Big Sky Conference Power Rankings: Preseason

The Big Sky Conference enters a new chapter in the 2012 season.

While four new football members make their debut in the Big Sky this year, increasing the conference membership from nine to thirteen, FCS powerhouses in Montana, Montana State, and Eastern Washington return to compete for a conference title and FCS playoff birth.

With the experience and talent on their roster, the Montana State Bobcats are likely to be the conference favorite and are on the shortlist of national title contenders.  Eastern Washington returns massive depth in the receiving corps along with a new transfer quarterback to replace Payton award winner Bo Levi Mitchell.  Montana will look to reload after losing 14 starters along with their fired head coach in the wake of off-the-field issues, but the Grizzlies still have plenty of talent to make a conference title run.

Additionally, there could be a surprise or two in the conference this year.  Northern Arizona returns an outstanding running back in Zach Bauman, while Southern Utah returns arguably the most underrated quarterback in all of college football, Brad Sorenson.  Additionally with the uneven balance in scheduling as a result of a 13-team conference, teams like Cal Poly and Weber State have the luck in their conference schedules to make a Big Sky championship run.

Overall, it is going to be an exciting race in the Big Sky this season, and SaturdayBlitz.com will keep you updated with Big Sky power rankings every week throughout the entire season.  Here’s the first set of rankings heading into the season.  Teams are ranked by their current head-to-head projection and not where they are projected to end up at the end of the season.

1. Montana State Bobcats

First game: vs. Chadron State

With 16 total returning starters, there’s alot to like heading into 2012 for Montana State, and it all starts with junior QB Denarius McGhee.  A Payton award candidate, McGhee has passed for 5,972 yards and 46 touchdowns in two seasons as a starter.  Also returning in the backfield is RB Cody Kirk who rushed for 1,351 yards and 14 touchdowns last season.

The Bobcat defense may even be better than the offense with the experience in the front seven led by 2011 all-Big Sky 1st teamers DT Zach Minter and LB Jody Owens.  Minter had 52 tackles with 7.5 sacks while Owens tallied 105 tackles.  With the boatload of experience returning on both sides of the football, all signs point for the Bobcats to improve on their Big Sky Co-Championship last season and contend for the FCS National Championship.

2. Eastern Washington Eagles

First game: @ Idaho

It’s been a roller coaster in Cheney the past two seasons.  In 2010, the Eastern Washington Eagles were FCS national champions.  In 2011, the injury-plagued Eagles were a disappointing 6-5.  2011 Payton Award winner Bo Levi Mitchell is gone, but lots of talent will remain for the Eagles along with a new QB in SMU transfer Kyle Padron.  Padron had a great season at SMU in 2010 passing for a school record 3,828 yards, but lost the starting job early in the 2011 season.  Returning for the Eagles on offense are eight starters along with a tremendous receiving corps featuring Nicholas Edwards and Greg Herd who both combined for 2,272 receiving yards last season.  Back on defense with a NCAA-granted sixth year of eligibility is LB Zach Johnson, along with CB T.J. Lee, both which have been all-Big Sky performers in the past.  As long as the Eagles stay healthy, they will greatly improve on their disappointing season last year and contend for a Big Sky title.  The Eagles may even be a dark horse for the FCS National Championship.

3. Montana Grizzlies

First game: vs. South Dakota

While Montana will likely take a step down from their 2011 season resulting in a Big Sky co-Championship and a FCS Semifinal appearance, there’s plenty to be excited about in Missoula heading into 2012.  The Grizzlies return their impressive trio in the running back corps with Peter Nguyen, Dan Moore, and Jordan Canada, who all rushed for a combined 1,845 yards and 19 touchdowns.  The Grizzlies also have great experience at linebacker and will be one of the strongest units in all of FCS with Jordan Tripp coming off of a medical redshirt year along with John Kanongtat’a.  However, the questions for Montana stick out, most notably of who will step up at quarterback with 2011 starter Jordan Johnson suspended facing a sexual assault charge.  Dual-treat QB Trent McKinney and Stanford transfer Adam Brzeczek are the biggest threats for the starting position.  Despite the losses along with a new head coach, former UM running backs/assistant head coach Mick Delaney, the Grizzlies will still be in the hunt of a conference title and will likely still receive an FCS playoff birth.

4. Weber State Wildcats

First game: @ Fresno State

After former head coach Ron McBride retired after the 2011 season at Weber State, the Wildcats turned to John L. Smith to lead them.  Well, Bobby Petrino had his little motorcycle escapade at Arkansas and Smith is back in Fayetteville.  Instead, defensive coordinator Jody Sears will lead the team as head coach and he will have a boatload of talent to work with.  Weber State returns seven starters on both sides of the football, most notably QB Mike Hoke who passed for 2,080 yards and 19 touchdowns last season with only 4 interceptions.

Additionally, the Wildcats’ running back cupboard is full of talent, with FB Tevia Tolutau who earned first team all-Big Sky honors as a true freshman last season along with RB C.J. Tuckett.  The defense will be greatly improved, especially with all four starters returning in the secondary.  Weber State does have some standout talent in the front seven with LB Anthony Morales who had 115 tackles last season and DE Trevor Pletcher.  With a schedule missing Montana State and having both Montana and Eastern Washington at home, the Wildcats will be another darkhorse contender to make some noise in the Big Sky race this season.

5. Southern Utah Thunderbirds

First game: @ Utah State

For those who do not follow FCS football extensively, looking at the entire subdivision, one of the most important names to know is Southern Utah QB Brad Sorenson.  In an outstanding 2011 campaign, Sorenson passed for 3,143 yards and 17 touchdowns, and heading into 2012 he is the preseason first team all-Big Sky quarterback.

The Thunderbirds will need to fill holes at wide reciever, but Sorenson will also be behind one of the best offensive lines in the conference with guards Zach Brackus and G Gavin Farr.  Southern Utah does feature some talent up front on the defense with DT Cody Larsen, DE Jeff Tukuafu, and LB Chad Hensen.  The Thunderbirds do play a very difficult schedule including two FBS opponents in Utah State and Cal along with zero breaks in the conference slate.  However, if Southern Utah can somehow find a way to seven wins, they will likely be a shoe-in for the FCS playoffs.

6. Portland State Vikings

First game: vs. Carroll College

The Vikings had a nice 7-4 record in 2011, but the Vikings may find it difficult to improve on that record this upcoming season.  Head coach Nigel Burton has brought in numerous transfers to fill holes all over the field, notably JC transfer QB Collin Ramirez who will fill the void in a pistol offense.  The Vikings do return four starters on the offensive line along with experienced veterans at wide receiver, most notably Justin Monahan.  On defense, the Vikings will have a tremendous linebacking corps with Ian Sluss and Khalil Bass, along with CB Mike Williams and SS Joel Sisler in the secondary.  Portland State also has one of the best special team players in all of FCS in K Zack Brown.  Overall, the schedule is fairly generous until the final two weeks of the season when the Vikings face Montana State on the road and Eastern Washington back-to-back.

7. Cal Poly Mustangs

First game: vs. San Diego

While Cal Poly will come into the Big Sky Conference with it’s unique triple option offense, they will be no stranger to many of the conference veterans.  However, the Mustangs do lose many key starters heading into 2012, especially in the offensive backfield, but do return QB Andre Broadus who rushed for 646 yards and 18 touchdowns in 2011 along with 1,235 passing yards.  As a result, Cal Poly will need players such as RB Deonte Williams and FB Gabriel Umoh to contribute in the back field along with the entire offensive line led by C Geoff Hyde.

The defense however does returning some athleticism up front LB Kennith Jackson who totaled 80 tackles and two interceptions in 2011, along with LB Johnny Millard and DT Sullivan Grosz.  The Mustangs catch a huge break in the conference schedule not facing Montana or Montana State along with playing Eastern Washington in a non-conference game which will not count towards the conference standings.  As a result, if the Mustangs get on a roll they will have a great chance to make some noise on their maiden voyage with the Big Sky.