Big Sky Predictions 10-21

[JALMOND]

And down the stretch they come! Well, maybe a bit premature as the season is just a little half over. A good slate of games this weekend. Everyone plays except Montana who will sit this weekend out. I'm at 42-15 so far, putting together a couple of 5-1 weeks to get back to a respectable level. Here are my picks.

EWU at SUU---Eagles are looking really strong of late but head out on the road this weekend. The Thunderbirds just dispatched Weber State last week and still are looking for respect...SUU 38, EWU 36.

MSU at UNC---Bobcats seem to be playing everyone close and go on the road this weekend. The Bears had two weeks to prepare and get to face a strong opponent in some friendly confines...MSU 24, UNC 10.

PSU at ISU---Vikings have been so close only to sabotage themselves at some point during the game. They go into the dome to face the Bengals who have been impressive so far...PSU 21, ISU 19.

SAC at UND---The Hornets have been a pleasant surprise in the conference and seem to just be plugging along. The Hawks are wondering what could have been and have been plugging players left and right...SAC 35, UND 27.

UCD at NAU---Hawkins had the Aggies playing tough and competitive so far, but they have to head out this weekend to the altitude where the Lumberjacks seem to be the team to beat, but not this weekend...NAU 42, UCD 21.

WSU at CP---The Wildcat looked invincible until last week when they lost their leader early. They now hope to rebound against a game Mustang team that is hoping to avoid the injury bug...WSU 38, CP 21.

[mvemjsunpx]

Weber 23-14 Cal Poly — The perfect opponent for a team with QB-health issues… maybe

Portland St. 28-38 Idaho St. — Probably ISU's last win of the season

EWU 35-24 Suutah — The T-Birds won their super bowl last week, but this week isn't any easier

Davis 24-41 NAU — Only 1 of their 12 combined games has been decided by less than 18 points

Montana St. 35-21 NoCo — Bobcats keep their nominal playoff hopes alive thanks to Jacob Knipp's injury

Sac State 31-21 NoDak — The Hornets should end their 14-game road losing streak

[bonarae]

Weber State
Idaho State
EWU
NAU
Montana State
Sacramento State

[cx500d]

Weber
Idaho St.
Suutah
Davis

Montana St.
Sac State

[Iridebikes]

Here we go:

EWU over SUU- statistically these teams are pretty close. SUU has home advantage, EWU has more big game experience and more options on offense.
MSU beats UNC- Cats are pretty talented. Need to learn how to win.
ISU over PSU- home field advantage.
SAC over UND- SAC's well balanced. With injuries UND is unbalanced.
NAU over UCD- I really like UCD as a team however 7500 ft is NAU's advantage and they use it this weekend.
WSU over CP- If it were anyone other the Cal Poly I may have picked them. If Weber's QB is not back this week this one could go to CP. From what I saw last week the Weber back up was not prepared to play.

[Utgrizfan]

Weber State: Should rebound against worst team in the Conference this year.

Idaho State: Very underrated I feel this season, should be able to handle Vikings.

SUU: Upset pick, T-birds play best at home and generally have a good defensive squad

NAU: Aggies are better but NAU is at home and haven't started their collapse yet.

Montana State: Cats have played several good squads close, should be able to get the W vs Bears

Sacramento State: Surprise team this year they get a beaten up and downtrodden UND.

[jadmt]

SUU
MSU
ISU
SAC
NAU
CP

and the biggest winner this week poll wise is going to be UM.

[TheRealJacks]

Weber 20-31 Cal Poly

Portland St. 24-10 Idaho St.

EWU 21-28 Suutah

Davis 14-49 NAU

Montana St. 42-21 NoCo

Sac State 45-21 NoDak

[nevadagriz]

Weber 20-31 Cal Poly

Portland St. 24-10 Idaho St.

EWU 21-28 Suutah

Davis 14-49 NAU

Montana St. 42-21 NoCo

Sac State 45-21 NoDak
Looking at your Nau score would suggest the jacks have a very good defense. can you tell me about the Jacks defense?

[TheRealJacks]

Looking at your Nau score would suggest the jacks have a very good defense. can you tell me about the Jacks defense?

Looking at the stats, NAU is leading the conference in PASS DEFENSE and they play better in the dome. I am a firm believer that this game is also personal with OC and DB coach departing NAU for Davis left a sour taste for the jacks. I believe this will be a statement game.

[F'N Hawks]

Looking at the stats, NAU is leading the conference in PASS DEFENSE and they play better in the dome. I am a firm believer that this game is also personal with OC and DB coach departing NAU for Davis left a sour taste for the jacks. I believe this will be a statement game.

Look at the teams you played: Poly, UNC, PSU. Not exactly passing powerhouses (UNC can throw it and did vs. NAU). I would hope you lead the league in pass defense at this point.

[Roamingriz]

EWU vs SUU
Southern Utah is hard to gauge. They have been too up and down for a comfortable pick, a tough close win over UNI which may be very good, but also a tough close win of Cal Poly.... A pasting of Stephen F. then pasted by Sac.( and Oregon for good measure) Looked pretty good over Weber but Weber down a starting Cantwell. SUU is on a pretty good run at home, but these Eagles won't be missing any firepower. We'll get a prime opportunity see how real the Tbirds are. I don't think they have the offense to keep up with EWU and go down by a couple to drop that home record since 2015 to 15-2. EWU 38 SUU 23

MSU vs UNC
The middle of the Big Sky gets help sorting out with this one. The Bears have a one point win over Idaho State and a double digit over the College of Idaho, then they let both NAU and Nodak hang 48 on them in losses. Even Idaho Postato put up 42 in their loss. So bottom line there isn't a whole lot standing between opposing offenses and the end zone against these bears. So can they score? well kind of, against weaker defenses of North Dakota and Idaho State sure, the Bears had enough that a modicum of help from the defense earns a W. MSU should be on the next level from those two teams' D. Look for the MSU offense to get their points on the ground and through the air, and defensive respect if they hold these bears to less than the 20 they put up on NAU which i think they will. MSU 32 UNC 17

PSU vs ISU
Was getting a bit high on the Bengals after beating Poly(winless) and Nevada(they've only beaten Hawaii), but after a few more weeks I'm not so sure about what ISU actually has. At the very least a pretty damn soft D. Only Nevada and Western Oregon(DII) put up 28 or less. PSU hasnt done a whole lot more in their losses, but I'll give them the ol' eye test edge over the Bengals which may or may not be worth more than home field advantage in their disco era dome. PSU 35 ISU 34

Sac vs UND
The Hornets have looked pretty good. Hung with Weber pretty good in a loss and ran over SUU pretty good in a win. Edub won by 21 points in a surprising result to me. Is it the pass D that let them down? A good part of it sure, but that doesn't leave too much to worry about facing these Hawks though who haven't gotten it done through the air nor, more surprisingly, on the ground. They'll prove me wrong against a bad defense like Northern Colorado, but Sac has been hanging tough with a tough schedule and I'm looking for a big win on the road. Sac 45 UND 20

UCD vs NAU
Davis has been getting their points this season outside of the anomalous 3 vs Weber. They've reeled off 35 over San Diego, 37 over PSU, 48 vs UND, 38 against EWU, and put up 17 at San Diego State in a loss for good measure. Not the best defenses a one, but after all of that they know who to get the ball to to score. Here we'll get a good look at two key things, how good NAU's defense is and how good Davis' offense is. Unfortunately for Davis, their D hasnt been stopping the better offenses they've faced and won't be able to keep up with one of that number in NAU at home. Davis 24 NAU 38

WSU vs Cal Poly
Despite being winless and despite injury and now despite a fairly fair reputation of being a terrible no good very bad team, keep in mind that Cal Poly lost 4 of their six by a single score or less, and not to the worst of teams in Colgate(6), UNI(7 in OT), Idaho State(4), and Southern Utah(6). If I were to pick an upset watch this week, I would be tempted here, especially if Cantwell is unable to play after his concussion last week. Still, I would bet that Weber hs enough to take down the 'stangs. WSU 28 Poly 24

[mvemjsunpx]

Look at the teams you played: Poly, UNC, PSU. Not exactly passing powerhouses (UNC can throw it and did vs. NAU). I would hope you lead the league in pass defense at this point.

They also played Illinois State & Western Illinois, so your argument doesn't really work.

[jadmt]

well how about those thunderbirds....

[jadmt]

LOL.

[JALMOND]

And down the stretch they come! Well, maybe a bit premature as the season is just a little half over. A good slate of games this weekend. Everyone plays except Montana who will sit this weekend out. I'm at 42-15 so far, putting together a couple of 5-1 weeks to get back to a respectable level. Here are my picks.

EWU at SUU---Eagles are looking really strong of late but head out on the road this weekend. The Thunderbirds just dispatched Weber State last week and still are looking for respect...SUU 38, EWU 36.

MSU at UNC---Bobcats seem to be playing everyone close and go on the road this weekend. The Bears had two weeks to prepare and get to face a strong opponent in some friendly confines...MSU 24, UNC 10.

PSU at ISU---Vikings have been so close only to sabotage themselves at some point during the game. They go into the dome to face the Bengals who have been impressive so far...PSU 21, ISU 19.

SAC at UND---The Hornets have been a pleasant surprise in the conference and seem to just be plugging along. The Hawks are wondering what could have been and have been plugging players left and right...SAC 35, UND 27.

UCD at NAU---Hawkins had the Aggies playing tough and competitive so far, but they have to head out this weekend to the altitude where the Lumberjacks seem to be the team to beat, but not this weekend...NAU 42, UCD 21.

WSU at CP---The Wildcat looked invincible until last week when they lost their leader early. They now hope to rebound against a game Mustang team that is hoping to avoid the injury bug...WSU 38, CP 21.


5-1 this week. Only missed the homer pick. 47-16 overall.xthumbsupx

[TheRealJacks]

Look at the teams you played: Poly, UNC, PSU. Not exactly passing powerhouses (UNC can throw it and did vs. NAU). I would hope you lead the league in pass defense at this point.

Held one of the top passing teams to 207 total passing yards (starter had 164 before garbage time). I am a firm believer that our defense is the real deal and can play with the best of them.