Big Sky Power Rankings 9-6

[JALMOND]

Boring. Tired. "Is it over?" I'll admit these are some of the things I was thinking of as I was seeing the results of the Big Sky games during the first weekend. No surprises, nothing to brag about (did Montana score again?), nothing really to hold the interest of any casual Pac-10/Mtn West/WAC fan who may have happened to catch a glimpse of our conference. The winners won, the losers lost, and you could pretty much do other things after halftime of every game. Here are this week's power rankings for the Big Sky. This week (last week).

1. Montana (1)---Have the Grizzlies scored again since I started writing this? The Grizzlies ended up with 73 points in their opener against Western State, a DII from Gunnison, CO, far exceeding the paltry 38 points they scored in last season's opener against the same Western State. They even allowed Western State to score their only points against the Griz offense, allowing a safety in the first quarter. This week, they head to Cal Poly in a marquee West Coast FCS matchup. Did they learn anything during their glorified scrimmage?

2. Montana State (2)---The score of the Bobcats game against another Colorado DII team, Durango's Fort Lewis, mirrored the Griz game for awhile, although they stopped at 59. A great offensive production and a great opportunity to start the year with a win, instead of starting the year with a money game. This week, the aforementioned money game, so to speak, as they travel to the Pac-10's Washington State. Some think this is a winnable game for the Bobcats and after last week, it could be. Will it be, though?

3. Eastern Washington (3)---Maybe the best game involving a conference member, the Eagles did have their chances against the WAC's Nevada. Still, they did not take full advantage of them and, at the end, found themselves 25 points on the short end. What it did show was that Jones is still a beast, but the jury is still out on Mitchell. This week, the Eagles meet their instate, DII rival, Central Washington, who would like nothing more than to knock big brother down. This week, will Mitchell come alive?

4. Northern Arizona (4)---The Jacks pitiful victim this weekend was DII's Western New Mexico, who hardly put up a wimper. The Jacks called off the dogs at 48 points in a good offensive showing by Herrick and company. Things worked well against Western New Mexico. The question is this week they move up a level and head to Tempe to face Arizona State, coming off a blowout themselves against fellow Big Sky mate Portland State. Will things keep moving smoothly for the Jacks, enough to stay with the Sun Devils?

5. Weber State (5)---The rest of the conference stayed behind in the western part of the country while the Wildcats headed to the east to play Boston College. Good ESPN exposure for the Wildcats as there was a feel-good story involving Boston College's cancer stricken linebacker, but still a loss in what was really not much of a game. This week, they start conference play as they host Northern Colorado. These games count, are they ready?

6. Sacramento State (6)---What may have been surprising was the Hornets scored 17 points against the Pac-10 Stanford team, showing that the offense may have lots of life this year. Unfortunately, the Cardinal scored 52 against the Hornet defense. Could mainly be due to the step up in play, but there were some rumblings that this game was going to be somewhat closer. No matter. This weekend they entertain DII Western Oregon, a game they surely should get a win, as long as they keep focused on this game.

7. Northern Colorado (7)---This is the second full week of the season and the Bears have already won one game. That is true. They won by 44 points, continuing the week's domination of the Big Sky over Colorado's DII schools as they beat Adams State. Obviously the offense and defense are in sync, at least for the first week. Good things in store for the Bears this year? They jump right in to conference play this week as they head to Weber State. Another win could raise some eyebrows, and not just because it would be their second win.

8. Idaho State (9)---Just like Northern Colorado, the Bengals also got a win this weekend as they had no problem beating NAIA's Montana-Western. Going to last season, that means the Bengals are on a two game winning streak (possibly should have been three). Beating an NAIA does not make the Bengals world beaters but it is a step in the right direction for these perennial losers. This week, they head down the road and step up a level as they play the WAC's Utah State. Possibly...don't count out the Bengals.

9. Portland State (8)---In a week of boring and humdrum games, the Vikings were probably the worst. Nothing seemed to go right against the Pac-10's Arizona State and that does not bode well when you are making a step up. The Vikings showed they have the most work still to do in all aspects except the kicking game, where Zach Brown made three field goals, two from long distances. Can they fix it? This week they head down to UC-Davis in what is becoming an annual game (maybe permanent now). Oregon is on the horizon so the Vikings need good things in this game.

Not many changes. Switching ISU and PSU could be debated as one team won against NAIA and one team lost against Pac-10. Burton will get the Vikings to play well, but for now, he has his work cut out for him.

[frinq]

Speaking as a beleaguered PSU fan, I'll be happy if we finally get a touchdown. And we probably will. But will one touchdown and a couple field goals be enough? I doubt it. In the ASU game our pass defense was at best average; our run defense was miserable. Chalk it up to too many freshmen playing on the line. Making allowances for good Pac-10 defense, we did ok on passing offense, but our running was miserable. Again, a good Pac-10 defense, because on the face of it we have good experienced O linsmen and they should have been able to open up a few holes. Does 85 scholarships vs. 63 make that much of a difference? Only in the fourth quarter.

Yeah, Davis will probably beat us. But it will be a respectable game. They won't win by much.

[JALMOND]

Speaking as a beleaguered PSU fan, I'll be happy if we finally get a touchdown. And we probably will. But will one touchdown and a couple field goals be enough? I doubt it. In the ASU game our pass defense was at best average; our run defense was miserable. Chalk it up to too many freshmen playing on the line. Making allowances for good Pac-10 defense, we did ok on passing offense, but our running was miserable. Again, a good Pac-10 defense, because on the face of it we have good experienced O linsmen and they should have been able to open up a few holes. Does 85 scholarships vs. 63 make that much of a difference? Only in the fourth quarter.

Yeah, Davis will probably beat us. But it will be a respectable game. They won't win by much.

I hear you. Davis still has Trombetta who ran circles around whatever Glanville put out there. I'm sure he is salivating at our run defense. Rau needs to step up and be the face of the defense, even with him being as young as he is. Overall, it is not like ASU ran away and hid, we gave up two touchdowns in each quarter, which could be expected when playing up a level. As good as Brown is on his kicks, we still need to score touchdowns to win in the conference. I'd rather have Brown kick a 53-yarder to beat the Grizzlies in the last seconds, than to have him kick it because that's all we can get.

[Wildcat Ryan]

The Weber/UNC game is going to determine alot, this is a big game for both the Wildcats and Bears, I feel Weber will win, but our games vs the bears have always been competitive. Cant wait till saturday on Military appreciation night and watch the Fly by by jets out of Hill Air Foce base and watch Weber come running out of the tunnel in thier new Black uniforms, and watch the post game fireworks after Weber beats the bears

CANT WAIT TILL SATURDAY CATS WIN 31-17

[mtjack]

JALMOND -
Thanks for the Power Rankings. Enjoyed the preview for this week's games.

[Mvemjsunpx]

7. Northern Colorado (7)---This is the second full week of the season and the Bears have already won one game. That is true. They won by 44 points, continuing the week's domination of the Big Sky over Colorado's DII schools as they beat Adams State. Obviously the offense and defense are in sync, at least for the first week. Good things in store for the Bears this year? They jump right in to conference play this week as they head to Weber State. Another win could raise some eyebrows, and not just because it would be their second win.

The Bears won by 54, not 44.

[NAU_Alum10]

welcome mtjack, nice to see another jack fan

[Screamin_Eagle174]

I forgot PSU plays Oregon. My lord that's going to be ugly. Perhaps almost as ugly as Georgia State/Alabama will be at the end of the season.

[JALMOND]

7. Northern Colorado (7)---This is the second full week of the season and the Bears have already won one game. That is true. They won by 44 points, continuing the week's domination of the Big Sky over Colorado's DII schools as they beat Adams State. Obviously the offense and defense are in sync, at least for the first week. Good things in store for the Bears this year? They jump right in to conference play this week as they head to Weber State. Another win could raise some eyebrows, and not just because it would be their second win.

The Bears won by 54, not 44.

Thanks. I'll blame it on my fat fingers (and a terrible job at proofreading).

[frinq]

Re PSU/UO, nah, I don't think it'll be TOTALLY ugly. Won't be 70, more like 55. They'll put the third string in in the fourth. Oregon's already proved they can bash up a weak team. They'll be nice to an in-state non-rival. Not!

[SDHornet]

frinq, cal-davis looked awful in week 1. They are staring a redshirt freshman at QB and their receiver’s are average at best especially compared to what they had last year. Their defense looked capable but their secondary (specifically their corners) is downright pathetic when it comes to making a solo tackle in the open field. I will be pulling for PSU in this one, and I think you guys can pull it out if the defense can be aggressive and takes it to them. I think it will be a low scoring game which will be to the advantage of PSU.

[native]

Great job, as usual, getting the ball rolling, JALMOND!

BUT let's take a look at actual performances, beyond the scores, in Week One.

While Montana remains #1, I certainly share Grizz fan concerns for a lackluster offensive production against a weak lower division team. Against FBS defenses, both the EWU and Weber offenses had superior performances. Likewise, the Montana State defensive performance was suprising, considering the opponent. It is noteworthy that WSU turned in the best BSC defensive performance against FBS opponents last week, and the second best offensive performance, behind EWU, against FBS defenses. Lots of reason for hope and confidence for the Weber and Eastern Washington offenses.

TOTAL OFFENSE G Rush Pass Plays Yards Avg/P TD Avg/G
1. Montana State 1 287 245 83 532 6.4 8 532.0
2. Northern Arizona 1 211 285 74 496 6.7 6 496.0
3. Northern Colorado 1 263 189 66 452 6.8 6 452.0
4. Eastern Washington 1 162 270 68 432 6.4 3 432.0
5. Idaho State 1 221 190 69 411 6.0 4 411.0
6. Weber State 1 104 277 86 381 4.4 2 381.0
7. Montana 1 103 262 51 365 7.2 6 365.0
8. Portland State 1 54 209 66 263 4.0 0 263.0
9. Sacramento State 1 54 113 57 167 2.9 1 167.0

TOTAL DEFENSE G Rush Pass Plays Yards Avg/P TD Avg/G
1. Montana 1 39 55 59 94 1.6 0 94.0
2. Northern Colorado 1 44 60 50 104 2.1 0 104.0
3. Idaho State 1 -3 132 52 129 2.5 0 129.0
4. Northern Arizona 1 79 85 62 164 2.6 0 164.0
5. Montana State 1 22 216 48 238 5.0 1 238.0
6. Weber State 1 188 223 56 411 7.3 4 411.0
7. Sacramento State 1 213 316 62 529 8.5 7 529.0
8. Eastern Washington 1 214 339 82 553 6.7 7 553.0
Portland State 1 242 311 66 553 8.4 7 553.0

It is admittedly difficult to draw meaningful insights from the extreme mismatches offered in the week one games. Until we get another couple of games in the record books, the power rankings are just a crap shoot.

[frinq]

SD, I've noted that freshman QB; they gained half the yardage we did. And your other points are noted. For what it's worth against the Pac-10. You've voiced what I've been silently thinking: we could win this one.

[native]

SD, I've noted that freshman QB; they gained half the yardage we did. And your other points are noted. For what it's worth against the Pac-10. You've voiced what I've been silently thinking: we could win this one.

I hope so, fring. Good luck! Go Big Sky!

[weberwildcat]

2 good tests for weber in week 2 and 3: northern colorado on sat then off to cali to play sac state.

[AZGrizFan]

Great job, as usual, getting the ball rolling, JALMOND!

BUT let's take a look at actual performances, beyond the scores, in Week One.

While Montana remains #1, I certainly share Grizz fan concerns for a lackluster offensive production against a weak lower division team. Against FBS defenses, both the EWU and Weber offenses had superior performances. Likewise, the Montana State defensive performance was suprising, considering the opponent. It is noteworthy that WSU turned in the best BSC defensive performance against FBS opponents last week, and the second best offensive performance, behind EWU, against FBS defenses. Lots of reason for hope and confidence for the Weber and Eastern Washington offenses.

TOTAL OFFENSE G Rush Pass Plays Yards Avg/P TD Avg/G
1. Montana State 1 287 245 83 532 6.4 8 532.0
2. Northern Arizona 1 211 285 74 496 6.7 6 496.0
3. Northern Colorado 1 263 189 66 452 6.8 6 452.0
4. Eastern Washington 1 162 270 68 432 6.4 3 432.0
5. Idaho State 1 221 190 69 411 6.0 4 411.0
6. Weber State 1 104 277 86 381 4.4 2 381.0
7. Montana 1 103 262 51 365 7.2 6 365.0
8. Portland State 1 54 209 66 263 4.0 0 263.0
9. Sacramento State 1 54 113 57 167 2.9 1 167.0

TOTAL DEFENSE G Rush Pass Plays Yards Avg/P TD Avg/G
1. Montana 1 39 55 59 94 1.6 0 94.0
2. Northern Colorado 1 44 60 50 104 2.1 0 104.0
3. Idaho State 1 -3 132 52 129 2.5 0 129.0
4. Northern Arizona 1 79 85 62 164 2.6 0 164.0
5. Montana State 1 22 216 48 238 5.0 1 238.0
6. Weber State 1 188 223 56 411 7.3 4 411.0
7. Sacramento State 1 213 316 62 529 8.5 7 529.0
8. Eastern Washington 1 214 339 82 553 6.7 7 553.0
Portland State 1 242 311 66 553 8.4 7 553.0

It is admittedly difficult to draw meaningful insights from the extreme mismatches offered in the week one games. Until we get another couple of games in the record books, the power rankings are just a crap shoot.

Well, native: There's lies, there's DAMNED lies, and then there's statistics. Sure, Montana only got 365 yards. But here's a few things you conveniently forget in your "equation":

a) Montana's offense only ran FIFTY ONE plays.
b) Montana only had the ball a little over TWENTY minutes.
c) Montana had FOUR drives all day that didn't result in a score (2 punts, a safety and an INT)
d) Montana had scoring drives of 6 seconds, 53 seconds, 53 seconds, 1:07, 1:31, 2:08 and 3:18.
e) Almost 6 MINUTES of the game was canceled due to lightening (and at that point Montana was already up 42-2)
f) TWENTY EIGHT Grizzlies got tackles in this game, the FOUR QB's threw to EIGHT different receivers and we had SIX different running backs get carries.

This game was a glorified scrimmage, and was basically treated as such. So, you can wax poetic about Montana's "lackluster" production. I can't WAIT until we start conference play.

[SDHornet]

2 good tests for weber in week 2 and 3: northern colorado on sat then off to cali to play sac state.

I’m looking forward to week 3; it should give us a good idea where both teams are headed this season. Hopefully none of the players are overlooking the DII opponent this week, there is still plenty to get in tune after the 1st game at Stanford.

[Wildcat Ryan]

2 good tests for weber in week 2 and 3: northern colorado on sat then off to cali to play sac state.

I’m looking forward to week 3; it should give us a good idea where both teams are headed this season. Hopefully none of the players are overlooking the DII opponent this week, there is still plenty to get in tune after the 1st game at Stanford.

Me to, I am also looking forward to that game, but first things first the Cats have to get past a Bears team that alot of people think is going to beat Weber.

In my opinion, this is a bigger test for the Bears than for Weber, UNC pretty much killed Adams State, but how will they be vs MUCH better competition on the road.

Weber played up, and at times moved the ball rather well vs Boston College, with 3 turnovers IN BC TERRITORY which stalled Weber drives. Weber defense needs work, but BC's o'line was huge, and Weber's d didnt allow a BC offensive td in the second half. So the question is how does Weber do playing a team at thier own level?

I have a feeling Weber will be better than they were last year, and I think Weber will start 1-1 and beat the Bears 31-17.

[SDHornet]

Yeah I watched the whole 1st half and some of the 3rd of that BC game. I thought BC played a very conservative defensive scheme and didn't really challenge the pass blocking of WSU. I was impressed with the WSU receivers finding the seams of the BC zone. WSU was playing pass and catch for most of the day.