Big Sky Week 1 RECAP

San Diego 17, Cal Poly 41 (San Diego, CA)

Mustangs redshirt sophomore QB Ty Dieffenbach was a one-man wrecking crew at Torero Stadium on Saturday night, going 18/27 for 263 yards and 2 touchdowns through the air while also chipping in 69 yards and a touchdown on the ground. After going up 24-0 with just 1:05 to go in the half, the Toreros answered with a quick touchdown of their own to make it a three-score game going into the locker room. The Mustang offense sputtered in the 3rd quarter, tacking on just 3 points before hitting the gas for 2 more touchdowns in the 4th quarter to seal the win. Cal Poly redshirt senior WR Michael Briscoe connected with Dieffenbach for 110 yards and 2 touchdowns. Meanwhile, the Mustang defense, led by redshirt junior LB Kenny Olson, recorded 7 tackles for loss with 5 sacks. Cal Poly will travel to Salt Lake City, UT next weekend to face Utah in an FBS-FCS matchup.

Incarnate Word 31, Eastern Washington 21 (San Antonio, TX)

The Eags hit the road to open up their 2025 campaign in San Antonio against a #11 Incarnate Word team that was looking for redemption after last week’s embarrassing 20-6 loss at unranked Nicholls. After going down 14-0 early in the 2nd quarter due to miscues and a painful endzone interception on their first drive of the day, EWU stormed back to tie the game at 21-21 with 4:24 left before the half. After allowing a UIW field goal just before heading to the locker room, the Eags offense was silenced in the second half. Graduate QB Jared Taylor had a rough outing, passing for just 183 yards on 55% completed passes and no touchdowns on the day. Eastern got all their scoring done on the ground, led by redshirt junior RB Marceese Yetts and his 2 touchdowns. The EWU defense had some success with 7 TFLs and 2 sacks, but gave up 463 yards of total offense, 332 yards of that through the air. The Eags will take the trip to Boise to face a Boise State team looking for redemption after their embarrassing loss to South Florida last week.

Washington State 13, #5 Idaho 10 (Pullman, WA)

The Battle of the Palouse was renewed again late Saturday night, as the Vandals took long-time rival Washington State all the way to the wire when the Cougs kicked a field goal to win the game 13-10 with just three seconds remaining. A defensive battle nearly all night, WSU led 10-0 with just 1:18 left in the third quarter. But the Vandals offense came alive in the 4th, answering with an Art Williams touchdown and a field goal with 1:42 left in the game to tie it at 10-10. The Vandal passing game remained largely dormant for most of the contest. Redshirt sophomore QB Joshua Wood recorded just 33 yards through the air on 12 completions. But he made up for it by leading all rushers with 101 yards on the ground. Idaho rushed for a total of 188 yards on the night. Defensively, the Vandals held WSU to just 211 yards of total offense and a mere 3 Cougar rushing yards. Redshirt senior LB Isiah King shined with 2.5 TFLs and a big 19 yard sack to open the 3rd quarter. Idaho will host Saint Thomas for their home opener at the Kibbie Dome next weekend.

#19 Southern Utah 46, Idaho State 24 (Cedar City, UT)

After a promising showing in Las Vegas last weekend against FBS UNLV, the Bengals struggled against FCS Southern Utah, falling 46-24 at Eccles Coliseum on Saturday night. ISU redshirt junior QB Jordan Cooke had a day with 334 yards passing, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception on 45 attempts. Senior WR Michael Shulikov had a number of big moments, recording 115 yards on 7 receptions. But, the Bengals run defense ultimately did them in on the road for the second week in a row, allowing a whopping 323 SUU rushing yards and 3 touchdowns. After going down 22-0 early in the second quarter, Cooke put together a dazzling 75 yard drive to score a touchdown with 10:35 left to go in the 2nd quarter. A defensive scoop and score just seconds later had the Bengals back in it, 22-14. But, the T-Birds hit the gas, rattling off 17 straight points to put the game out of reach as the fourth quarter started. The final blow came on a goal line stand after ISU failed to convert 1st and Goal at the SUU 6 yard line, turning the ball over on downs. The Bengals will get no reprieve next weekend when they travel to Albuquerque to take on Jason Eck’s New Mexico Lobos who had a good showing against Michigan on Saturday at the Big House.

#7 Montana (BYE)

The Griz opted for a Week 1 bye this year. But with an amazing 8 home games this season, Montana fans will have plenty of opportunities to cheer them on. The Griz will start their season at home next week against D2 Central Washington.

Oregon 59, #3 Montana State 13 (Eugene, OR)

The Bobcats suffered through a lopsided affair in Eugene, going down 38-3 to the Ducks at halftime. The second half saw little reprieve, with just a 3rd quarter field goal and a 4th quarter touchdown run from preseason Big Sky MVP sophomore RB Adam Jones to cap the day’s scoring efforts. Despite the scoreboard, there were a number of positive takeaways from the FBS matchup that should give MSU fans some hope. Junior WR Taco Dowler continued to shine, in spite of the challenging Oregon secondary, ending his day with 107 yards on 12 catches. This was also Stanford transfer QB Justin Lamson’s first time running new Bobcat OC and QBs coach Peter Sterbick’s offense. Sterbick had great success at Colorado School of the Mines before being tapped to take over playcalling duties in Bozeman this year, logging a 22-4 record in Golden over the last two seasons. Sophomore K Myles Sansted also continued his reliable production, nailing both 42 yard FG attempts at Autzen Stadium on Saturday. The Bobcats will head home to Bozeman for their Gold Rush game this weekend, hosting old foe #2 South Dakota State.

Arizona State 38, #17 Northern Arizona 19 (Tempe, AZ)

The Lumberjacks took the trip down to Tempe on Saturday to face in-state foe Arizona State. 2024 Big Sky Newcomer of the Year junior QB Ty Pennington connected with his favorite target often, redshirt senior WR Kolbe Katsis. Katsis went for 76 yards on 6 receptions while Stanford grad transfer WR Jayson Raines chipped in 71 yards on 5 receptions of his own. The vaunted NAU secondary was also on display once again, recording 5 PBUs and a late Michael Beresford INT. Meanwhile, the NAU defensive line made a few statements of their own with 5 TFLs for 31 yards, including a big 15 yard sack by redshirt senior LB Travis Arena. After going down 14-0 in the 1st quarter, the Lumberjacks were able to claw their way back into the game with a field goal just before the half to make it 17-6. An impressive 75 yard march down the field for a touchdown put NAU down just 24-13 with 8:14 to go in the 3rd quarter, plenty of time to get back in it. But, the Sun Devils scored a late 3rd quarter touchdown of their own and stalled the NAU offense in the 4th quarter with a critical INT to steal the Lumberjack’s momentum. Northern Arizona will welcome a feisty Utah Tech team to Flagstaff for their home opener next weekend.

Northern Colorado 17, Chadron State College 3 (Greeley, CO)

The Bears opened up their season at home against D2 opponent Chadron State College out of Chadron, NE on Saturday. Two 1st quarter touchdowns put UNC up to a quick 14-0 lead thanks in part to a massive 60 yard pass from redshirt junior QB Peter Costelli to junior WR Brayden Munroe. But, after the 1st quarter fireworks, the Bears offense slowed a bit. Their lone second half score came early in the 4th quarter on a 38 yard field goal attempt. UNC fans were glad to see the defense perform well, recording 5 TFLs for 25 yards including 3 sacks. The run game also had some nice moments, logging 160 yards for the day. The Bears rushing attack was led by sophomore RB Mathias Price and his 73 yards on 16 carries. UNC will hit the road this weekend, but won’t have to travel far as they head to Fort Collins to face FBS Colorado State.

 BYU 69, Portland State 0 (Provo, UT)

The search for a Viking scoring drive will continue one more week after Portland State were shut out for the second time in this young season, this time by FBS BYU. Barney Ball has yet to find its groove, recording a dismal 51 yards of total offense. That includes -5 rushing yards on the day after 40 yards gained on the ground were wiped out by 45 yards lost. PSU senior QB CJ Jordan logged just 58 yards through the air and was sacked twice. The Viking offense recorded just two first downs of their own volition throughout the afternoon. A third was awarded from a BYU targeting call midway through the 2nd quarter. PSU was also without a TFL on the day. The Vikings continue their tough out of conference schedule next week on the road in Grand Forks to taking on #13 North Dakota after their gritty performance against ranked Kansas State on Saturday.

#2 South Dakota State 20, Sacramento State 3 (Brookings, SD)

New Sac State head coach Brennan Marion’s much-hyped Go-Go Offense sputtered out of the gate this weekend, recording just three points in the 1st quarter before going silent for the remainder of the game. Those points came on a muffed Jackrabbits punt return that gave the Hornets the ball on the SDS 23 yard line. Sac State started the game with back to back 3-and-outs before the SDS special teams blunder gave them a shot to score. The Hornets finally started to find some success in the 2nd quarter until back to back turnovers killed their momentum going into the half, down 17-3. The Jackrabbits would tack on another field goal late in the 4th quarter to cap their home opener. The day wasn’t without hope for Hornets fans though. The Sac State defense recorded a whopping 11 TFLs for 46 yards, including an eye-popping 7 sacks. In spite of the quarterback pressure, the Hornet rushing defense gave up 240 yards on the ground. Offensively, Sac State logged just 24 rushing yards and 107 passing yards on the day. Nearly half of those passing yards came from the connection between Georgia transfer QB Jaden Rashada and Oregon State transfer WR Jordan Anderson. The Hornets will take a much shorter road trip to FBS Nevada next weekend to face the Wolfpack in Reno.

Utah Tech 24, #15 UC Davis 31 (Saint George, UT)

After a disappointing start to the season for the Aggies when their game against Mercer was declared No Contest late in the 4th quarter last week, Davis was on the road again Saturday to face a Utah Tech team still trying to find its footing in Division 1. After an Aggies fumble gave Utah Tech a 3-0 lead, Davis answered back with a massive 66 yard dash for a touchdown by junior RB Jordan Fisher. Three straight Utah Tech turnovers gave Davis the chance to add on, but the Trailblazers blocked a 29 yard field goal attempt with 9:02 left in the 2nd quarter. After an Aggie turnover on downs, Utah Tech put together a 47 yard touchdown drive with 31 seconds to go before the half. The Trailblazers tacked on 2 more touchdowns in the 3rd quarter before the Aggies righted the ship to score 24 points unanswered and pull away late in Saint George. Redshirt freshman QB Caden Pinnick ended the night with 253 yards passing, 3 touchdowns, and an INT. His favorite target was senior WR Samuel Gbatu, Jr. who logged 93 yards on 4 catches and 2 touchdowns. The Davis offensive line had their struggles, allowing 8 TFLs and 6 sacks of Pinninck. But the Aggie secondary made some big plays in the second half, including 2 late INTs to stop Utah Tech’s momentum and seal the win. UC Davis will be on the road again next week, this time to face Washington at Huskie Stadium in Seattle for an FBS-FCS matchup.

James Madison 45, Weber State 10 (Harrisonburg, VA)

The Wildcats made their 3rd trip to Harrisonburg on Saturday to face now FBS James Madison. The result was another tough trip for the purple and white. UTSA transfer QB Jackson Gilkey got his first start in a Wildcat uniform, but came away with just 84 yards passing, 1 touchdown, and 3 INTs. The Weber State rushing game didn’t offer much reprieve, recording just 64 yards on 31 attempts. Meanwhile, the WSU rushing defense struggled to slow down JMU, giving up 313 yards and 4 touchdowns on the night. But it wasn’t all doom and gloom for the Wildcats. The defense came away with 8 TFLs for 20 yards and 1 sack. Senior K Sloan Calder also stepped up for a booming 51 yard FG in the 3rd quarter for his first of the season. Things won’t get much easier for the Wildcats as they take the trip to Tucson next weekend to face FBS Arizona.