Big Sky Predictions 10-2

[JALMOND]

As the calendar switches to October, there is a chill in the air and the games start to get tough as the race is on to garner that conference title and the automatic bid into the playoffs. A good slate of games this weekend as the race will start to clear (possibly) and things get decided (maybe). Last week's outcomes put me at 32-11 so far this year. Sacramento State has drawn the short straw this weekend and is sitting this one out, but everyone else plays.

UI at UCD---The Vandals had an extra week to prepare for this tussle against the Aggies, who came home with a strong conference road win but without their starting quarterback. The Aggies still should be able to get this one...UCD 24, UI 10.

ISU at NAU---The Bengals felt like they gave one away last week at home, and now have to play on the road against the Lumberjacks, who can't seem to get an FCS win. The Lumberjacks, surprising, do have a win, something the Bengals don't have...NAU 24, ISU 21.

UM at EWU---How about a national broadcast for this one, and both are willing to put on a show. The Grizzlies are a well-rounded team with a good defense to go with a good offense. The Eagles offense has been unstoppable, but there is that defense...UM 45, EWU 36.

UNC at MSU---Lose one, win one. Lose one, win one. That is how the Bears have started the year. On the other hand the Bobcats have looked impressive this year, even with their FBS loss. This is the week that the Bears should lose...MSU 42, UNC 14.

PSU at SUU---The last trip to Whoville as a conference matchup for the Vikings who seem to pass better than they run, or that may be skewed a bit. The Thunderbirds may be suspect on defense, or their numbers may also be skewed by who they have played so far...PSU 40, SUU 35.

WSU at CP---A season where they thought they would be at the top, the Wildcats now start October with just one win to show so far. They go on the road to a feisty Mustangs squad who is also dying for a conference win. May be tougher than expected...WSU 21, CP 17.

[bonarae]

UC Davis
NAU
Griz
Montana State
SUU
Weber State

[wapiti]

Northern Colorado 21 @ Montana State 35 --- UNC beat NAU who beat Arizona.

Idaho State 16 @ NAU 32 --- NAU was brought back to reality against UNC, but now gets a struggling ISU team.

Weber State 28 @ Cal Poly 14 The BBQ has been burnt two weeks in a row and now a road game against a struggling CP. The BBQ should win, but it is a road game.

Portland State 14 @ SUU 17 --- PSU on the road again. I give victory to home field advantage.

Idaho 20 @ UC Davis 42 --- You See Davis pulled out a big W against a good team on the road. Now at home against Idaho.

Montana 24 @ Eastern Washington 17 --- Big game in Cheney. High powered offense against high powered defense. but on the other end there is a medium powered offense against a medium powered defense. I pick defense to win this game.

[MSUBobcat]

Don't know how I keep missing the prediction thread, as I missed last week again.

NoCo 13 @ Montana State 31 - No idea how UNC lost to Lamar, then beat NAU. These guys are schizophrenic.
ISU-o 17 @ NAU 24 - NAU gets their first FCS win, but only because they are at the friendly confines of Walkup Skydome.
Weber State 35 @ Cal Poly 10 - The Grills get some raw meat to start heating up for their most difficult stretch of conference play, vs. MSU then @ EWU.
Portland State 28 @ SUU 20 - PSU played well for a half before MSU figured things out and took control. SUU's defense seems suspect, so I'm leaning toward PSU getting their first FCS win also.
Idaho 20 @ UC-Davis 30 - Davis vaulted to the top tier of the Big Sky (along with those damn Grizzlies) with a big road dubya over BBQ. Even if Rodrigues is unable to play, Davis's knack for turnovers (#1 in the nation @ +2.5/game; I don't count Campbell because all 10, yes TEN, of their TO's came from Presby), and propelled by what should be an overflow crowd, should be more than enough to overcome the visiting Vandals. If I could find that Rodrigues is playing, I might go Idaho 13, Davis 45.
Montana 34 @ EWU 24 - Montana has shown they can run up the scoreboard against weak defenses and well... EWU's has left a lot to be desired. Conversely, Montana's defense is about as stout as you can ask for, allowing only 14 points (WIU only scored via pick-6). EWU will get more than the average of 7ppg that UM has been allowing, but not enough to make up for the defense not holding up its end of the bargain.

[uBear]

NoCo 13 @ Montana State 31 - No idea how UNC lost to Lamar, then beat NAU. These guys are schizophrenic.

UNC was missing like a quarter of its roster and coaching staff against Lamar because of COVID protocols, that's how that happened.

[MSUBobcat]

UNC was missing like a quarter of its roster and coaching staff against Lamar because of COVID protocols, that's how that happened.

Thank you for the information. Still not sure that should translate to a loss to a team that subsequently took a 56-0 drubbing from an average ACU at home the next week, but it does help explain some of it.

[uBear]

Thank you for the information. Still not sure that should translate to a loss to a team that subsequently took a 56-0 drubbing from an average ACU at home the next week, but it does help explain some of it.

It was apparently bad enough that the Bears had backup offensive linemen playing both sides of the ball. Looking at the participation report only 3-4 defensive linemen even played a single snap and the starting LT and LG on offense were both out. Not to mention that McCaffrey was out at QB with an injury of his own. Long story short it was a total mess.

[CA Forever]

Idaho 20 @ UC-Davis 30 - Davis vaulted to the top tier of the Big Sky (along with those damn Grizzlies) with a big road dubya over BBQ. Even if Rodrigues is unable to play, Davis's knack for turnovers (#1 in the nation @ +2.5/game; I don't count Campbell because all 10, yes TEN, of their TO's came from Presby), and propelled by what should be an overflow crowd, should be more than enough to overcome the visiting Vandals. If I could find that Rodrigues is playing, I might go Idaho 13, Davis 45.

Hawkins said in a press conference on Tuesday that Rodrigues should be available this weekend. Per Hawkins, he sat out of practice Monday, but did not have any symptoms. Twitter posts showed Rodrigues practicing yesterday.

[Iridebikes]

UC Davis beat the Vandals
NAU beats Idaho State because of home field advantage
EWU will beat Montana
Montana State wins against UNC
SUU wins against Portland State
Weber gets a win over Cal Poly

[mvemjsunpx]

Montana 27-31 EWU — Fun Fact! Nobody on the Griz roster has played on the red turf

Weber 31-6 Cal Poly — A needed reprieve for the Wildcats

Idalol 10-38 Davis — Davis has a really good shot at running the table

Portland St. 31-35 Suutah — The Mediocrity Bowl…

Idalol St. 21-34 NAU — Go with the home dome, I guess? Eh, who cares, neither of these teams are going anywhere

NoCo 7-31 Montana St. — The Bears scored 45 against HBU, but only 34 total against their other 3 opponents

[MSUBobcat]

Hawkins said in a press conference on Tuesday that Rodrigues should be available this weekend. Per Hawkins, he sat out of practice Monday, but did not have any symptoms. Twitter posts showed Rodrigues practicing yesterday.

Thank you also for that information. Davis in a rout.

[Lumberjackfanbefore2012]

Big win for NAU today. Running back Kevin Daniels came in off injury and had a big day, Freshman an RJ Martinez looked real good, and the receivers finally showed up. I’m feeling a lot better about getting back to .500 next week. Go Jacks!!!

[JALMOND]

Big win for NAU today. Running back Kevin Daniels came in off injury and had a big day, Freshman an RJ Martinez looked real good, and the receivers finally showed up. I’m feeling a lot better about getting back to .500 next week. Go Jacks!!!

I'm showing Jacks don't play next week. Did they schedule something at the last minute (Arizona Western or someone)?

[JALMOND]

As the calendar switches to October, there is a chill in the air and the games start to get tough as the race is on to garner that conference title and the automatic bid into the playoffs. A good slate of games this weekend as the race will start to clear (possibly) and things get decided (maybe). Last week's outcomes put me at 32-11 so far this year. Sacramento State has drawn the short straw this weekend and is sitting this one out, but everyone else plays.

UI at UCD---The Vandals had an extra week to prepare for this tussle against the Aggies, who came home with a strong conference road win but without their starting quarterback. The Aggies still should be able to get this one...UCD 24, UI 10.

ISU at NAU---The Bengals felt like they gave one away last week at home, and now have to play on the road against the Lumberjacks, who can't seem to get an FCS win. The Lumberjacks, surprising, do have a win, something the Bengals don't have...NAU 24, ISU 21.

UM at EWU---How about a national broadcast for this one, and both are willing to put on a show. The Grizzlies are a well-rounded team with a good defense to go with a good offense. The Eagles offense has been unstoppable, but there is that defense...UM 45, EWU 36.

UNC at MSU---Lose one, win one. Lose one, win one. That is how the Bears have started the year. On the other hand the Bobcats have looked impressive this year, even with their FBS loss. This is the week that the Bears should lose...MSU 42, UNC 14.

PSU at SUU---The last trip to Whoville as a conference matchup for the Vikings who seem to pass better than they run, or that may be skewed a bit. The Thunderbirds may be suspect on defense, or their numbers may also be skewed by who they have played so far...PSU 40, SUU 35.

WSU at CP---A season where they thought they would be at the top, the Wildcats now start October with just one win to show so far. They go on the road to a feisty Mustangs squad who is also dying for a conference win. May be tougher than expected...WSU 21, CP 17.

5-1 this week, 37-12 overall. Missed the Griz/EWU game but got the PSU game.

[wapiti]

Northern Colorado 21 @ Montana State 35 --- UNC beat NAU who beat Arizona.

Idaho State 16 @ NAU 32 --- NAU was brought back to reality against UNC, but now gets a struggling ISU team.

Weber State 28 @ Cal Poly 14 The BBQ has been burnt two weeks in a row and now a road game against a struggling CP. The BBQ should win, but it is a road game.

Portland State 14 @ SUU 17 --- PSU on the road again. I give victory to home field advantage.

Idaho 20 @ UC Davis 42 --- You See Davis pulled out a big W against a good team on the road. Now at home against Idaho.

Montana 24 @ Eastern Washington 17 --- Big game in Cheney. High powered offense against high powered defense. but on the other end there is a medium powered offense against a medium powered defense. I pick defense to win this game.

4-2 this week. I missed UM - EWU and PSU - SUU

[Lumberjackfanbefore2012]

I'm showing Jacks don't play next week. Did they schedule something at the last minute (Arizona Western or someone)?
They play southern Utah next week.

[Lumberjackfanbefore2012]

They play southern Utah next week.
Whoops. Read that wrong. They have the bye next week. Southern Utah on the 16th.

[MSUBobcat]

Goddamn Grizzlies. Ruined my perfect week.

[CA Forever]

Thank you also for that information. Davis in a rout.

Apparently Rodrigues was medically cleared, but Hawkins wanted to play it on the safe side and give him another week. Lucky we came away with the W to be honest.