I know its not the 18th yet, but I probably will be unavailable most of the week as I'm heading to Helena, MT to see my mother and that side of the family, and between doing family things and whatnot, I may not be able to get these out when I usually do. So, here is this week's power rankings in a quick form. The conference got one more scalp against the Pac-12, a conference that had been showing no mercy towards the Big Sky, and also the conference saw the most points scored by a Big Sky team ever in a single game. What did those things do to the rankings this week. Here they are, with last week's rankings in parenthesis. Conference play starts this weekend. Good luck to all the teams.
1. Sacramento State (3)---Last week won at Stanford (FBS Pac-12) 30-23, this week at Idaho---After showing no mercy against the Southland, the Hornets got an impressive win over the Pac-12 last week and saved the conference from total embarrassment against them. They got momentum heading into conference play, a road date against the Vandals.
2. Montana State (2)---Last week beat Stetson (FCS Pioneer) at home 57-20, this week at Weber State---The Bobcats recovered nicely from their close loss to the top team in all of FCS with a solid win against a Pioneer conference member. They are looking strong and playing well heading into conference play with a road date at Weber State, always a tough place to visit.
3. Idaho (1)---Last week lost at California (FBS Pac-12) 31-17, this week Sacramento State at home---For awhile it looked like the Vandals may get their second win over the FBS and a win over the Pac-12. But closing out those type of games are always difficult and there really is no fault in losing them. They start conference play in a big way, bringing in the Hornets for a good home contest.
4. Montana (4)---Last week beat Ferris State (DII) 17-10, this week at Northern Arizona---The Grizzlies brought in the two-time defending DII national champions and came out after halftime to get the win. While none of the opponents have been that impressive, they are still wins and wins are good. They start on the road for conference play against the Lumberjacks.
5. Eastern Washington (7)---Last week beat SE Louisiana (FCS Southland) 40-29, this week at UC Davis---No one is talking about the Eagles, but they put together an impressive non conference slate and, while they only got the one win this past weekend, they looked good in all of them. That kind of schedule should have them ready for the conference slate at UC Davis.
6. Weber State (5)---Last week lost at Utah (FBS Pac-12) 31-7, this week Montana State at home---Moving up to the Pac-12 level and playing their big brothers just down the road a bit proved fruitless for the Wildcats as they closed out the non-conference slate with a loss. But, all in all a good schedule has them ready for conference play. They welcome Montana State to town.
7. UC Davis (6)---Last week beat Southern Utah (FCS United) 23-21, this week Eastern Washington at home---Nothing too surprising about the outcomes of the Aggies' games in non-conference play, other than the scores. They did get through them with a 2-1 record. Did it adequately prepare them for conference play? The get the upstart Eagles team at home this weekend.
8. Portland State (9)---Last week beat North American (NAIA) 91-0, this week Cal Poly at home---Interesting non-conference games for the Vikings. They have one game where they gave up 81 points and they have one game where they turned back the clock to the Mouse Davis years and scored 91 points. Are they ready for conference play? They welcome Cal Poly to their home.
9. Northern Arizona (8)---Last week lost to Utah Tech (FCS United) at home 50-36, this week Montana at home---The Lumberjacks have had a rough go of it in non-conference play, capped off by last week's loss at home to a team that was trounced by the Montana schools. They need to be ready because conference play starts and they welcome Montana to their happy dome.
10. Idaho State (11)---Last week lost to Northern Iowa (FCS Missouri Valley) 41-17, this week Northern Colorado at home---After looking somewhat competitive against the Mountain West, other than a disastrous second quarter of one, the Bengals welcomed a strong FCS team and took one on the chin. They move on to conference play with a good chance at a win this weekend.
11. Cal Poly (10)---Last week beat Lincoln, CA (NAIA) at home 41-20, this week at Portland State---Yeah, so it was a win over an inferior opponent and it pushed the Mustangs to a respectable 2-1 in non-conference play. But they let the opponent stick around. An opponent that had no business sticking around. How will that translate to conference play as they go on the road and face the Vikings.
12. Northern Colorado (12)---Last week lost at Washington State (FBS Pac-12) 64-21, this week at Idaho State---Two games against strong competition in the FCS and one on the road against the unrelenting Pac-12 has the Bears entering conference play without a win. But, as long as they are prepared, that is all that matters. They could get a win this week, heading out to play the Bengals.
RECAP: 1-3 breaking out on top, 4-7 trying to keep up, 8 holding steady, 9-12 trying to catch up.