Indeed, Montana has the strongest playoff resumé in the Big Sky Conference with Idaho not far behind
Montana State football coach Brent Vigen opened his weekly news conference on Monday by expressing a sentiment that every Big Sky football coach says, at least publicly, whenever given the chance.
In this conference, no matter the record, any team can beat any other one.
“Portland State, they’re a very dangerous team,” Vigen said of the Vikings, who got their first win of the season last weekend by topping host Idaho State 42-38. “Going on the road, being down. I think Idaho State’s an emerging team, so for them to pull a win on Saturday, was certainly impressive.”
The Vikings (1-5 overall, 1-2 Big Sky) were one play away from beating UC Davis the week before. But the Aggies scored on a last-second touchdown that was upheld on review.
The Aggies (6-1, 3-0) are ranked sixth in this week’s FCS Stats Perform Top 25. They play at Eastern Washington (2-4, 1-1) – which is coming off a 35-28 road win over then-18th -ranked Sacramento State – in Cheney on Saturday.
“We know to win the conference you’ve got to win your home games and you’ve got to be able to win these games on the road, and we knew coming down the pipe these were going to be really difficult road tests for us,” UC Davis coach Tim Plough said Monday during his news conference. “Our best is going to be needed on Saturday.”
The Aggies and third-ranked Bobcats (7-0, 3-0) are the only two of the Big Sky’s 12 teams without a loss in conference play. With half of this season’s 12-game schedule behind them, they are all but locks to reach the 24-team FCS playoff field.
The conference’s parity, though, leaves the rest of the Big Sky’s teams – or just about all of them, anyhow – with a realistic optimism that they also could still get to a playoff field that traditionally includes anywhere from four to six Big Sky teams.
Here is a midseason look at the résumés of the conference’s eight other teams (leaving out the five-loss Vikings and the six-loss Northern Colorado Bears), with their greatest assets and their greatest liabilities.
Strongest résumé:
No. 11 Montana (5-2, 2-1)
Asset: Its nonconference schedule. The Grizzlies filled the four nonconference games on their schedule with FCS matchups. The only one they lost was on the road to now-No. 9 North Dakota (4-2).
Liability: Total defense. Highly unusual for a Bobby Hauck-coached team, the Grizzlies are allowing 373.7 yards per game, sixth most in the conference.
Schedule: at Northern Colorado, at Cal Poly, vs. UC Davis, vs. Portland State, at Montana State.
No. 13 Idaho (4-3, 1-2)
Asset: An FBS victory. Idaho defeated Wyoming 17-13 and lost to No. 3 Oregon 24-14 early in the season. Such victories and close losses when playing up a subdivision may play well when posturing for an at-large bid.
Liability: Quarterback depth. Jack Layne remains out with a broken collarbone suffered in that Oregon game. In a 38-7 loss at Montana State last week, Nick Josifek suffered a similar injury and is done for the season.
Schedule: vs. Cal Poly, vs. EWU, at PSU, vs. Weber State, at Idaho State.
Northern Arizona (3-4, 1-2)
Asset: The worst is in the past. The Lumberjacks just finished a stretch of four straight games against then-ranked FCS opponents in which they went 1-3.
Liability: No signature win. The best win was 34-16 over Sacramento State. But the Hornets are winless in conference play.
Schedule: vs. ISU, vs. Weber State, at Cal Poly, at Northern Colorado, vs. EWU.
Weber State (3-4, 2-1)
Asset: A victory at Montana. If the Grizzlies continue to win, that victory will age well for the Wildcats, who don’t have another signature victory.
Liability: Two home losses. Neither were ugly, with McNeese State leaving Ogden, Utah, with a 28-26 win and Northern Colorado with a 21-17 victory. But they leave the Wildcats with just two more home games that they basically must have to bolster their record.
Schedule: at Sacramento State, at NAU, vs. ISU, at Idaho, vs. Cal Poly.
Eastern Washington (2-4, 1-1)
Asset: Its running game. Eastern’s rushing game ranks third in the Big Sky (213.3), nearly 60 yards per game more than it did last season. The Eagles are also second in first downs per game (25) and third-down conversion rate (50%).
Liability: Early nonconference losses. The three-point loss to Drake in overtime and the four-point loss at Southeastern Louisiana denied the Eagles two FCS wins and put more pressure on them to run the table or to at least go 5-1 the rest of the way.
Schedule: vs. UC Davis, at Idaho, vs. Montana State, at Northern Colorado, vs. ISU, at NAU.
Sacramento State (2-4, 0-2)
Asset: An aggressive defense. The Hornets lead the Big Sky in sacks (20) and in fumbles forced (10).
Liability: A generous offense. No one in the Big Sky has thrown more interceptions than the Hornets (eight) and just five in the FCS have lost more fumbles (seven).
Schedule: vs. Weber State, at ISU, vs. PSU, at Montana State, at Cal Poly, vs. UC Davis.
Idaho State (3-4, 1-2)
Asset: A busy passing offense. Idaho State unabashedly relies on its passing game, which has attempted a conference-high 302 passes and scored on a Big Sky-high 17 receiving touchdowns.
Liability: No Big Sky team has allowed more rushing yards (244 per game), and Idaho State’s turnover margin (minus-5) is the worst in the conference.
Schedule: at NAU, vs. Sacramento State, at Weber State, at EWU, vs. Idaho.
Weakest résumé
: Cal Poly (2-4, 1-2)
Asset: Home games aplenty. The Mustangs have three straight in San Luis Obispo following its next contest against Idaho, improving their chances at scoring a few upsets.
Liability: An inconsistent offense. Cal Poly’s offense is averaging 353 yards per game, more only than Idaho (332) and Northern Colorado (294) among Big Sky teams.
Schedule: at Idaho, vs. Montana, vs. NAU, vs. Sacramento State, at Weber State.