First up, let’s do a quick rundown of scores from last week in the Big Sky:

Thursday, 8/30

#24 (FBS) Boise State 56, Weber State 0

- This one wasn’t even close. The Broncs were up 28-0 at the end of one, and 49-0 by half. It actually could have been worse had not Boise pulled its’ starters towards the end of the half. One positive for the Wildcats - they tied BSU’s backups, 7-7 in the second half.

Northern Arizona 47, Western New Mexico 0

- Alex Watson got his potential Walter Payton season off to a good start, catching 8 passes for 133 yards and 2 scores. Junior Lance Kriesen, replacing All-American Jason Murrieta, looked fine in his first start, going 16-26 for 188 yards and 2 TDs. The Jacks did have to settle for 4 FGs, however, and NAU did fumble the ball 4 times.

Friday, 8/31

Eastern Washington 52, Montana Western 13

- The Eagles struggled a little early on, but sophomore QB Matt Nichols would equal a school record 6 TD passes as EWU cruised past NAIA foe Montana Western. Dale Morris would add148 yards on the ground, and 2 receivers would catch a pair of TD passes.

Saturday, 9/1

#10 McNeese State 35, #13 Portland State 12

- Not a good start for the Glanville era. PSU was able to move the ball into the red zone 3 times in the first 20 minutes of the game, but came away with just 6 points. MSU would can 395 yards of total offense, with 204 of those on the ground.

#2 Montana 37, Southern Utah 17

- Lex Hilliard would look a little rusty, but would have a solid performance in his first return since injuring his achilles tendon a year ago. He would finish with 108 yards on 22 carries with one score. The Thunderbirds would hang around, keeping it within one score until partway through the third. But the Griz would put it away late in the 4th with a TD pass to Eric Allen.

#25 (FBS) Texas A&M 38, #21 Montana State

- The Bobcats would have no trouble moving the ball against their ranked FBS foe, even outgaining them in totals yards; 403 to 390. But the Cats were unable to score when in Aggie territory, moving the ball inside the 30 7 times and coming away with 1 TD, 1 fumble, 1 INT, and three missed FGs. Jack Rolovich would finish 21-39 for 267 yards and 1 score. The Cats were down just 17-7 at half, but the Aggies would pull away late in the third.

#23 (FBS) Hawaii 63, Northern Colorado 6

- In what many predicted would be the worst loss by a BSC team in week one, Hawaii QB Colt Brennan looked like Payton Manning against Butte High, completing 34 passes of his 40 attempts for 416 yards and 6 TDs in the first half alone.

News:

Portland State loses starting QB and FB for the season. Starting QB Tygue Howland will have surgery to repair a torn ligament in his left foot, and starting FB Bobby McLintock tore his right ACL. Brian White should step in for Howland, and Olaniyi Sobomehin will get the nod at FB.

http://www.denverpost.com/colleges/ci_6716150

Fans got a first look at the 2007 Bobcats under the direction of first year head coach, Rob Ash, Saturday afternoon during a 115 play scrimmage. The offense was able to move the ball well, something they rarely seemed to do in the Kramer era. Aaron Mason finished with 144 yards on 19 carries, and Jack Rolovich had 253 yards on 15 of 22 passing, including a 48 yard TD strike to Josh Lewis. Lewis would finish with 3 catches for 96 yards. Either this is a sign that the offense will be much improved under coach Ash, or the defense is still adjusting to a new scheme. Only time will tell, but I was happy to finally see some offensive production in a scrimmage for once. Read the SID release here.

The following article is a pretty good preview of the 2007 Weber State Wildcats, written by Neil K. Warner of the Daily Herald. The news from this article is the insinuation that sophomore Alabama transfer Jimmy Barnes has won the starting QB job. This is a good read, and you Big Sky folk should check it out!

The article can be found here.

Yes, that Jonathan Beasley. The same that led Kansas State to a Big 12 championship appearance and bowl appearances in 2000 and 2001. Last season he had been working as a graduate assistant at Emporia State, and last fall he was quarterbacks and running backs coach at Wichita North High. While I think Junior Adams had been doing a terrific job as receivers coach, it is always nice to have high profile guys come in, if anything for recruiting alone. Read the article here.

Don Bailey, former offensive coordinator for Montana State, is reported to be heading to Weber State to coach WRs.  Bailey was scrutinized in his time in Bozeman, for a vanilla playback and predictable calls.  But then again, that just described every fanbase’s opinion of their OC.  Bailey was highly thought of in regards to recruiting, however.

ISU has announced they have hired former linebackers coach and defensive coordinator Rob Christoff.  Christoff will coach linebackers for the Bengals.  He was promoted to DC last year when former DC Pete Kwiatkowsk left the team to accept a position at Boise State.  Many Cat fans were hoping Christoff would be retained, but that was not the case.

Here is the list of 2007 preason all-Big Sky Conference players. 

 OFFENSE
QB Cole Bergquist, 6-2, 207, Jr., Montana
RB Lex Hillard, 6-0, 228, Sr., Montana
FB Bobby McClintock*, 5-10, 230, So., Portland State
TE Shaun Fitzpatrick*, 6-2, 237, Jr., Northern Arizona
OL Cody Balogh*#, 6-7, 320, Sr., Montana
OL David Hale*#, 6-6, 305, Sr., Weber State
OL George Yarno*, 6-0, 275, Sr., Idaho State
OL Matt Alfred, 6-3, 310, Sr., Eastern Washington
OL Brennan Carvalho*, 6-1, 310, Sr. Portland State
WR Alex Watson*#, 5-10, 180, Sr., Northern Arizona
WR Eric Allen*# 6-3, 202, Sr., Montana
WR Eddie Thompson, 5-11, 185, Jr., Idaho State
PK Dan Carpenter#, 6-2, 211, Sr., Montana
Ret. Bryant Eteuati#*, 5-7, 180, Jr., Weber State

DEFENSE
DE Kroy Biermann*#,6-3,238,Sr., Montana
DE Cole Smith, 6-3,265, Sr., Portland State
DT Aaron Papich, 6-2,272, Sr.,Montana State
DT Dallas Mauga, 6-1, 290,Sr., Sacramento State
LB Cyrus Mulitalo, 6-1, 245, Sr.,Sacramento State
LB Epikopo King, 6-0, 214, Sr., Montana State
LB Tyler Joyce, 6-5, 227, Sr., Montana
LB Bobby Daly, 6-1,215, Jr., Montana State
LB Jordan Senn,5-10, 225,Sr., Portland State
CB K.J. Gerard, 6-1, 180, Jr., Northern Arizona
CB Ricky Wilson,5-10, 180, Sr.,Northern Arizona
S Torrey Thomas*, 6-0, 180, Sr., Montana
S Colt Anderson*, 5-10, 185, Jr., Montana
P Dan Zeidman, 6-1, 205, Sr., Idaho State
ST Kenneth Mackins, 6-0,185, Sr., Portland State

Pretty solid list, but if Cole Berquist is the best quarterback in the Big Sky in 2007, it could be a rough year for the Sky. 

The Wildcats report that Jimmy Barnes is transferring to Weber State to play next fall. Barnes is a 6′5 240 pound sophomore quarterback, who was highly recruited out of high school. He only played once last year, in a clean-up roll. He was 6-11 for 45 yards and one score in a 38-3 rout of Florida International.

Rob Ash has nearly finalized his coaching staff, with the latest addition being Bo Beck, who will be coaching the defensive line.

Head Coach : Rob Ash (Drake)
Offensive Coordinator : Dale Ploessl (Drake)
Offensive Line Coach : Jason McEndoo (MSU)
Running Backs : ?
Wide Receivers : ?
Quarterbacks : Jim Svoboda (UCLA)
Tight Ends / Kickers : EJ Arnold (MSU)
Defensive Coordinator / Linebackers : Jamie Marshall (Drake)
Secondary : Noah Joseph (Eastern Illinois)
Assistant Secondary : Justin Gaines (Midwestern State)
Assistant Linebackers / Video Coordinator : Kane Ioane (MSU)
Defensive Line : Bo Beck (Iowa State)