Big Sky Conference Reviews Week 11

In week 11 we saw all of the Big Sky favorites pull off wins. Weber State’s claim to the big sky throne continues to strengthen as they fought off a hardy North Dakota team. While week 11 was more so of a transition week, week 12 in the Big Sky looks to heat things up.

Marquee: Weber State def. North Dakota 30-27

Weber State may not have anticipated North Dakota being such a tough foe. Nate Ketteringham led an onslaught through the air with 304 yards and three passing touchdowns. Jake Constantine tried his best to get the passing game going but finished with only 230 yards and two touchdowns, including two interceptions. Thanks to Weber State running back community the Wildcats were able to march down the field and get the scores they needed. Both defenses seemed somewhat absent in the first half, but Weber State forced a Fightin’ Hawk fumble and UND forced two Wildcat interceptions in the second half. Ultimately, UND did not have enough left in the tank to force the upset. Weber State can continue to look down on the Big Sky for another week.

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PC: EWU Athletics

Eastern Washington def. Idaho State 48-5

Eastern Washington left nothing to the imagination in the score of this week, other than how did Idaho State score five points. There was no question who the better team was. It seemed like whatever Matt Struck did came back to him as a strikeout, while Eric Barriere and the Eagles went on a scoring frenzy. Barriere had 406 yards and three touchdowns while Struck had three interceptions. Ty Flanagan got stopped in his tracks and the entire Bengal offense was limited throughout the entire game. Antoine Custer found no challenge in racking up yards as he galloped to 145 yards and a touchdown for the day. The Eagles receivers were also on fire as Andrew Boston and Johnny Edwards combined for 256 yards and three receiving touchdowns.

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PC: MSU Athletics

Montana State def. Northern Colorado 45-14

Northern Colorado usually performs well at Nottingham Field, but this was not one of those days. Montana State ran circles around the Bears as UNC was unable to defend or produce any notable rushing yards. 11 players on Montana State’s team was able to produce positive rushing yards and UNC only had three players able to produce positive rushing yards for a grand total at 62 yards. The Bobcats seemed to move the ball at will and the Bears had almost no answers for any of their attempts. The only positive for the Bears besides a late touchdown pass from Knipp was Brooks Talkington’s 10-yard interception for a touchdown.

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PC: Montana Athletics

Montana def. Idaho 42-17

Idaho came out swinging early and often as they gained a 10 point lead over the Griz. The Vandals were able to produce two interceptions and a fumble as the Griz started the game off rather raggedly. Although in the second half we would see the tale of two halves come to life as the Griz defense produced two interceptions and two fumbles. Good field position and dedicated running went to a combined five touchdowns from Nick Ostmo and Marcus Knight. Mason Petrino would try with all his might to get the Vandals back into the competition, but his two costly turnovers solidified the Griz win.

FOOTBALL RETURNS TO SIXTH IN BOTH THE FCS COACHES AND MEDIA POLLS
PC: Sac. St. Athletics

Sacramento State def. Northern Arizona 38-34

Northern Arizona gave Sacramento State the fight of their lives but still came up short. Despite having a 10 point lead with five minutes and 42 seconds left in the game, the Lumberjacks found a way to squander the lead. The Big Sky Conference seems to be the conference of the backup quarterback. Even with Kevin Thompson out, the Hornets still found 384 passing yards and four touchdowns possible via the arm of Jake Dunniway. As Case Cookus struggled the Lumberjacks placed all of their hope on Joe Logan. Logan was able to produce 210 rushing yards, three touchdowns, and an 8.8 yard gained average, but he could not win the game by himself. The faulty secondary of NAU could not sustain the air raid that Sacramento State subjected them to, even on their own home field.

Emmanuel Daigbe caught two touchdown passes and had over 100 yards of offense in the game.
PC: Portland St. Athletics

UC Davis def. Portland State 45-28

field. At the beginning of the season UC Davis came across as a team that was stale and lacked aggression while Portland State seemed to embody the opposite of that. The teams have since swapped personalities. Both quarterbacks lit up the sky as Davis Alexander and Jake Maier threw for 285 and 383 yards each with four touchdowns to claim. The difference-maker in this one came down to Ulonzo Gilliam as he credited 242 yards and two touchdowns to his name. The Vikings had no worthy answer to the Aggie’s superior rushing attack.