Big Sky predictions 9-19

[JALMOND]

8-2 for the week last week. I am now at 16-7. Not too bad but I would like a few more wins under my belt before the full conference slate begins. Portland State is the only team not in action this weekend so I'll be following all the games (or as much as I can). Here are my predictions for the conference teams.

Northern Iowa at CP---The Mustangs now get the chance to play Northern Iowa in their home opener, a team that took care of Eastern Washington last week. Good that they are at home this time...CP 35, Northern Iowa 28.

ISU at Boise State---The Bengals need to recover from their perplexing loss last week. Perhaps they should have played someone other than an angry Boise State team...Boise State 35, ISU 20.

UM at Liberty---The Grizzlies took last week off to recharge that fast paced offense and acclimate themselves to the east coast. Will that actually help the Grizzlies?...UM 34, Liberty 30.

MSU at EWU---The Bobcats had a week to get up for this game. More shocking, the Eagles need to win this game to avoid starting the year 0-3. How strange would that be?...EWU 48, MSU 42.

UND at North Dakota State---The Bison against the non-Bison, I guess that is as good a name for UND as anything. The battle for Lawrence Welk's baton, UND comes up short, still needing an offense...North Dakota State 21, UND 7.

NAU at Arizona---The Lumberjacks turn at facing the Pac-12 and they get their in state brethren. The conference has more than held their own, but Arizona has a good Pac-12 team...Arizona 38, NAU 20.

UNC at SUU---The Bears seem to have a good defense and seem to have a good offense. The Thunderbirds seem to have an OK defense and an OK offense. Looks can be deceiving...SUU 27, UNC 7.

SAC at WSU---The start of the year for the Hornets has not gone as planned with a shaky offense and defense. The Wildcats may not have much on offense, but their defense has been strong...WSU 17, SAC 14.

UCD at Hawaii---The Aggies head over to the Islands hoping for an upset, but really may just be hoping to come home relatively clean after a little vacation...Hawaii 35, UCD 7.

[mvemjsunpx]

Friday

Idaho St. 14-48 Boise — Both teams coming off soul-crushing losses


Saturday

NoCo 20-27 Suutah — This is the only real conference game of the week, if anyone cares

Montana St. 48-49 EWU — Bobcats have an even worse record against the Eagles than they do against the Griz

Niowa 17-27 Cal Poly — The Panthers now have to deal with an opponent with some semblance of defense

Davis 7-42 Hawai'i — The Aggies taste the rainbow

Sac State 34-35 Weber — Not only is this a battle of mediocrity, it also doesn't count

NAU 21-52 Arizona — Arizona hasn't looked great thus far, but I doubt the 'Jacks will take advantage

Montana 31-34 Falwell St. — A trip to a playoff-caliber opponent 2 time zones away is just a little too much

NoDak 13-31 NoDak St. — I'm sure this game will be filled with bitter stupidity, but only the Bison have an offense

[wapiti]

Northern Iowa at CP---CP at home, but is against a good UNI team that just beat EWU at home. I think the home field advantage will be a difference maker....CP 23, Northern Iowa 21.

ISU at Boise State---ISU is collecting a check...Boise State 48, ISU 24.

UM at Liberty---I think the Griz will be ready for this game. Plus the Griz are a fortuitous team (Except for last week)....UM 31, Liberty 30.

MSU at EWU---The Bobcats will score points this year. Their defense is still a question mark. Ft. Lewis ran the ball moderately ok against MSU. EWU has struggled with their run game this year This could be a barn burner.....EWU 42, MSU 40.

UND at North Dakota State---Many NDSU fans did not want this game to happen. Are they afraid they might lose? It may be closer than they would like. North Dakota State 17, UND 14.

NAU at Arizona---Paycheck game for NAU. I hope NAU will make it close for at least a half...Arizona 41, NAU 24.

UNC at SUU---Two preseason bottom feeders. SUU did show it may have a good team by playing Utah State close...SUU 20, UNC 10.

SAC at WSU---Two more preseason bottom feeders. I will take the BBQ at home...WSU 21, SAC 14.

UCD at Hawaii---Hopefully, 'You See Davis' will get a chance to enjoy the beach while in Hawaii....Hawaii 31, UCD 24.

[Nodak78]

NIU vs Cal Poly - Poly needs this win and Defense is strong
ISU vs Boise St. - ISU hasn't played anybody yet(accept PSU - big surprise).
UM vs Liberty - UM defense comes up big.
MSU vs EWU - MSU defense is overrated and EWU wins in a shoot out.
UND vs NDSU - NDSU goes 1-2 against the Big Sky as UND defense proves stronger than Bison offense
NAU vs Arizona - Arizona wins
UNC vs SUU - SUU has defense at home
Sac vs WSU - WSU exposed last week
UCD vs Hawaii - next flight out to Hawaii but a long flight home as Hawaii proves too much.

[tomq04]

What happened to yesterday's thread? Wasn't it about 3 pages?

[MSUBobcat]

NIU vs Cal Poly - Poly needs this win and Defense is strong
ISU vs Boise St. - ISU hasn't played anybody yet(accept PSU - big surprise).
UM vs Liberty - UM defense comes up big.
MSU vs EWU - MSU defense is overrated and EWU wins in a shoot out.
UND vs NDSU - NDSU goes 1-2 against the Big Sky as UND defense proves stronger than Bison offense
NAU vs Arizona - Arizona wins
UNC vs SUU - SUU has defense at home
Sac vs WSU - WSU exposed last week
UCD vs Hawaii - next flight out to Hawaii but a long flight home as Hawaii proves too much.


First, its UNI. NIU is Northern Illinois. Common mistake.
Second, who is overrating the Bobcat defense? I'm a Bobcat fan and I haven't heard anyone say they are expecting big things from the D.
Third, the Griz beat NDSU by 3 at home (typically home field advantage is 3 pts). UND plays them in their barn. I'm pulling for UND, but I don't think they have the horses to stay with NDSU.

I think all the home teams win, though I hope I'm wrong about MSU, UM and UND.

[MSUBobcat]

What happened to yesterday's thread? Wasn't it about 3 pages?

You are probably thinking of the Big Sky Power rankings thread, which did have some predictions, but wasn't dedicated to them.

[eiu1999]

Northern Iowa at CP
ISU at Boise State
UM at Liberty
MSU at EWU
UND at North Dakota State
NAU at Arizona
UNC at SUU
SAC at WSU
UCD at Hawaii

[tomq04]

UNI vs Cal Poly - Poly plays tough and continues their rise to the top.
ISU vs Boise St. -Even last years ISU team doesn't have a chance here.
UM vs Liberty - UM defense comes up with a big win on the road.
MSU vs EWU - Shoot out, hooping the rag tag injured eags can manage a W.
UND vs NDSU - Defensive battle, but only 1 team has an offense. NDSU wins at home.
NAU vs Arizona - Arizona wins
UNC vs SUU - SUU has defense at home
Sac vs WSU - These are bad teams playing for something to build off of.
UCD vs Hawaii - Good luck UCD, you're gonna need it even against the bad Hawaii team.

[F'N Hawks]

First, its UNI. NIU is Northern Illinois. Common mistake.
Second, who is overrating the Bobcat defense? I'm a Bobcat fan and I haven't heard anyone say they are expecting big things from the D.
Third, the Griz beat NDSU by 3 at home (typically home field advantage is 3 pts). UND plays them in their barn. I'm pulling for UND, but I don't think they have the horses to stay with NDSU.

I think all the home teams win, though I hope I'm wrong about MSU, UM and UND.

UND needs at least a couple more recruiting classes to even look the part vs. Top 5-10 teams. Still too much fat around the edges right now. Nowhere near the same breed of horses on these two teams.

[Nodak78]

First, its UNI. NIU is Northern Illinois. Common mistake.
Second, who is overrating the Bobcat defense? I'm a Bobcat fan and I haven't heard anyone say they are expecting big things from the D.
Third, the Griz beat NDSU by 3 at home (typically home field advantage is 3 pts). UND plays them in their barn. I'm pulling for UND, but I don't think they have the horses to stay with NDSU.

I think all the home teams win, though I hope I'm wrong about MSU, UM and UND.

Yep my fingers typed UNI as NIU. good catch.
Your fan board seems to think the defense is much improved. I'm not so sure.
NDSU is a 27.5 point favorite. UND is a huge underdog in this game. I still think our defense surprises. Better than 50% chance i'm wrong. I still have a feeling an upset is in order.

[Catbooster]

Yep my fingers typed UNI as NIU. good catch.
Your fan board seems to think the defense is much improved. I'm not so sure.
NDSU is a 27.5 point favorite. UND is a huge underdog in this game. I still think our defense surprises. Better than 50% chance i'm wrong. I still have a feeling an upset is in order.
Hope springs eternal. ;) We haven't played enough - just a DII game - to really know, But as bad as the defense was last year, it shouldn't take much to be a significant improvement. If we're just an average FCS defense this year it should be immensely better.

[mvemjsunpx]

Hope springs eternal. ;) We haven't played enough - just a DII game - to really know, But as bad as the defense was last year, it shouldn't take much to be a significant improvement. If we're just an average FCS defense this year it should be immensely better.

Bobcat fans are holding out hope that elevating Kane Ioane will solve everything. I don't know if he'll be a major coaching improvement or not, but MSU still lost many of the most talented players from last year's awful defense.

[Grizzlies82]

UNI vs Cal Poly - Poly plays tough and continues their rise to the top.
ISU vs Boise St. -Even last years ISU team doesn't have a chance here.
UM vs Liberty - UM defense comes up with a big win on the road.
MSU vs EWU - Shoot out, hooping the rag tag injured eags can manage a W.
UND vs NDSU - Defensive battle, but only 1 team has an offense. NDSU wins at home.
NAU vs Arizona - Arizona wins
UNC vs SUU - SUU has defense at home
Sac vs WSU - These are bad teams playing for something to build off of.
UCD vs Hawaii - Good luck UCD, you're gonna need it even against the bad Hawaii team.

Tom, I think you've got the correct picks.

[CrazyCat]

Bobcat fans are holding out hope that elevating Kane Ioane will solve everything. I don't know if he'll be a major coaching improvement or not, but MSU still lost many of the most talented players from last year's awful defense.


I guess they weren't that talented xcoffeex

[Grizzlies82]

The burning question is;
Will the Montana State at Eastern WA game be the first in NCAA history have two team each compile over 1,000 yards in a game?
We've got a real shot a history here!

[MSUBobcat]

The burning question is;
Will the Montana State at Eastern WA game be the first in NCAA history have two team each compile over 1,000 yards in a game?
We've got a real shot a history here!

No. MSU's much improved defense holds EWU to 972 yards.

[bobcathpdevil56]

Since this is a Big Sky discussion, has anyone tried the Watch Big Sky stuff from American One? It says there license went out a couple days ago and now there is nothing on that site. Anyone heard anything on this?

[dudeitsaid]

Since this is a Big Sky discussion, has anyone tried the Watch Big Sky stuff from American One? It says there license went out a couple days ago and now there is nothing on that site. Anyone heard anything on this?

Yeah, now it's Eversport. You can access it through the Bigskyconf.com website, or at this link. http://eversport.tv/big-sky/football

Downside is they don't have on demand games anymore. It's always been nice to go back and watch some of the other teams play that we are going to play, or see how the close games played out.

[JALMOND]

8-2 for the week last week. I am now at 16-7. Not too bad but I would like a few more wins under my belt before the full conference slate begins. Portland State is the only team not in action this weekend so I'll be following all the games (or as much as I can). Here are my predictions for the conference teams.

Northern Iowa at CP---The Mustangs now get the chance to play Northern Iowa in their home opener, a team that took care of Eastern Washington last week. Good that they are at home this time...CP 35, Northern Iowa 28.

ISU at Boise State---The Bengals need to recover from their perplexing loss last week. Perhaps they should have played someone other than an angry Boise State team...Boise State 35, ISU 20.

UM at Liberty---The Grizzlies took last week off to recharge that fast paced offense and acclimate themselves to the east coast. Will that actually help the Grizzlies?...UM 34, Liberty 30.

MSU at EWU---The Bobcats had a week to get up for this game. More shocking, the Eagles need to win this game to avoid starting the year 0-3. How strange would that be?...EWU 48, MSU 42.

UND at North Dakota State---The Bison against the non-Bison, I guess that is as good a name for UND as anything. The battle for Lawrence Welk's baton, UND comes up short, still needing an offense...North Dakota State 21, UND 7.

NAU at Arizona---The Lumberjacks turn at facing the Pac-12 and they get their in state brethren. The conference has more than held their own, but Arizona has a good Pac-12 team...Arizona 38, NAU 20.

UNC at SUU---The Bears seem to have a good defense and seem to have a good offense. The Thunderbirds seem to have an OK defense and an OK offense. Looks can be deceiving...SUU 27, UNC 7.

SAC at WSU---The start of the year for the Hornets has not gone as planned with a shaky offense and defense. The Wildcats may not have much on offense, but their defense has been strong...WSU 17, SAC 14.

UCD at Hawaii---The Aggies head over to the Islands hoping for an upset, but really may just be hoping to come home relatively clean after a little vacation...Hawaii 35, UCD 7.

7-2 this week, 23-9 overall