Big Sky Power Rankings 9/26

[wapiti]

A few games were exciting, MSU@EWU and BBQ @ UCD. and some other were too predictable PSU@UM, ISU@UNCU
Both MSU and EWU have things to clean up and polish. UM and BBQ continue to show why they are the top 2 dogs and Sac is a whisker behind.
and look out for Idaho.


1. Weber (2) - I moved BBQ up to number 1 because of a more impressive resume than UM has. SOS does mean something.

Tie 2. Montana (1) - Not often a team wins big and drops a spot. UM dominated PSU for all but PSU's opening drive.

Tie 2. Sac State (3) - Soundly beat a bad Mountain West FBS team

4. Montana State (4) - Squeaked by EWU. Needed a 5 minute play review to pull out the victory and it was the right call (This first 5 minute review). Nothing in the review to overrule the call on the field. MSU only had one turnover to EWU's 2.

5. Idaho (6) - Dispatched NAU in Flagstaff without too many difficulties. UI is moving up the rankings.

6. UC Davis (5) - Ohh so close, but yet another L. UC Davis has to have one of the tougher schedules in FCS. Not much easier this next weekend in Bozeman.

7. EWU (8) - Nearly took down MSU in Cheney. EWU's loss against MSU was more impressive than NAU's lose to Idaho

8. NAU (7) - Beaten at home against a rising Idaho team. Looking like another middling year for NAU. Yet they could upset one of the contenders and play a spoiler role.

9. PSU (9) - Throttled in Missoula. Had a few bright spots throughout the game, but UM proved to be too much for PSU.

10. NC (10) - A win over lowly ISU is not enough to jump PSU

11. CP (11) - Was idle. Will that make much difference against Sac this coming weekend.

12. ISU (12) - Lowly UNCU beat up on the Bengals. They do host a game against CP in 3 weeks.


A change in the Recap: 1-6 contenders 7-9 Middle of the pack 10-12 Bottom of the barrel
Idaho moved up into the contenders category.

[Vandal03]

Generally I agree. I also could see any mix of Idaho, UC Davis, and Eastern for 5 through 7. It is exciting to be past most of the non-conference games so we can see how good everyone is.

[nevadagriz]

I have to laugh at the AGS top 25 vs The BSC power rankings. AGS has 2 Montana 4 Sac st 5 Msu and 7 weber Most BSC fans would say Weber, Sac, Montana,then MSU

[Catbooster]

I have to laugh at the AGS top 25 vs The BSC power rankings. AGS has 2 Montana 4 Sac st 5 Msu and 7 weber Most BSC fans would say Weber, Sac, Montana,then MSU
Yep. Although I think you could make a good argument to put UC Davis above MSU - 2 point loss to SDSU and 5 points to WSU is pretty good but a 1-3 start is tough.

For years the knock against Weber has been that they can't find an offense to go with their defense. It looks like they've found their offense this year but most of the voters aren't recognizing it yet.

It is still early in the season. Lots of time for the rankings to shift.

[JALMOND]

The opening weekend of conference play for most teams was last week and, because of the matchups, some interesting teams at 1-0 and some at 0-1. That said, Sacramento State did not open their conference schedule, but rather took down FBS Colorado State for the conference's second win over the FBS. This week, Weber State is off and Eastern Washington tentatively has a game scheduled at Florida that may get cancelled due to the hurricane (it is on as of now). Here are this week's power rankings (last week in parenthesis). All open for discussion.

1. Montana (1)---Last week beat Portland State at home 53-16, this week at Idaho State---A little hiccup to start the game last week, but then the Grizzlies got it rolling, getting a good opening conference win. They go on the road for the second time all year, with a game that on paper should be an easy win, but in a place that isn't all that easy to win.

2. Weber State (2)---Last week won at UC Davis 17-12, this week bye---The Wildcats have a defense that has shown to be tough, even when the offense may be struggling at times like last week where they got a great conference road win. They will take this week off, giving themselves two weeks to prepare for a game Eastern Washington squad.

3. Sacramento State (4)---Last week won at Colorado State (FBS Mtn West) 41-10, this week at Cal Poly---The conference got another win over the FBS Mountain West conference as the Hornets flexed their muscles and destroyed Colorado State. Flying high after this week, they start their conference season on the road with what should be an easy game.

4. Montana State (3)---Last week won at Eastern Washington 38-35, this week UC Davis at home---The Bobcats got a good conference road win last week in one of the toughest places to play in conference. Some of the heavies in the conference get a little bit of a break this week, but the Bobcats have another tough foe, this time at their place.

5. UC Davis (5)---Last week lost to Weber State at home 17-12, this week at Montana State---The Aggies defense tried to keep the team poised for a win last week, but the offense had trouble all day trying to score. A tough game to lose, they now have to head into Big Sky Country to try to keep their hopes for a good season alive.

6. Idaho (7)---Last week won at Northern Arizona 27-10, this week Northern Colorado at home---The surprising Vandals kept their positive mojo moving with a superb road win at altitude last week. Eager to keep their season moving, they are hoping for an easy game against an easy opponent in their home dome. But how easy will it be?

7. Eastern Washington (6)---Last week lost to Montana State at home 38-35, this week at Florida (FBS SEC)---After a really painful home loss to start the conference season, the Eagles now have to go across the country into SEC land, provided that the hurricane holds off so they can get there and play. So far, all things are go, but will the Eagles be ready?

8. Northern Arizona (8)---Last week lost to Idaho at home 27-10, this week at Portland State---The Lumberjacks could not muster anything against one of the more surprising teams so far in the conference and they took a hard home conference loss to the books. They now hit the road, hoping for a win to get their season back on track.

9. Portland State (9)---Last week lost at Montana 53-16, this week Northern Arizona at home---Having two weeks to prepare for the biggest game so far on their schedule, the Vikings hit first, then ran away. No running this week as they have a more formidable foe coming in to town. They can't be dropping home games if they want to succeed.

10. Northern Colorado (10)---last week beat Idaho State at home 35-14, this week at Idaho---The Bears did what they were supposed to do which was to hold serve on their home field. They are hoping they can complete the Idaho weekly double, but going on the road to the terrible dome is not something that will come easy.

11. Cal Poly (11)---Last week bye, this week Sacramento State at home---The Mustangs had last week off which means they get to open their conference season this week at home. They all saw the big conference scalp last week and they are eager to take their turn at starting the season off with a good home win.

12. Idaho State (12)---Last week lost at Northern Colorado 35-14, this week Montana at home---This season is only one week old, but it is emerging as a long season for the Bengals who couldn't close the door and get a win last week. Now their reward is playing the hottest team in the conference. But strange things have happened in their dome.

RECAP: 1-5 flying, 6-7 trying to hold on, 8-10 falling, 11-12 fell off.

[nevadagriz]

Cat fans!!!!
How is Mellot? Nasty hit to the head, Hope he recovers quickly.
How do you guys feel going against Davis?? I think Cats win pretty easily, Davis needs to find their offense and Cats will wear them out with their rushing attack.
Any running backs returning for you guys this week?
Was anyone else suprised that EWU ran more than they passed against you guys?

[MSUBobcat]

Cat fans!!!!
How is Mellot? Nasty hit to the head, Hope he recovers quickly.
How do you guys feel going against Davis?? I think Cats win pretty easily, Davis needs to find their offense and Cats will wear them out with their rushing attack.
Any running backs returning for you guys this week?
Was anyone else suprised that EWU ran more than they passed against you guys?

Mellott is out for at least this game, per Vigen in the press conference.
I'm nervous as hell against Davis. They have close losses from teams with solid defenses so I think Davis gets points. I'm hopeful that you are right about wearing them out. MSU has also played a few late night games on national TV the last couple years so I'm hoping that has the team amped up, and also being at home will be a boost.
I haven't heard about RBs coming back, but hopeful that Sumner is able to return and share some of the load.
They were pretty even on play calling, but it seemed like they ran a bunch on 1st down, had success either getting chunk yards or even a first down, so ran again either on 2nd and/or 3rd. We ran the ball more times than EWU had offensive plays and had the ball almost 2x as long. Vigen made a bad call at the end of the 1st not going for it from the 2 with a minute left and said as much today. You have a bruiser in Chambers, leading the FCS in rushing TDs I believe. Worst case you don't get it, you try for the safety, and if they get a little breathing room, they likely kneel on it like they basically did from the 20 anyway.

[MSUBobcat]

1. Weber (2) - A new #1. The Grills backed up their dismantling of USU with a solid road win over a good Davis team. Best resume in conference has to be rewarded.
2. Montana (1) - The Griz have looked really good this year.... but haven't played anyone either. And don't for a while (Oct. 22nd @ Sac)
3. Sac St (3) - A thorough ass-whooping over a turrible FBS squad. But FBS nonetheless. Combined with a decent win @UNI, and I almost went Sac at #2.
4. MSU (5) - An ugly win on the Tampon. May have been a bigger spread if Vigen had gone for it at the end of the 1st half. I think we'll be more aggressive from here on out.
5. Idaho??? (6) - Walkup is a tough place to get a win. The Vandals have showed well in their 2 FBS games and have a tune-up game this weekend to go 3 straight W's.
6. Davis (4) - The Aggies have to have played the toughest schedule in FCS so far, and have come oh-so-close to 2 quality wins, but have nothing to show for it. I am putting them here because I believe the Bobcats win a hard-fought game this weekend. If I'm wrong, they'll flip flop.
7. EWU (8) - The Eags made it a tighter game than I had figured (bad 4th down call notwithstanding). They should be rooting for Ian, as it would give them an extra week to prepare for the Griz and keep an L off the record.
8. PSU (9) - Moving up after a shellacking?!? Like with Davis-MSU, this positioning is predictive of Portland holding off NAU this weekend.
9. NAU (7) - The 'Jacks doing Jack things and fading from relevance after failing to defend the Skydome.
10. UNC (10) - The Bears could be 3-1, with a respectable effort against WY, were it not for that HBU debacle. They're about to run a gauntlet of 4 straight against teams I currently have in the top 6, which should solidify their position at the bottom.
11. Poly (11) - had a bye so couldn't move too much from the cellar.
12. ISU-o (12) - getting worked by the 10th best team in the conference doesn't leave many open spots in a 12 team ranking. Poly at home in mid-Oct is the only reasonable chance for a W in 2022.

1-6 still contenders
7-9 fading fast
10-12 hoping to play spoiler

[VandalBasher]

I predicted the Vandals would have the first winning season since the 2016 bowl team with a 6-5 record. Will 7-4 get Idaho into the playoffs?

[JALMOND]

I predicted the Vandals would have the first winning season since the 2016 bowl team with a 6-5 record. Will 7-4 get Idaho into the playoffs?


Vandals don't have a good win on their resume so far, and probably won't unless they can get a win in Missoula or Sacramento.

[MSUBobcat]

I predicted the Vandals would have the first winning season since the 2016 bowl team with a 6-5 record. Will 7-4 get Idaho into the playoffs?

I think at 7-4, the Vandals would get consideration for playoffs but like JALMOND said, you'd lack a strong win on the resume. Assuming the Bobcats can take care of business this weekend, Davis would be 5-4 coming into the UI game, with only losses to FBS and three top 10 FCS teams. But then Idaho beating them drops them to .500 and the following week they'd likely drop to 5-6 with a loss @Sac. Davis has to be in contention for the toughest SOS this year, with a decent FBS, @ 3 top 10 FCS (SDSU, MSU and Sac), home vs. another top 10 (Weber) and @ UI which is looking like a fringe top 25. SDSU, MSU, Sac and Weber may even all be top 6 teams.

If the Vandals beat EWU on Nov. 5th, the Schmeagles would be 3-5 (assuming the game vs. the Gators doesn't happen) and on pace for a 4-6 season, which doesn't help the resume either, even if they also play a tough schedule. One thing they would have going for them is they would be ending on a 3 game win streak, with 2 wins against teams that spent a portion of the season being ranked. It would really depend on how soft the bubble is this year. Much to early to put forth a guess, so I'll make one and say 40-60 that the Vandals make it at 7-4. Replace one of the respectable losses to the FBS teams with even a win over a WIU, EIU, TAMU-Commerce, etc. to get to 8-3, regardless of not being a tough FCS team, and I think they're solidly in. Bummer when a program needs to take 2 money games to make the finances balances and it ends up costing them a playoff spot.