Big Sky Power Rankings 10-8

[JALMOND]

So, you know when you're with someone and you think you know what they are, and then something happens and you realize that you don't know anything? That is kind of what happened in the conference last weekend as both Montana, Sacramento State and Weber State all took one on the chin to what I thought was lesser opponents. What made it more astonishing was the Grizzlies and Hornets lost at home to the two cellar dwellers. So where does that leave the conference in terms of rankings? Here are this week's power rankings for the conference (last week in parenthesis). I'm sure that with who beat who and by how much will definitely open up quite the discussion, but these are totally my opinion only. As I mentioned on the AGS poll thread, I'm just glad I didn't have to figure out a national top 25.

1. Eastern Washington (1)---Last week beat Southern Utah at home 55-17, this week at Weber State---With all the carnage falling around them, the Eagles kept their hold on the #1 slot firmly in their talons. However, this game coming up could be a tough test for them.

2. UC Davis (3)---Last week won at Northern Colorado 49-36, this week Idaho State at home---The Aggies took care of business in their game. Now all of a sudden, they have a big home game this weekend, one that hardly anyone saw coming at the start of the year.

3. Idaho State (7)---Last week beat Idaho at home 62-28, this week at UC Davis---The Bengals have shown no signs of stumbling as they are firmly etched themselves near the top of the standings. But they do have a tough road game coming up this weekend.

4. Montana State (5)---Last week, bye, this week Idaho at home---In the midst of the favorites getting knocked around, the Bobcats just sat back, watched it all, and enjoyed it. They also were getting ready for a good home contest against the newcomers.

5. Weber State (2)---Last week lost at Northern Arizona 28-24, this week Eastern Washington at home---It may have been a possible trap game, but the Wildcats came up on the short end last weekend. Now they are staring at a must win this early to have a shot at a seed.

6. Montana (4)---Last week lost to Portland State at home 22-20, this week at North Dakota---Odd and bizarre. That has to be the best way to describe the Grizzlies losing at home last week. They need to rebound from this by going on the road to face the outgoing team.

7. Northern Arizona (8)---Last week beat Weber State at home 28-24, this week bye---What a way to head in to the bye week for the Lumberjacks with breaking through and getting a good strong conference win. Can it turn the season around? Will they get their quarterback back?

8. Cal Poly (12)---Last week won at Sacramento State 41-27, this week bye---Another team that got a huge lift going in to the bye week. The Mustangs stole a road victory and looked impressive doing it. The question is, have they turned a corner?

9. Sacramento State (6)---Last week lost to Cal Poly at home 41-27, this week at Southern Utah---On paper, this is a good Hornet team, yet games are not decided on paper. They could not hold serve against a lesser opponent and now are wondering how good are they?

10. Idaho (9)---Last week lost at Idaho State 62-28, this week at Montana State---The Vandals have been reminded that no one in the conference is impressed with FBS talent and have had a rough go at it. Losing at their in-state brethren was ugly, can they get this one?

11. Portland State (13)---Last week won at Montana 22-20, this week Northern Colorado at home---Putting aside all the whispers and turmoil the Vikings have had to endure the last two years, they found a way to get a win in the most unlikely of places. Will they be able to carry it through?

12. Northern Colorado (10)---Last week lost to UC Davis at home 49-36, this week at Portland State---The Bears had to have a big fourth quarter just to make the score look respectable last weekend. Still without a win, they move on to face a Portland State team brimming with confidence.

13. Southern Utah (11)---Last week lost at Eastern Washington 55-17, this week Sacramento State at home---A once promising season has now turned bad for the Thunderbirds as they are still looking for their first win. Can they get it this weekend at home?

RECAP: 1, then 2-3 with 4 on their heels, 5-7 just a step behind, 8-13 in a pack in back.

[wapiti]

1. Eastern Washington ---Continues to hold on to number 1.

2. UC Davis ---I have been impressed with Davis this year and are ready to take over number 1 if EWU would lose a game.

3. Idaho State ---What a nice surprise ISU has been this season. Now they travel to UC Davis to take on the number 2 team.

4. Weber State ---The BBQ grill burned out on the road this past week. It was a close one, but still a loss.

4.5 UND

5. Montana State --- MSU had the right week for a bye week with several teams above them losing a game.

6. Montana ---What happened in Missoula this past week? Was this a one game anomaly or a sign of the rest of the season? A good team would not let a cellar dweller beat them at home. Did UM completely overlook Portland State?

7. Northern Arizona ---NAU picked up a good win over the BBQ. Is the ship starting to right itself?

8. Cal Poly ---CP also picked up a nice win this past weekend.

9. Sacramento State ---What a fall after loosing to CP

10. Idaho ---It seems as thought the script was flipped between ISU and UI. UI was expected to compete and ISU to struggle instead the opposite has happened.

11. Portland State ---That was an impressive win this past weekend. Not many team leave Missoula with a W in hand. On their homecoming too.

12/13 Northern Colorado/Southern Utah ---NC and SUU do get to play each other at the end of the month. I was not sure where to put these two relative to each other so I put them in a tie. So this tie will be broken in a few weeks.


RECAP: 1 & 2 at the top, then 3 just a half step behind with 4 & 5 on their heels, 6-7 just a step behind, 8-11 another step behind and 12 - 13 bringing up the rear.

[SochorField]

1. Eastern Washington ---Continues to hold on to number 1.

2. UC Davis ---I have been impressed with Davis this year and are ready to take over number 1 if EWU would lose a game.


I'm trying not to drink the Davis cool-aide; however, the TALENT level in the program is finally up to par with the rest of the conference. Since Davis joined the Big Sky I think people have generally agreed that once UCD can finally get over the hump talent-wise, they will be a force in the conference.

With that said, I still think Davis has a ways to go to match EWU. EWU has been winning for a long time, while Davis has been winning for half a season.

[AggiePride]

How our defense has played is what I am most confident in; a couple bad quarters after getting out to early leads, and points scored on reserves, make the final spreads less telling. But the rest of the time, and that first half against Stanford made me smile. I have no doubt we can score.

[cpalum]

I chimed in week 4 and said I thought Cal Poly was the worst team in the conference. Most did not agree, noting PSU was worse. By mid day last Saturday I had my "I told you so" post all polished up. Then the Mustangs had to go and play their best game of the year....

In short Jalmond does a pretty good job with these. For what its worth I think you still have CP too high. They played nearly mistake free last Saturday. I doubt they will do that again. Essentially everything needs to go their way for them to win with an atrocious coach and complete lack of a defense.

I fully expect Davis to rip CP to bits on 10/20. If by some miracle that doesn't happen it will cause a continental shift in this ranking....or maybe that's just what happens in rivalry games

[JALMOND]

I chimed in week 4 and said I thought Cal Poly was the worst team in the conference. Most did not agree, noting PSU was worse. By mid day last Saturday I had my "I told you so" post all polished up. Then the Mustangs had to go and play their best game of the year....

In short Jalmond does a pretty good job with these. For what its worth I think you still have CP too high. They played nearly mistake free last Saturday. I doubt they will do that again. Essentially everything needs to go their way for them to win with an atrocious coach and complete lack of a defense.

I fully expect Davis to rip CP to bits on 10/20. If by some miracle that doesn't happen it will cause a continental shift in this ranking....or maybe that's just what happens in rivalry games

The Poly/Sac game was not really in doubt after the third quarter. The Hornets were going to have to make an impressive comeback to steal the win. Clearly, the best team in that game won, which is why I gave Poly a big jump up (and the Hornets a big jump down). Comparatively, either team could have won the PSU/UM game, and it still took a long FG for the Vikings to get the win. I'm going to have to see more to determine if the Vikings can continue a march up (and if the Grizzlies are falling). The Poly/Sac game, I could see the same result happening if they played again. The PSU/UM game...the homer in me says Viks win again, but the realist says take the win and go home because it ain't happening again.

[Iridebikes]

After the first four I have no idea how to rank the teams in the Big Sky. Before last week I thought that things were starting to get sorted out and then there are all sorts of upsets. Its a great league!!! My first four:

1) EWU
2) UC-Davis
3) Idaho State
4) Weber

What a great weekend of games with the top teams in the league (today) playing each other.

[catbob]

I agree with Jalmond's list, but I'd swap MSU and Weber around right now.

[cpalum]

The Poly/Sac game, I could see the same result happening if they played again.

Again...you do a better job with this than I could and as a die hard CP fan Id love to believe that is true but my eyes suggest a different story. Cal Poly has not gone 4 wins over the last 21 (its a guess) due to an inability to move the ball. The fall of the Mustangs has been directly related to turnovers, boneheaded mistakes and a complete lack of defense.

To say that they'd have the same result if they played Sac again is to assume that they could play another game without a turnover...without racking up a bunch of miscues. They haven't done that two games in a row in literally years.

Just as example. Had they played Montana without the turnovers I'd suggest they would have won that game. If Cal Poly plays mistake free disciplined football as they did for many years....they win. Turnovers will destroy any chance of a "W" on a Triple Option team.