Big Sky, Bigger Lines: Welcome to Week 0
- Montana Parlay
- Aug 28
- 3 min read
Football is back!!!
The fellas at FCS Nation had a temporary lapse in judgment and have tasked me with writing weekly previews and recaps of every game in the Big Sky. Many of you know me as that a-hole Cat fan on X (formerly known as Twitter).
Here is what I promise: I’ll try to get this material out by Tuesday and no later than Thursday (OK, maybe Friday morning), and if I use AI, I’ll donate one gallon of my own urine to cool a data center…we don’t waste water here, folks.
Plans are also in the works to record a weekly Big Sky-centric podcast with Weber State super fan Colby on the Montana Mint network. If you’d like to know my picks and best bets, tune in to the pod!!
Now to the Week 0 matchups. All lines were found on ESPN.com. All times Mountain.
Weber State @ Northern Colorado — Friday, 7 p.m. | ESPN+
Two teams with less than pedestrian 2025 campaigns look to get to half of last year's BSC win totals with a win on Friday. Is this already a loser-misses-the-playoffs matchup? Neither team is picked to do too well, and the spread lines up with their equal standing last year.
UNC -3.5 | Total 49.5
Idaho @ Cal Poly — Friday, 8 p.m. | ESPN
Another Friday matchup of teams who went 2-6 in the Big Sky last year, so why not throw them up on ESPN in prime time? Same spread on this game, but the road team is favored. Folks who are paying attention to the offseason could stand to make some money on these first two games.
Cal Poly +3.5 | Total 55.5
UC Davis @ Portland State — Saturday, 1 p.m. | ESPN+
Davis enters the season with high expectations, the only non-Montana team with non-astronomical odds to win the championship. PSU is once again slated to be one of the two worst teams in the conference.
PSU +24.5 | Total 62.5
Eastern Washington @ Northern Arizona — Saturday, 3 p.m. | ESPN+
It’s hard getting used to seeing teams like Eastern and Weber being ranked in the bottom half of the Big Sky, but that’s the new reality. With that in mind, the spread makes zero sense.
NAU -3 | Total 56.5
VMI @ Idaho State — Saturday, 4 p.m. | ESPN+
Some BSC vs. SoCon pride is on the line in this one. Idaho State is looking to improve upon last season’s solid finish by using their air attack to pummel the Keydets and get an early surrender down in Poky.
ISU -34.5 | Total 60.5
Southern Utah @ Montana — Saturday, 7 p.m. | ESPN+
Montana has high expectations with their new ball coach. Can they bounce back after a crushing loss in the first-ever playoff game against their bitter rival? Southern Utah might wonder why the heck the spread was less than 20 by the time they get out of zoo town.
UM -16.5 | Total 58.5
Montana State @ Utah Tech — Saturday, 8 p.m. | ESPN+
The defending champs travel to St. George to take on the Trailblazers in what might be the most beautiful backdrop for a high school-esque stadium. I made the trip to St. George in 2024 and would highly recommend checking out Zion down the road. Sightseeing might be the best part of the trip, as this should be a blowout.
UT Tech +31.5 | Total 56.5
Montana Parlay, aka Jake, can be found at various FCS games: regular season, playoffs and the natty. When he isn’t yelling about something sports-bet-related, he can be found on the 16” softball field or the bike path. His podcast can be found on most platforms and on Montana Mint.
Comments