MSU
UND
EWU
Cal-Poly
Weber State
NAU
UM
SUU
Sac-State
PSA
UC-Davis
Northern Colorado
ISU
Here is why...Montana State has more Playmakers, speed, talent, height, short, size and non-size than any team I have ever seen!!! This includes Clemson and Alabama
QB: We have 5 or 6 or 7 QB's that wouldn't start at every other school that puts pads onto players and has them do football stuff on a field. Murry didn't throw well last year, because he didn't want teams being able to watch film on him before this year...He has one of the greatest QB's ever to play the game, teaching him the MAYBE one thing he didn't already know. Behind him are a handful of kids that all have Rocket Arms, that can throw on a dime, read the D, and have good feet. We should average about 500-600 passing yards a game...
RB: Again...have probably about 6 guys that can Tote the Rock. They all have great vision, lateral movement, run north/south, unless they have to run east/west, homerun speed. The only problem I see is, how are we going to get all these guys the ball. We should average about 300-400 rushing yards a game rushing
WR: Where do I even start with this group. Every one of them is Tall and can jump with GREAT hands, unless they need to be short and run great routes, and then they are that....Yes THEY ARE BOTH...Speed to burn you deep, but routs as crisp as a 2 dollar bill. The only real problem I see with this group is, at times they are to nice, and don't want to make every play themselves...I expect about 100 yards receiving PER WR per game
O-line: All over 6'6"...All over 330 lb's...All run about a 4.5 40...All pure muscle. Amazing thing is, even with that height, they actually "Play smaller" allowing the QB's a very clear line of sight. Probably won't give up a sack all year, unless they mean to so the other team gets penisy
D-Line: Here is where the Cats REALLY shine....We have big nastys in the middle (about 4 deep) and strong Speed rushers, who can also run stop, and know there assignments. all of them are engineer Majors, so they know trains as well. I expect about 6 sacks a game from this group
LB: Most of these guys should probably be D-end guys, but they are just to fast and strong, so they are LB. Cats are about 10 deep here, and most are running about a 4.3 40 at 6'4" 260. I expect about 6 Sacks and 3/4 INT's a game from this group
MSU
UND
EWU
Cal-Poly
Weber State
NAU
UM
SUU
Sac-State
PSA
UC-Davis
Northern Colorado
ISU
Here is why...Montana State has more Playmakers, speed, talent, height, short, size and non-size than any team I have ever seen!!! This includes Clemson and Alabama
QB: We have 5 or 6 or 7 QB's that wouldn't start at every other school that puts pads onto players and has them do football stuff on a field. Murry didn't throw well last year, because he didn't want teams being able to watch film on him before this year...He has one of the greatest QB's ever to play the game, teaching him the MAYBE one thing he didn't already know. Behind him are a handful of kids that all have Rocket Arms, that can throw on a dime, read the D, and have good feet. We should average about 500-600 passing yards a game...
RB: Again...have probably about 6 guys that can Tote the Rock. They all have great vision, lateral movement, run north/south, unless they have to run east/west, homerun speed. The only problem I see is, how are we going to get all these guys the ball. We should average about 300-400 rushing yards a game rushing
WR: Where do I even start with this group. Every one of them is Tall and can jump with GREAT hands, unless they need to be short and run great routes, and then they are that....Yes THEY ARE BOTH...Speed to burn you deep, but routs as crisp as a 2 dollar bill. The only real problem I see with this group is, at times they are to nice, and don't want to make every play themselves...I expect about 100 yards receiving PER WR per game
O-line: All over 6'6"...All over 330 lb's...All run about a 4.5 40...All pure muscle. Amazing thing is, even with that height, they actually "Play smaller" allowing the QB's a very clear line of sight. Probably won't give up a sack all year, unless they mean to so the other team gets penisy
D-Line: Here is where the Cats REALLY shine....We have big nastys in the middle (about 4 deep) and strong Speed rushers, who can also run stop, and know there assignments. all of them are engineer Majors, so they know trains as well. I expect about 6 sacks a game from this group
LB: Most of these guys should probably be D-end guys, but they are just to fast and strong, so they are LB. Cats are about 10 deep here, and most are running about a 4.3 40 at 6'4" 260. I expect about 6 Sacks and 3/4 INT's a game from this group
Secondary: We aren't very good here.
Hmmm....nothing about special teams?
I see a chink in the armor.
I did forget that didn't I...Our special teams are just that, SPECIAL. Problem Is, we will probably go for 2 every time...So you will only see us Kick off to the other team.
SuperHornet wrote:Whatever you think about my Sac prediction, I'm still conditioned by recent years in terms of looking at other teams. Venus' idea that EWU will just barely squeak past .500 is even more nuts, IMO. I might well be "out there" as well in seeing EWU at 11-0, about the only "stretch" in that 11-0 (in my view, anyway) is Texas Tech. They should win just about every other game rather handily....
You do know they play both North Dakotas, right? And that they changed coaches? And that they lost all their receivers? They should still be a good team, but that non-conference schedule is pretty brutal.
Had a new OL and new QB last year coming off a 6-5 season, against a brutal schedule...
Plus, not like we've ever struggled at the WR position. Coaching staff changes will have the biggest impact on the season, IMO. I'm cautiously optimistic, enough so for 8-3 on the down side, 9-2 on the up side.
Mvemjsunpx wrote:
You do know they play both North Dakotas, right? And that they changed coaches? And that they lost all their receivers? They should still be a good team, but that non-conference schedule is pretty brutal.
Had a new OL and new QB last year coming off a 6-5 season, against a brutal schedule...
Plus, not like we've ever struggled at the WR position. Coaching staff changes will have the biggest impact on the season, IMO. I'm cautiously optimistic, enough so for 8-3 on the down side, 9-2 on the up side.
I was thinking 7-4 last year.
Coaching is the biggest question mark.
Stu Stiles and Nick Splendorio ripped two great defenses in UNI and NDSU on the road the last two seasons when Kupp went down in both games. With a big target in Terrence Grady, Webster returning and some younger talent behind them I think we'll be fine at WR.
TTU is no less winnable than WSU was. I'd expect another close game against NDSU. We should be road favorites against Montana and Fordham. We could go 0-4 to start but I can also see a path to 3-1.
Screamin_Eagle174 wrote:
Had a new OL and new QB last year coming off a 6-5 season, against a brutal schedule...
Plus, not like we've ever struggled at the WR position. Coaching staff changes will have the biggest impact on the season, IMO. I'm cautiously optimistic, enough so for 8-3 on the down side, 9-2 on the up side.
I was thinking 7-4 last year.
Coaching is the biggest question mark.
Stu Stiles and Nick Splendorio ripped two great defenses in UNI and NDSU on the road the last two seasons when Kupp went down in both games. With a big target in Terrence Grady, Webster returning and some younger talent behind them I think we'll be fine at WR.
TTU is no less winnable than WSU was. I'd expect another close game against NDSU. We should be road favorites against Montana and Fordham. We could go 0-4 to start but I can also see a path to 3-1.
Eastern should be "fine" at WR, but last year's Eagle team had arguably the best receiving corps in FCS history (almost 300 ypg from just Kupp, Bourne, & Hill). There's nowhere to go but down.
In theory, TTU should be no less beatable than Wazzu, but Wazzu played their last two Big Sky opponents noticeably worse than they did anyone else those seasons (they lost to PSU in 2015). Plus, there's the Texas heat & humidity…
The Fordham game may be tougher than you think. It's cross country, they have arguably the best RB in FCS, and it's at 10:00 AM Pacific time. How much the Eagle running game improves will likely be the deciding factor.
Stu Stiles and Nick Splendorio ripped two great defenses in UNI and NDSU on the road the last two seasons when Kupp went down in both games. With a big target in Terrence Grady, Webster returning and some younger talent behind them I think we'll be fine at WR.
TTU is no less winnable than WSU was. I'd expect another close game against NDSU. We should be road favorites against Montana and Fordham. We could go 0-4 to start but I can also see a path to 3-1.
Eastern should be "fine" at WR, but last year's Eagle team had arguably the best receiving corps in FCS history (almost 300 ypg from just Kupp, Bourne, & Hill). There's nowhere to go but down.
In theory, TTU should be no less beatable than Wazzu, but Wazzu played their last two Big Sky opponents noticeably worse than they did anyone else those seasons (they lost to PSU in 2015). Plus, there's the Texas heat & humidity…
The Fordham game may be tougher than you think. It's cross country, they have arguably the best RB in FCS, and it's at 10:00 AM Pacific time. How much the Eagle running game improves will likely be the deciding factor.
Agreed. We don't need to replace last year's insane production at wr if the running game materializes. With a veteran o-line, that's exactly the plan.
Stu Stiles and Nick Splendorio ripped two great defenses in UNI and NDSU on the road the last two seasons when Kupp went down in both games. With a big target in Terrence Grady, Webster returning and some younger talent behind them I think we'll be fine at WR.
TTU is no less winnable than WSU was. I'd expect another close game against NDSU. We should be road favorites against Montana and Fordham. We could go 0-4 to start but I can also see a path to 3-1.
Eastern should be "fine" at WR, but last year's Eagle team had arguably the best receiving corps in FCS history (almost 300 ypg from just Kupp, Bourne, & Hill). There's nowhere to go but down.
In theory, TTU should be no less beatable than Wazzu, but Wazzu played their last two Big Sky opponents noticeably worse than they did anyone else those seasons (they lost to PSU in 2015). Plus, there's the Texas heat & humidity…
The Fordham game may be tougher than you think. It's cross country, they have arguably the best RB in FCS, and it's at 10:00 AM Pacific time. How much the Eagle running game improves will likely be the deciding factor.
EWU's "fine" at WR is typically as good if not better than most FCS teams' best WR corp ever. Nobody thought we could match the contributions of Nick Edwards, Brandon Kaufman, and Greg Herd when we lost those three. We just reload.
Mvemjsunpx wrote:
Eastern should be "fine" at WR, but last year's Eagle team had arguably the best receiving corps in FCS history (almost 300 ypg from just Kupp, Bourne, & Hill). There's nowhere to go but down.
In theory, TTU should be no less beatable than Wazzu, but Wazzu played their last two Big Sky opponents noticeably worse than they did anyone else those seasons (they lost to PSU in 2015). Plus, there's the Texas heat & humidity…
The Fordham game may be tougher than you think. It's cross country, they have arguably the best RB in FCS, and it's at 10:00 AM Pacific time. How much the Eagle running game improves will likely be the deciding factor.
EWU's "fine" at WR is typically as good if not better than most FCS teams' best WR corp ever. Nobody thought we could match the contributions of Nick Edwards, Brandon Kaufman, and Greg Herd when we lost those three. We just reload.
Not even the best receiving corp in the Big Sky...that goes to MSU....Didn't you read my prediction?
Screamin_Eagle174 wrote:EWU's "fine" at WR is typically as good if not better than most FCS teams' best WR corp ever. Nobody thought we could match the contributions of Nick Edwards, Brandon Kaufman, and Greg Herd when we lost those three. We just reload.
Sounds like something AZ used to say. Nothing lasts forever
Wildcat Ryan wrote:Here is my 2nd attempt at Predicting how the upcoming Big Sky season will pan out. I believe I did relatively well in my first attempt despite over and underestimating a few teams.
107-36 was pretty good Ryan. Probably a lot better than JSO's computers would have done, but he's not brave enough to put up the numbers.
I kinda hope I'm wrong on a few teams, especially Weber. Because I don't think Weber gets into the playoffs with the record I have for them despite playing one of the more difficult Big Sky schedules.
Screamin_Eagle174 wrote:EWU's "fine" at WR is typically as good if not better than most FCS teams' best WR corp ever. Nobody thought we could match the contributions of Nick Edwards, Brandon Kaufman, and Greg Herd when we lost those three. We just reload.
Sounds like something AZ used to say. Nothing lasts forever
It's lasted as long as I've been an EWU fan (2004). Eric Kimble, Aaron Boyce, Nick Edwards, Greg Herd, Brandon Kaufman, Cooper Kupp, Kendrick Bourne, Shaquille Hill....
Screamin_Eagle174 wrote:
EWU's "fine" at WR is typically as good if not better than most FCS teams' best WR corp ever. Nobody thought we could match the contributions of Nick Edwards, Brandon Kaufman, and Greg Herd when we lost those three. We just reload.
Not even the best receiving corp in the Big Sky...that goes to MSU....Didn't you read my prediction?
Reading it, and giving it any ounce of sincerity or respect are two completely different things.
1.North Dakota ________8-0____10-1_____ With 21 seniors, this is their big chance 2.Northern Arizona ____7-1_____9-2_____ They have a golden opportunity with 2 MVFC home games 3.Montana _____________6-2_____8-3_____ We know they'll start 2-1, at least 4.Eastern Washington__6-2_____6-5_____ Eastern's playoff fate may hinge on that unusual game in the Bronx 5.Cal Poly _____________5-3_____6-5_____ They don't look too good, but the last 7 games aren't at all daunting 6.Montana State_______4-4_____5-6_____ If Murray can start hitting broadsides of barns, watch out 7.Weber State__________4-4_____6-5_____ They could easily go undefeated at home & winless on the road 8.Northern Colorado___3-5_____4-7_____ Fun fact: NoCo is one of only 3 Big Sky teams to play a non-DI 9.Southern Utah _______3-5_____4-7_____ It's not good when Cal Poly is by far your easiest home game 10.Portland State________2-6_____3-8_____ PSU's home slate isn't really any friendlier 11.Sacramento State ____2-6_____3-8 _____ Sac's season may entirely depend on two offensive dropdowns 12.Idaho State __________1-7_____2-9_____ It's rebuilding time in Pocatello… what else is new? 13.UC Davis ____________1-7_____1-10____ At least they play Sac at the end…
1.Southern Utah ____________7-1_____9-2_____+4/+5 vs. my predictions 2.Weber State_______________7-1_____9-2_____+3/+3 vs. my predictions 3.Eastern Washington_______6-2_____7-4_____0/+1 vs. my predictions 4.Northern Arizona _________6-2_____7-4_____-1/-2 vs. my predictions 5.Sacramento State _________6-2_____7-4_____+4/+4 vs. my predictions 6.Montana State_____________5-3_____5-6_____+1/0 vs. my predictions 7.Montana __________________5-3_____7-4_____-1/-1 vs. my predictions 8.UC Davis _________________3-5_____5-6_____+2/+4 vs. my predictions 9.North Dakota _____________2-6_____3-8_____-6/-7 vs. my predictions 10.Northern Colorado________2-6_____3-7_____-1/-0.5 vs. my predictions 11.Idaho State _______________2-6_____4-7_____+1/+2 vs. my predictions 12.Cal Poly __________________1-7_____1-10____-4/-5 vs. my predictions 13.Portland State_____________0-8_____0-11____-2/-3 vs. my predictions
Pretty rough, to be honest. I think this is the first year I haven't nailed a team dead on (I would've nailed the Griz if they'd beaten the Cats). So many weird, unexpected things: NoDak was decimated by injuries, Sac & Suutah came outta nowhere, Cal Poly was inexplicably terrible (and I was more bearish on them than most). Oh well, here's hoping for a more accurate 2018.
Wildcat Ryan wrote:Here is my 2nd attempt at Predicting how the upcoming Big Sky season will pan out. I believe I did relatively well in my first attempt despite over and underestimating a few teams. Well here it goes.
Cal Poly Mustangs - 6-5, 5-3
Colgate- W
@ San Jose State- L
@ Northern Iowa- L
Northern Arizona- L @ Idaho State- W
@ Southern Utah- L Weber State- W @ UC Davis- W
Portland State- W Sacramento State- W @ Northern Colorado- L
Eastern Washington Eagles - 9-2, 7-1
@ Texas Tech- L North Dakota State- W @ Fordham- W
@ Montana- W
Sacramento State- W
@ UC Davis- W
Montana State- W @ Southern Utah- W Weber State- W @ North Dakota- L
Portland State- W
Idaho State Bengals - 2-9, 1-7
Western State- W
@ Utah State- L @ Nevada- L
@ Northern Colorado- L Cal Poly- L
Montana- L
@ Sacramento State- L Portland State- L
@ Montana State- L UC Davis- W
@ Weber State- L
Montana Grizzlies - 7-4, 5-3
Valparaiso- W
@ Washington- L
Savannah State- W
Eastern Washington- L
@ Portland State- W
@ Idaho State- W
UND- W
@ Weber State- L
Northern Arizona- W
Northern Colorado- W
@ Montana State- L
Montana State Bobcats- 5-6, 4-4
@ Washington State- L
South Dakota State- L @ North Dakota- L Weber State- W
Portland State- W
@ Eastern Washington- L @ Northern Colorado- L
Idaho State- W Kennesaw State- W
@ Northern Arizona- L
Montana- W
North Dakota Hawks- 6-5, 5-3
@ Utah- L
Missouri State- W
@ South Dakota- L Montana State- W @ UC Davis- W
Northern Colorado- W
@ Montana- L Sacramento State- W @ Portland State- L
@ Southern Utah- L Eastern Washington- W
Northern Arizona Lumberjacks- 8-3, 6-2
@ Arizona- L Western Illinois- W
@ Cal Poly- W
Northern Colorado- W
Illinois State- W
@ Portland State- W
UC Davis- W
Sacramento State- W
@ Montana- L
Montana State- W
@ Southern Utah- L
Northern Colorado Bears- 5-6, 4-4
College of Idaho- W
@ Florida- L
@ Colorado- L
Idaho State- W
@ Northern Arizona- L
@ North Dakota- L Montana State- W
Southern Utah- L @ Sac State- W
@ Montana- L
Cal Poly- W
Portland State Vikings - 3-8, 2-6
@ BYU- L
@ Oregon State- L UC Davis- W
Montana- L
@ Montana State- L
Northern Arizona- L @ Idaho State- W North Dakota- W
@ Cal Poly- L
Weber State- L
@ Eastern Washington- L
Sacramento State Hornets- 3-8, 2-6
@ Idaho- L
Incarnate Word- W
Weber State- L Southern Utah- L
@ Eastern Washington- L
Idaho State- W @ North Dakota- L
@ Northern Arizona- L Northern Colorado- L @ Cal Poly- L
UC Davis- W
Southern Utah Thunderbirds- 7-4, 6-2
@ Oregon- L @ Stephen F. Austin- L
Northern Iowa- W @ Sacramento State- W
Cal Poly- W @ Weber State- L Eastern Washington- L
@ Northern Colorado- W
North Dakota- W
@ UC Davis- W
Northern Arizona- W
UC Davis Aggies- 0-11, 0-8
@ San Diego State- L San Diego- L @ Portland State- L
@ Weber State- L North Dakota- L
Eastern Washington- L
@ Northern Arizona- L Cal Poly- L @ Idaho State- L
Southern Utah- L
@ Sacramento State- L
Weber State Wildcats- 7-4, 5-3
Montana Western- W
@ California- L
@ Sacramento State- W
UC Davis- W @ Montana State- L Southern Utah- W @ Cal Poly- L
Montana- W @ Eastern Washington- L
@ Portland State- W
Idaho State- W
