Week 5 Big Sky Power Rankings

The FCS football season moves to Week 5 and we take a look at the updated Big Sky football power rankings after the first four games.

The latest Big Sky power rankings are here a week after conference play has kicked off. The Week 5 conference slate is headlined by No. 4 Idaho traveling to face No. 19 Eastern Washington, which is one of the biggest games in the FCS this weekend. 

Each week we will release updated power rankings for the Big Sky. Week 5 Big Sky Power Rankings are listed below.

No. 12 Cal Poly (2-2)

Cal Poly lost their Big Sky opener against Portland State 59-21. The game was never competitive as Portland State scored 52 points in the first half. The Cal Poly defense allowed Portland State to average 8.6 yards a carry as a team. Quarterback Sam Huard had a rough start and Cal Poly turned to backup quarterback Bo Kelly after Huard fumbled in the second quarter. It will be interesting to see if the Mustangs can turn anything around this Saturday when No. 21 UC Davis comes to town. Until this team shows improvements in all aspects, the Mustangs take the No. 12 spot in these rankings.

No. 11 Northern Colorado (0-4)

After having Northern Colorado last in these rankings a week ago, the Bears went to Idaho State and lost 35-21 in a more competitive loss compared to Cal Poly. Running backs Darius Stewart and David Afari had fantastic games, combining for 232 yards and two touchdowns, while wide receiver Blake Haggerty had another 100-yard receiving game. The offense still is only ranked No. 10 in total offense in the Big Sky and the bigger problem is the Bears are dead last in total defense. The unit is giving up almost eight yards a play to opponents this season. The Bears welcome No. 13 Weber State to Greely this Saturday and will face a motivated Wildcat team. It could be another long weekend for this program.

No. 10 Idaho State (1-3)

Idaho State started conference play with a solid win at home against Northern Colorado. The Bengals dropped two spots in the rankings, but that is due to Portland State and Northern Arizona moving up after more impressive wins. The Bengals have to feel good about freshman quarterback Jordan Cooke’s Big Sky debut after a second straight week passing for over 200 yards. Cooke has also completed over 60% of his passes in the last three games. The Bengals have struggled to establish the rushing attack, but also have struggled to stop opponents from rushing the ball. Idaho State ranks last in the conference in rushing offense and rushing yards allowed this season. Teams have scored 15 touchdowns on the ground in the first four games against the Bengals. The good news for the defense is they will face a Montana team that has struggled on the offensive side of the ball. Idaho State will have an opportunity to move up this week but winning in Missoula is a tough test.

No. 9 Montana (3-1)

In last week’s power rankings, I thought I may have been stretching putting Montana in at No. 7 and it seems that ranking was still too high. The Grizzlies lost last weekend in the conference opener to Northern Arizona 28-14. The offense is a total disaster right now. The Griz could not run the ball against the Lumberjacks and the most concerning part of all of this is the offensive line. The Griz averaged 0.8 yards per carry and quarterback Sam Vidlak was sacked seven times. The Lumberjacks finished the game with 12 Tackles for loss. It does not matter what is going on with the quarterback, weapons, or even the defense if the offensive line does not figure it out. Montana hosts Idaho State this weekend and needs to get it figured out quickly. They face No. 21 UC Davis and No.4 Idaho in the two weeks after that. Maybe the Griz will finish on a higher note, but until they prove anything on offense, Montana is not going to be a competitive team in the Big Sky.

No. 8 Portland State (2-2)

Portland State had been a difficult team to gauge going into conference play. The Vikings ripped off seven touchdowns and scored 52 points in the first half against Cal Poly in the conference opener. The offense totaled over 400 rushing yards, led by running back Jobi Malary with 119 yards and two touchdowns. The caveat is that Cal Poly is ranked last in the Big Sky and it remains to be seen if Portland State can replicate the offensive outburst against better competition. That question will be partially answered against No. 3 Montana State in Bozeman this Saturday. Montana State has the second-best rushing defense in the conference and quarterback Dante Chachere will need to show he can throw the ball down the field. Chachere was dynamic running the ball last week with 87 yards rushing and two touchdowns but is only completing 57.7% of his passes and under 100 yards a game.

No. 7 Northern Arizona (1-3)

Northern Arizona comes in at No. 7 after one of the biggest wins in recent program history. The Lumberjacks beat Montana for the first time since 2016. The defense impressed after racking up 12 tackles for loss. All-Conference defensive lineman Eloi Kwete had a career performance with four sacks, 4.5 tackles for loss, and one forced fumble. While Saturday’s performance was incredibly impressive, Northern Arizona needs to show some offensive consistency to move up further. They have another huge chance against No. 8 Sacramento State on Saturday. The defensive line was dominant last weekend, unfortunately, they are playing a Hornet team that has only given up two sacks the entire year. In fact, Sacramento State is one of the few teams in the conference that has more sacks than the Lumberjacks this season. If Northern Arizona wants to pull the upset they will need to play a cleaner offensive game.

No. 6 Weber State (2-2)

Last week I addressed the concerns with the Weber State offense. The Wildcats only confirmed those flaws on Saturday night after losing 40-0 at home to Montana State. The defense kept it close early, but the offense failed to establish any consistency against the Bobcats. The Wildcats have the worst success rate and worst offensive yards per play in the entire conference. Quarterback Kylan Weisser’s struggles have been well documented, but the rushing attack did not thrive against Montana State. Weber State expects more from the rushing attack behind an experienced offense line and All-Conference running back Damon Bankston. Weber State needs the passing attack to open up some opportunities for the rushing game, which is something that has been missing the first four games. The Wildcats will have an opportunity to work on these issues Saturday against Northern Colorado.

No. 5 UC Davis (2-2)

Despite the loss against Eastern Washington, the Aggies could still be ranked higher than No. 5 due to their performance against the Eagles. The Aggies gained almost two more yards per play than the Eagles and had over 100 more yards of offense. Eastern Washington had a defensive touchdown and had another score off a short field, while UC Davis missed a 30-yard field goal late in the game. However, everything changed with the Lan Larison injury. I don’t know if Larison will be back this season, but early reports indicate he will miss significant time. Larison is by far the best weapon the Aggies have offensively and one of the most explosive players in the country. He was having a monster game last Saturday (255 rushing yards; 1 TD) before leaving the game with an injury. Quarterback Miles Hastings and the defense will have to pick up the slack if the Aggies want to keep a Top-5 spot in the conference. UC Davis faces Cal Poly this Saturday, but games coming up against Montana and No. 13 Weber State will tell us if they can maintain a top-tier spot with Larison out of the lineup.

No. 4 Eastern Washington (2-2)

The Eagles showed off a very mature performance Saturday that included no turnovers and only two penalties on the road. Coming into the season Eastern Washington was just looking to get back to being competitive in Big Sky play and now the Eagles are right in the thick of an at-large playoff bid. There are not any glaring issues on this team and the Eagles should continue to focus on steadily improving every week. This team faces a huge test this weekend with No. 4 Idaho coming to the Inferno. If Eastern Washington can play a clean game and utilize a bend-but-don’t-break style on defense, this team could give themselves a shot to pull their third consecutive ranked win. The offense will need to move the ball more efficiently than a week ago against a Vandal defense that has been lights out in the secondary. This is a big-time spot for young quarterback Kekoa Visperas to prove something on the big stage.

No. 3 Sacramento State (3-1)

After falling just short in the biggest game of Week 4 against Idaho, Sacramento State holds on to the No. 3 spot. Even in a loss, there was a lot to like about this team. Kaiden Bennett looks to be that guy for the Hornets, and we can expect him to only improve as the season goes along. If he can become a more polished passer, Sacramento State could compete with almost any team in the country. The defensive line has been impressive racking up 13 sacks in only four games, led by DeShawn Lynch (4 Sacks 1 FF). Sacramento State will look to rebound in an interesting game against Northern Arizona. The only area of concern for this Hornet team has been their lack of ability to run the ball. The Hornets will look to get the rushing attack going against Northern Arizona and will look to prove they deserve the No. 3 spot in the conference.

No. 2 Idaho (3-1)

Idaho comes in at No. 2 in the power rankings after a massive home victory against Sacramento State. The Vandals appear to have taken a big step from a year ago in the areas that many experts had questions about coming into the season. The defensive line is one of the biggest areas of improvement for this squad. The defense may not put up elite statistical performances but consistently makes the right play week in and week out. The secondary plays with an edge and consistently prevents explosive plays in key moments. The real question shifts to whether the Vandals be ranked No. 1. You could certainly make the argument that the Vandals are better than Montana State offensively and that the defenses have played on the same level. However, for now, I will give the nod to the dominant Bobcat rushing attack which has shown more consistency than the Vandals. Idaho has a chance to make a big statement this weekend if the Vandals can go on the road and get a win against No. 19 Eastern Washington. Idaho has never beaten Eastern Washington on the Inferno (debuted in 2010).

No. 1 Montana State (3-1)

Montana State remains in the No. 1 spot after a dominant performance against Weber State on the road. The Bobcats were without quarterback Tommy Mellott but the offense did not miss a beat with Sean Chambers. Chambers was able to utilize the play-action game to great effect after the Bobcats established the power-run game. Tight end Treyton Pickering caught two touchdowns off play action and might be the best tight end in the conference. The Bobcats are averaging the most yards per play (7.9) in the conference and the defense currently ranks No. 2, allowing only 4.7 yards per play over four games. These numbers include the monster matchup against No. 1 South Dakota State in Brookings. Until the Bobcats face Sacramento State and Idaho in October, I do not see any team on the schedule that will be able to knock Montana State out of the top spot. The Bobcats host Portland State this week and will head to their bye week after.