Week One Around the Big Sky
There were surprises across the Big Sky that were good and bad. Good: Portland State causes a scare for San Jose State, Idaho makes Washington State respect their effort, and Eastern Washington reloads with another stud quarterback. Bad: David Hoage is listed injured and UNC plays below Houston Baptist’s level, Cal Poly and NAU non-competitive in their in-state FBS games, UC Davis had a close first half and let the Golden Bears get away.
Thursday, September 1, 2022
  5 - 41Stewart Stadium Weber State 41, Western Oregon 5Highlights: Available |
Weber State 41, Western Oregon 5
Weber State Impact Performers
Offense: Kris Jackson, Running Back, 2 rushes 2 yards 2 TD
Defense: Naseme Colvin, Safety, 6 tackles 3.5 TFL
Headline: Weber State’s defense allows -34 rushing yards in their win over D2 Western Oregon
  3 - 40Sun Devil Stadium Arizona State 40, Northern Arizona 3Highlights: Available |
Arizona State 40, Northern Arizona 3
NAU Impact Performers
Offense: Coleman Owen, Receiver, 5 catches for 24 yards
Defense: Kamdan Hightower, Defensive Back, 12 tackles
Headline: NAU’s young stars try for the All-Arizona sweep, but come up short with only 120 yards offensively.
  17 - 21CEFCU Stadium San Jose State 21, Portland State 17Highlights: Available |
San Jose State 21, Portland State 17
PSU Impact Performers
Offense: Dante Chachere, Quarterback, 24/37 for 270 yards 2 TD 2 INT and 14 rushes for 83 yards
Defense: Tyreese Shakir, Defensive Back, 7 tackles 3 TFL 2 sacks
Headline: Sophomore quarterback Dante Chachere put on a 353 yard performance that was two interceptions shy of a win over FBS SJSU.
  7 - 35Bulldog Stadium (Fresno State) Fresno State 35, Cal Poly 7Highlights: Available |
Fresno State 35, Cal Poly 7
Cal Poly Impact Performers
Offense: Jaden Jones, Quarterback, 20/38 for 211 yards 1 TD and 9 rushes for 59 yards
Defense: David Meyer, Linebacker, 5 tackles 1 TFL 1 sack
Headline: The Mustangs took a two and a half hours ride up to Fresno State just to get their tails kicked.
Saturday 9/3/2022
  17 - 40Bobcat Stadium Montana State 40, McNeese 17Highlights: Available |
Montana State 40, McNeese State 17
Montana State Impact Performers
Offense: Lane Sumner, Running Back, 24 rushes for 176 yards and 2 catches for 52 yards
Defense: Sebastian Valdez, Defensive Tackle, 4 tackles 2.5 TFL 2.5 sacks 1 Forced Fumble
Headline: “Touchdown” Tommy Mellott and Lane Sumner led the team handily over the Bayou Cowboys.
  0 - 47Washington-Grizzly Stadium Montana 47, Northwestern State 0Highlights: Available |
Montana 47, Northwestern State 0
Montana Impact Performers
Offense: Lucas Johnson, Quarterback, 15/24 for 208 yards 4 TD and 7 rushes for 76 yards
Defense: Patrick O’Connell, Linebacker, 7 tackles 2 TFL 1 sack 1 INT
Headline: An electric offense and five defensive turnovers led the Griz to their 19th consecutive home opener win.
  29 - 36Roos Field Eastern Washington 36, Tennessee State 29Highlights: Available |
Eastern Washington 36, Tennessee State University 29
EWU Impact Performers
Offense: Gunner Talkington, Quarterback, 29/46 for 348 yards 5 TD and 9 rushes for 60 yards
Defense: Mitchell Johnson, Defensive End, 11 tackles 2 TFL 2 sacks
Headline: Gunner Talkington shushed the non-believers who though EWU would be in a total rebuilding year.
  13 - 34California Memorial Stadium California 34, UC Davis 13Highlights: Available |
Cal 34, UC Davis 13
UCD Impact Performers
Offense: Ulonzo Gilliam, Running Back, 14 rushes for 115 yards 1 TD and 7 catches for 35 yards
Defense: Teddye Buchanan, Linebacker, 8 tackles 1 INT
Headline: UC Davis kept it just a 10 point game in the first half, but Berkeley’s depth caught up with the Aggies.
  46 - 34Nottingham Field Houston Baptist 46, Northern Colorado 34Highlights: Available |
Houston Baptist 46, Northern Colorado 34
UNC Impact Performers
Offense: Alec Pell, Tight End, 8 catches for 68 yards and 1 TD
Defense: Vincent King, Linebacker, 7 tackles 1 TFL 1 sack
Headline: The Bears battle back to a potential game winning drive, but cannot protect the quarterback not named McCaffrey.
  17 - 24Gesa Field Washington State 24, Idaho 17Highlights: Available |
Washington State 24, Idaho 17
Idaho Impact Performers
Offense: Jermaine Jackson, Receiver, 5 catches for 110 yards
Defense: Fa’Avae Fa’Avae, Linebacker, 11 tackles 1 TFL 1 sack 1 forced fumble 1 pass break up
Headline: A game that local FBS fans had given up on in earlier years was an absolute dogfight thanks to a surprising first effort under the Eck Era.
  33 - 56Hornet Stadium Sacramento State 56, Utah Tech 33Highlights: Available |
Sacramento State 56, Utah Tech 33
Sacramento State Impact Performers
Offense: Cameron Skattebo, Running Back, 10 rushes for 153 yards 1 TD and 2 catches for 30 yards 1 TD and 1 kick return for 43 yards 1 TD
Defense: Caleb Nelson, Cornerback, 5 tackles .5 TFL 1 INT for 95 yards and 1 TD
Headline: The Hornets rush for program’s third best performance ever with 378 yards of trampling the Trailblazers.
My name is Ben Schleiger and I’m your representative for the Big Sky Conference. I have done work for multiple newspapers and sports blogs including The Johnstown Breeze, The University of Northern Colorado Mirror, and Mile High Maniac. I am a proud alumnus of the University of Northern Colorado with a degree in Psychology and a minor in Political Science. In my free time, I like watching sports, playing video games, and trying new foods.
