Moderators: rtb, kmax, SonomaCat
KEY GAME: Oct. 5 vs. Montana State: This was a narrow loss on the road last year for the Mustangs. With this game coming at home and it being the Hall of Fame Game, Cal Poly can grab the attention of the FCS with a win against a likely nationally-ranked Bobcats team that made the playoffs in 2018.
Haha. Kid's been around forever it seems like. I think he finally graduated, though.
Old man Protheroe will not soon be forgotten. I remember their quarterback doing some damage to us in the 4th quarter.
OUR TAKE: We have EWU preseason ranked No. 7, which means we expect a quarterfinal appearance. But with their schedule and returning talent, there's a decent chance the Eagles get a Top 4 playoff seed and make a deeper run. They will be favored to win every game besides at FBS Washington. A road trip to Jacksonville State looks to be a 50/50 game on paper. But in the Big Sky, the Eagles avoid the three other playoff teams in 2018. It's a favorable schedule that could see an 11-1 overall record. Even with what's gone off of last year's team, expectations shouldn't lessen and the Eagles look to return to Frisco this season.
Wow, that is a very good setup for Eastern. I had to look that up but yes they will likely be favored on all of their games sans the Huskies, and probably significant favorites in most of them. If they don't stumble early they could easily rise to #1 or #2 in the country based on other teams above them dropping games against tougher opponents. Likely home field throughout the playoffs and making another appearance in the Chipper.Rich K wrote: ↑Thu Jun 27, 2019 11:13 amEastern Washington
https://herosports.com/fcs/football-201 ... g-sky-bzbz
OUR TAKE: We have EWU preseason ranked No. 7, which means we expect a quarterfinal appearance. But with their schedule and returning talent, there's a decent chance the Eagles get a Top 4 playoff seed and make a deeper run. They will be favored to win every game besides at FBS Washington. A road trip to Jacksonville State looks to be a 50/50 game on paper. But in the Big Sky, the Eagles avoid the three other playoff teams in 2018. It's a favorable schedule that could see an 11-1 overall record. Even with what's gone off of last year's team, expectations shouldn't lessen and the Eagles look to return to Frisco this season.
Rough out of conference schedule but a favorable conference slate. While the EWU game is a non-conference game it'll have playoff ramifications.OUR TAKE: It was probably a humbling season for the Vandals in 2018. Everyone inside and outside the program assumed a team full of FBS talent could come in and immediately impact the FCS landscape. That didn't happen, but the way Idaho has been recruiting says it'll be a factor sooner than later. The 2019 nonconference schedule is challenging again. Idaho faces FBS opponents Penn State and Wyoming along with a game versus Eastern Washington. The Big Sky slate is a bit more favorable, though. The only Big Sky opponent (that counts toward in the conference standings) that made the playoffs last year is Weber State. No UC Davis, no Montana State and EWU is a nonconference game. While it's too early to predict a playoff appearance for the Vandals, we think there's a good opportunity to rise in the Big Sky standings.
This little blurb from Stats sums it up for ISU this year:OUR TAKE: Key pieces are back for Idaho State to continue progressing forward. After its 4-1 start, the next two games saw a 44-37 loss to eventual quarterfinalist UC Davis and then a 48-41 loss to FBS Liberty. This is a program that's right there on the cusp. The challenge in 2019 is finding seven D1 wins to get into the playoff bracket. A win against D2 Western Colorado University does nothing. The nonconference slate also features games at FBS Utah and BYU along with at Northern Iowa, a routine playoff participant. The Bengals also face 2018 playoff teams Eastern Washington and Weber State along with traveling to Montana. We ranked it the 19th toughest schedule in the FCS. Depending on the QB situation, Idaho State looks to be a stronger team this year. But it will have to knock off some strong opponents to reach the postseason.
Idaho State - The Bengals didn't learn from last season because once again they are playing two FBS opponents (Utah and BYU) and a sub-FCS team (Western Colorado). Add in a nonconference visit to Northern Iowa and the difficult Big Sky schedule, and it's easy to say the Bengals will fall short of the playoffs.
OUR TAKE: While the Pioneers lose an extremely talented senior class, this program has shown the ability to reload over the last five years. Obviously doing it at the Division I FCS level is a whole different challenge. But the expectation for the 2019 squad is to compete and win some games. North Alabama showed a team can transition from D2 to the FCS and be competitive right away. The Lions went 7-3 overall, granted they weren't playing a full D1 schedule like LIU is playing this year. Still, North Alabama defeated a Southern Utah team from a FCS power conference and played eventual national champs North Dakota State much tougher than the 38-7 final score indicates.
LIU makes its FCS debut at preseason No. 5 South Dakota State. The Pioneers also face a tough Villanova team in the nonconference slate and take on fellow D2-to-FCS mate Merrimack. They play a full NEC schedule, which presents several challenges. But let's be real, it's not like LIU is transitioning into the CAA. The Pioneers definitely can be competitive in the conference. They'll take their lumps. That's to be expected. Make no mistake, though, this is a strong program entering the subdivision.
OUR TAKE: The Bobcats have a chance to do some special things in 2019. Not only does the starting lineup remain mostly intact, but the schedule is quite favorable. Opening the season at FBS Texas Tech will be a challenge. But they have a good shot to go 3-0 against FCS nonconference opponents versus Southeast Missouri State, who also made the second round last year, at Western Illinois and versus Norfolk State. Then in the Big Sky, the Bobcats avoid Eastern Washington and Weber State, two playoff seeds last year. They also get Montana at home. Not only would missing the playoffs be a massive disappointment for MSU, but this team could earn a playoff seed if it avoids letdown performances.
OUR TAKE: The Griz have the 16th toughest schedule in the FCS this year. They play at USD (which we discussed above) and at Oregon in the nonconference along with North Alabama and Monmouth, two solid programs. In the Big Sky slate, Montana plays all four playoff teams from last year. It's a tough draw. But the Griz were in playoff contention last year despite some growing pains and struggles on the offensive line. We expect this team to improve on its six wins from last year. There's too much talent for Montana to not at least go 7-5, if not better. But the Grizzlies need to knock off quality opponents and avoid letdown losses to get back into the playoffs. The race in the Big Sky standings is going to be tight with a ton of teams vying for 4-5 playoff bids. Can Montana be one of those 4-5 teams? If the o-line can improve and the team shows more consistency ... then absolutely.
I suggest a decent goal would be to beat Norfolk State worse than they lose to Old Dominion and Coastal Carolina.OUR TAKE: We just have a feeling that this year's Norfolk State and Morgan State teams are going to be spoilers in the MEAC. We're not predicting Celebration Bowl berths for these two programs, but we do think they'll be factors ... and they're both going to go from the bottom of the league to a position where they ruin somebody's day within the league. Book that. Norfolk State certainly didn't schedule cream puffs in the non-conference schedule, with FBS teams Old Dominion and Coastal Carolina on the schedule, as well as FCS playoff team Montana State. That will toughen up the Spartans for league play, where they will do some damage. In this 12-game schedule, don't be surprised if this team hits the .500 mark with some true signature MEAC wins.
OUR TAKE: As we stated above, the Fighting Hawks should be a stronger team this year. The question is will their record reflect it? UND has the toughest schedule in the FCS and opted to play 11 games in a 12-game season. If we put our handicapping hats on and look at the schedule right now on paper, the Fighting Hawks are favored to win five games: Drake, Idaho State, Cal Poly, Northern Colorado and Southern Utah. The SHSU game is 50/50, Weber State will probably be slightly favored and the Hawks are underdogs in the four other games. Of course, it's July right now and what happens on the field doesn't always match with what we see on paper.
The point is UND has a good chance to match its six wins. The challenge will be finding that seventh win, which means knocking off a strong, likely ranked opponent. A 7-4 UND team is a lock for the playoffs. A 6-5 record has the Fighting Hawks back on a packed bubble that will probably see a number of teams with 7-5 records. And then there's the whole discussion on if being a program without a conference hurts or helps UND. So to sum all that mumbo-jumbo up, the Fighting Hawks look to be a 50/50 playoff team once again. They need to beat the teams they're supposed to beat, which didn't happen late last year, and play their best football against six preseason-ranked Top 25 teams.
I noticed that specific moment as well! He is a stud!mslacatfan wrote: ↑Sat Jul 13, 2019 11:05 amI like when TA just blows up that defender while going in for the TD
