to take on the Revolution.  A hard fought battle resulted in the first loss in four years, as the Rev came away with a 15-8 victory.  The win streak ended at 35 consecutive victories with 30 of those games coming by way of a shut-out win.  The Mustangs came right back though, shutting out the Summit Valley Kings 64-0 in the season finale, the stomping the Stampede 38-8 in the MWFL Playoffs setting up another battle with the Revolution for the MWFL and GNFA titles.  Idaho Falls avenged that sole loss on the season with a 28-21 victory and stamped themselves 4x GNFA Champions, 4x League Champions in 3 different leagues, and wins over five states (Utah, Idaho, Nevada, Montana, and Washington) during a 38-1 run. 

Head Coach Mike Jensen would win 35-consecutive games, most in Greater Northwest history, while the Mustang franchise would take the top spot for Championship Game Appearances (11), Franchise Wins (175), Most Shutouts in a Season (11), and have the second-best franchise winning percentage for teams with over 200 games having won 67% of their games.  The top spot is held by the Oregon Thunderbolts with a 72% win percentage.  The Mustangs would also post the #2 season record for points scored in a season (756), highest per game average (63 points per game) and scored 90 points or more in a game in three outings during the 2020 and 2021 seasons.

The team would close down operations after 26 seasons following 2022 as Jensen and other key leaders turned their focus to family.  Jensen had been with the Mustangs for all 26 seasons.

The Idaho Mustangs were one of the longest running franchises in Northwest history and a stroll through the GNFA Record Books finds it dotted with Mustang names, and would be with many more had statistics been kept in the early days of the Rocky Mountain League.  Hopefully, a dusty box in an attic will reveal some of those lost archives of the beginning of the RMFL one of the flagship franchises.

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