{"id":26564,"date":"2023-10-02T23:08:21","date_gmt":"2023-10-02T23:08:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cahootie.com\/?p=26564"},"modified":"2023-10-02T23:08:21","modified_gmt":"2023-10-02T23:08:21","slug":"big-sky-big-skills-for-big-sky-conference-on-fcs-football-stage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cahootie.com\/world-news\/big-sky-big-skills-for-big-sky-conference-on-fcs-football-stage\/","title":{"rendered":"Big sky, big skills for Big Sky Conference on FCS football stage"},"content":{"rendered":"

As of earlier this week, seven Big Sky Conference teams were ranked in a Football Championship Subdivision coaches\u2019 poll.<\/p>\n

One of those teams was Weber State, which of course is Northern Colorado\u2019s opponent Saturday afternoon at Nottingham Field.<\/p>\n

Weber State was No. 14 in the Sept. 24 poll and the Wildcats were the highest ranked team with a .500 record. Weber (0-1 Big Sky, 2-2 overall) earned the ranking after losing 40-0 a day before to No. 3 Montana State, which is also in the Big Sky Conference and the highest-ranked conference team in the poll.<\/p>\n

Other Big Sky teams in the poll were No. 6 Idaho, No. 9 Sacramento State, No. 16 Montana, No. 20 UC Davis and No. 25 Eastern Washington. UC Davis and Eastern Washington are also 2-2.<\/p>\n

So what makes the conference so tough in football?<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the SEC of FCS football,\u201d UNC offensive coordinator Blair Peterson said. \u201cMissouri Valley is a great conference, so you can put that up there. Those are the premier conferences in FCS.\u201d<\/p>\n

The now 12-team Missouri Valley Conference was started in 1985 and has an FCS-best 12 national championships with nine from North Dakota State. Last season, the conference extended its record of 12-straight title game appearances with North Dakota State and South Dakota State playing for a title.<\/p>\n

Longtime Weber State Director of Athletic Communications Paul Grua said seven teams in the top 25 is a lot for the Big Sky.<\/p>\n

First-year Weber State coach Mickey Mental said the conference\u2019s strength lies in the member schools.<\/p>\n

“All the programs in the Big Sky have outstanding coaching and run great programs that are supported by their institutions,\u201d Mental said in an email. \u201cFrom top to bottom everyone plays hard and there is a lot of talent.”<\/p>\n

First-year UNC coach Ed Lamb coached Southern Utah for four years when the Thunderbirds were members of the Big Sky.<\/p>\n

While football recruiting has a national component, and guys go all over the country to play, the majority of realistic opportunities and offers for players remain regional, Lamb said. The Big Sky is the third-highest league in the West behind the Pac-12 and Mountain West conferences, he added, so if athletes don\u2019t go to those leagues, the BSC is the next level for quality players.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s been great continuity in the Big Sky,\u201d Lamb said. \u201cI think there\u2019s outstanding resources. At Northern Colorado, we\u2019re one of the schools trying to keep up on the resource front.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lamb said there are football programs in the Big Sky that have resources \u201cscratching the surface\u201d of resources and facilities of Football Bowl Subdivision schools. FBS is the top level of Division I football.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll those things put together, I think, it\u2019s really a quality brand of football,\u201d Lamb said. \u201cWe also have some flagship state institutions that have large fan bases and great game-day environments, and that sure helps with recruiting as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

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