Big Sky Power Rankings 9-29

[JALMOND]

What a first week of conference play in the Big Sky. If the first week is any indication of what the rest of the season is going to be, be prepared for a pretty messy and interesting season. You think you have it all figured out, then they start playing each other and it is a whole new ballgame. There were some teams that avoided the carnage and some that looked pretty bad. Any other adages or saying you want to add, feel free to do so. Meanwhile, here are my power rankings for this week (last week's rankings in parenthesis). As usual, these are my opinion only. I am sure everyone will have one this time around.

1, Montana State (1)---Last week won at Idaho State 37-17, this week Northern Colorado at home---All the various messes going on around them, and the Bobcats did what they were supposed to, in a place that typically is not kind to them. This week, they welcome one of the bottom feeders for their conference home opener.

2. Montana (3)---Last week won at Eastern Washington 52-49, this week Weber State at home---The Grizzlies were cruising along, seemingly on their way to a good win, then came the fourth quarter and it turned into a dogfight. But, they still head off the opponent and escaped with a win. Their conference home opener is next.

3. UC Davis (4)---Last week beat Idaho at home 28-26, this week at Portland State---Hang close then strike is what the Aggies did last week, getting an impressive home conference win over one of the heavies. Some anxious moments near the end, but they got it done. They head up the coast and try to continue their winning streak.

4. Idaho (2)---Last week lost at UC Davis 28-26, this week Northern Arizona at home---Just barely hanging on it the game, the Vandals let a road game slip through their fingers last week, coming up short at the end. They are heading back to their barn this weekend, bringing in one of the surprise teams in the conference so far.

5. Northern Arizona (7)---Last week beat Sacramento State at home 34-16, this week at Idaho---With the win last week at home, the Lumberjacks put the rest of the conference on notice that they are, so far, a team to be reckoned with. They get another chance to show it this week, on the road against one of the favorites.

6. Sacramento State (5)---Last week lost at Northern Arizona 34-16, this week bye---Eager to start moving up in the standings and the rankings, the Hornets took one on the chin on the road last week. Road conference wins are hard to get and the Hornets fell short. They get a week off to try to regain their swagger.

7. Weber State (6)---Last week lost to McNeese (FCS Southland) at home 28-26, this week at Montana---Not the way the Wildcats wanted to end their non-conference slate, but a loss at home is what they got. Still, 3 points is what separates them from being undefeated as they reenter conference play this weekend.

8. Idaho State (8)---Last week lost to Montana State at home 37-17, this week at Cal Poly---The Bengals got a tough loss to the top ranked team in the conference in their home building last week. Not a good showing considering their win the week before in their same cozy confines. This week, a trip down California way.

9. Eastern Washington (9)---Last week lost to Montana at home 52-49, this week bye---It's hard to tell what was more shocking for the Eagles. They scored 49 points against a strong Montana defense, yet still lost the game. They now get two weeks to try to find a defense to match up with that stong offense they have.

10. Portland State (11)---Last week lost at Chattanooga (FCS Southern) 45-30, this week UC Davis at home---The Vikings flew across the country to play a team searching for their offense, and being the good sports they are, they helped that team find their offense. They return home for conference play, searching for their defense.

11. Cal Poly (12)---Last week won at Northern Colorado 28-7, this week Idaho State at home---Not that anyone was really paying attention, but the Mustangs find themselves atop the conference standings with a good road conference win last weekend. It is tough to get a conference road win. This week, they welcome a conference upstart.

12. Northern Colorado (10)---Last week lost to Cal Poly at home 28-7, this week at Montana State---The Bears started conference play at home against on of the bottom feeders in the conference and still could not even keep the game close. They now have to go on the road and face one of the top teams in the conference.

RECAP: 1-2 out front, 3 on their heels, 4-6 just a step behind, 7 keeping up, 8-9 a ways out, 10-12 a step further out.

[AlexSPalmieri]

With Montana State maintaining its lead after a solid win, it's clear that the competition is heating up, especially with teams like UC Davis and Northern Arizona making strong impressions. This early stretch of the season sets the stage for an unpredictable and exciting race in the coming weeks! poppy playtime chapter 3 (https://poppyplaytimechapter3.io/)

[wapiti]

A bit of a shakeup after opening week of conference play. 2 and 3 could be considered a tie. Davis beating Idaho was better than UM hanging for a win over EWU. (But maybe EWU is pulling things back together.)

1. Montana State---Did as expected and earned a road win in the Pocatello Dome.

2. Montana---Squeaked out a hard to earn W in Cheney.

3. UC Davis ---Took down a good Idaho team and makes a jump up.

4. Idaho ---The road loss drops Idaho, but Idaho remains in contention for the conference crown.

5. Northern Arizona---Nice win over a highly ranked Sac team. Is this a sign of what is to come or like last year when NAU beat the Griz in the Skydome?

6. Sacramento State---Sac drops after a road loss. And like Idaho, Sac remains in contention for the conference crown.

7. Weber State---Weber was upset in Odgen by MacNeese State. (That is how the announcers said it)

8. Idaho State---Took a loss at home against the top team in conference. ISU is an improving team and may be a contender in a year or two.

9. Eastern Washington---Will EWU keeps its focus after several losses to start the season? or fall apart like last year?

10. Portland State---Took another loss on a long away game. Their brutal schedule continues.

11. Cal Poly---CP surprised me in Greely and moves up a spot.

12. Northern Colorado---NC has fallen apart the past 2 games and has a lot of rebuilding to do. Next up is a road game against the top team in conference.

RECAP: 1-3 out front, 4-6 Just a half step behind, 7-9 Middle of the pack, 10-11 rebuilding, 12 way back

[dbackjon]

Montana should be below UC-Davis and Idaho

[MSUBobcat]

Well.... that was a wild weekend in the Big Sky conference xlolx

1. MSU (2) - Handled their business against an improved Bengals team; moved up to #1 upon seeing the vacancy sign on the door after Idaho's QB depth chart finally caught up with them.
2. UC Davis (5) - I'm giving the Aggies a slight edge over UM. They played their FBS opponent respectably, is 4-0 vs FCS with a decent road win over SUU and a top 5 win over Idaho.
3. Montana (3) - The Griz are neck and neck for the #2 slot, but the FCS loss combined with the close win at EWU puts them at 2b for me. The win over Misery State is looking better though so a Mo St win over ISU-r, combined with a good win over WSU, could flip them regardless of if Davis beats PSU handily.
4. Idaho (1) - The defense still played well, more or less, allowing only 312 yards of offense. Unfortunately, 3 interceptions were too much to overcome.
5. NAU (7) - The middle of the rankings are getting a bit muddled. NAU has an FBS and a big road loss to ranked UIW, a dump trucking @ UTU and a home win over what I thought was a sure playoff contender.
6. Sac St. (4) - Walkup is a tough place for anyone to play. That said... an 18pt loss was surprising.
7. Weber St. (6) - Took a home L from a surprisingly resurgent McNeese team.
8. Idaho St. (8) - I believe the Bengals are an improved team. Unfortunately, the baseline for this "improvement" has been some lean years, with the last season with more than 3 wins being 2018.
9. EWU (10) - The Eags gave the Griz a scare after recovering an onside kick and pulled within 3. Both teams then agreed to send the defenses to the showers and they traded TD's, finally ending with the same 3pt margin.
10. PSU (9) - The Vikes appear to have no defense, allowing no less than 43 pts in any game this year.
11. Cal Poly (12) - Easily handled the Teddy Bears on their own field.
12. UNC (11) - Really NoCo?!? How do you go from nearly beating a quality ACU squad to losing to a team that lost to non-scholly San Diego? Jebus.

1-3 Pulling ahead a bit. 4-6 playoff aspirations. 7-9 hoping to derail someone's season. 10-12 keeping the golf clubs handy.

[MSUBobcat]

Montana should be below UC-Davis and Idaho

I had similar thoughts and did move Davis in front, but I'm wondering if the inexperience at QB is going to start catching up to them. Are teams going to find a scheme that gives Idaho issues or was the combined 50% completion rate, 6.23 ypa and 2 INT a regression to the mean?

If I'm honest, in my ranking recap, I wanted to put MSU alone at #1 and bunch 2-4 together as being solid teams, but each with a chink in the armor (I'm told Davis has injuries on D, the Griz seem to want to play to the level of their competition, Idaho possible QB issues rearing their ugly head).

[dbackjon]

I had similar thoughts and did move Davis in front, but I'm wondering if the inexperience at QB is going to start catching up to them. Are teams going to find a scheme that gives Idaho issues or was the combined 50% completion rate, 6.23 ypa and 2 INT a regression to the mean?

If I'm honest, in my ranking recap, I wanted to put MSU alone at #1 and bunch 2-4 together as being solid teams, but each with a chink in the armor (I'm told Davis has injuries on D, the Griz seem to want to play to the level of their competition, Idaho possible QB issues rearing their ugly head).

I think MSU is the leader, and UC-Davis, Idaho and Montana are close.