Schedule doesn't ease up as Viks head to Idaho
Football flops against Weber, faces ascendant Vandals coming off biggest win in years
The Big Sky’s strength has buried Portland State this season.
Montana and Weber State, both ranked in the top 10 in the nation, have dismantled the Viks in Big Sky play, winning by a combined score of 95-23.
Last weekend, Weber State smothered the Viks, turning PSU into a one-dimensional attack, keying on PSU’s inability to run the ball with any effectiveness to shut down the Viks’ playmakers on the outside.
In fact, after facing two nationally-ranked programs in three Big Sky attempts, the Viks are the third-worst offensive attack in the league and the eighth-best defense, metrics that don’t quite stack up with the four Big Sky teams that were in the top five last weekend.
This week’s opponent doesn’t offer much reprieve, Idaho seemingly reclaiming its place among the Big Sky elite six years after its drop from FBS.
The Vandals have seen their turnaround happen quickly under first-year coach Jason Eck, who has created a positive environment in Moscow that has been missing for years.
Behind freshman quarterback Gevani McCoy, statistically the most efficient signal caller in the league, the Vandals have gone 3-0 in the Big Sky, beating then-No. 3 Montana last week after near upsets at FBS Washington State and Indiana to open the season. The big win moved the Vandals into the national rankings for the first time, albeit only to No. 17 despite their stellar resume. (Voters tend to be entrenched in early-season rankings and are slow to adjust to teams that weren’t hyped in the summer.)
The Viks are looking to capture their first win against a ranked opponent this season by simplifying the playbook for first-year frontman Dante Chachere.
“I think I gave him too much last week, Viks head coach Bruce Barnum said.
“I knew I overloaded him a bit. We run read zone. That’s the simplest read in America. When he was not 100 percent on that one, I knew I gave the kid too much.”
“We cut it back, I tried to adjust it at halftime, but we were sloppy.”
Playoff hopes dashed after their fourth loss this season, the senior-laden Viks still have a chance to prove that they’re among the toughest teams in the league with a pair of marquee matchups still on the schedule.
The Viks play at No. 17 Idaho this week, visiting the Kibbie Dome for the second time in as many years, before two weeks of mid-table teams and hosting No. 2 Sacramento State to close the home slate in Hillsboro.
Anthony Adams and Parker McKenna are both listed on the depth chart as out once again this week, sending a blow to the Viks chances and leaving two defensive leaders on the sidelines.
Barnum hinted in his weekly vlog that reinforcements were on the way.
The game starts at noon on Saturday and will be broadcast on ESPN+.
The university continues to find ways to get more students out to Vikings sports, this week approving a program that will allow students to use meal plan money at the Viking Pavilion for volleyball and men’s and women’s basketball games.
ACROSS THE BIG SKY
After an epic No. 1 vs. No. 2 game in the Dakotas last week, the FCS top five will get another shakeup this week with two big games in the Big Sky.
The conference’s four teams in the top 7 finally meet up this week, beginning a stretch of top-flight matchups over the next month.
Weber State, which moved up to No. 5 after topping the Viks last weekend, will open the first of three-straight weeks against top-10 teams, visiting No. 3 Montana State in Bozeman. The Bobcats got the best of the pairing last season, winning 13-7 in a defensive battle under the lights in Ogden.
No. 2 Sacramento State, the only Division I team to have never trailed in a game this season, will face its stiffest test of the season so far, hosting No. 7 Montana in the late game on Saturday. The Hornets beat then-No. 5 Montana last season in Missoula, 28-21, putting up more points against the Griz than any team other than Eastern Washington’s historic attack.
Saturday, Oct. 22
Portland State at Idaho, Noon PT, ESPN+
No. 5 Weber State at No. 3 Montana State, Noon, ESPN+
Northern Arizona at Idaho State, Noon, ESPN+
UC Davis at Northern Colorado, Noon, ESPN+
Eastern Washington at Cal Poly, 5 p.m., ESPN+
No. 7 Montana at No. 2 Sacramento State, 8 p.m., ESPN+
Last week’s results
Idaho 30, No. 3 Montana 23
No. 4 Montana State 37, Northern Colorado 14
No. 5 Sacramento State 52, Eastern Washington 28
No. 6 Weber State 42, Portland State 7
Idaho State 40, Cal Poly 31
UC Davis 56, Northern Arizona 27
AROUND THE BLOCKS
It’s a huge week for the Portland State soccer team, which can win the conference and earn a bye in the Big Sky Tournament with a win at conference-leading Northern Arizona on Sunday.
The Viks, currently in third place with 14 points after posting their first loss in conference play last weekend, are one point back of the top two teams and need the full three points in Flagstaff to grab a top-two seed and earn an extra day off. A Viks win can also claim the Big Sky regular season title if NAU drops points in its game against Sacramento State on Friday and an Idaho loss or tie in its final match against Eastern Washington on Sunday.
The game kicks off at noon on Sunday and will be aired on ESPN+.
Volleyball gets a big test this weekend, too.
The top team in the Big Sky, the Viks will face second-place Sacramento State on Saturday night at the Pavilion.
PSU has been strong on offense and defense in its run to the top of the conference, but the front three combo of Makayla Lewis, Sophia Meyers and Parker Webb have each placed in the top 10 in kills per set and points per set.
It should be a battle against Sac State, one of the best defensive teams in the conference.
First serve is at 7 p.m. on Saturday at the Pavilion.
The cross country team is off for a week before the conference meet next weekend in Cheney.
They had a huge weekend split between two sites, doing well at both the Lewis and Clark Invite down the road and at Pre-Nationals in Oklahoma.
Elsewhere, the women’s tennis team did well in its first meet of the fall, and the basketball teams continue to get ready for the start of the season.
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