Big Sky Conference Athletics » Big Sky

Week 1 Preview: Thursday’s Games

catbob — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 02:17:37 +0000

The first slate of games kicks of this week! And yes, I did not say weekend on purpose because 2 of our Big Sky brethren will start their season tomorrow. As per usual during the first week, many teams are playing outside of our FCS division, some up, some down. So let’s get right to it, since there isn’t much else to be said. Predicted winners in bold:

Thursday, September 2:

Western New Mexico @ #23 Northern Arizona

The Lumberjacks look to improve upon their disappointing 2009 campaign, in which they finished 4-4 in league, 5-6 overall including 4 straight losses. Graduated are Alex Henderson, the lead rusher and scorer for the Jacks, as well as their two leading receivers in Ed Berry & Conrad Meadows. A host of running backs are looking to replace Henderson, namely Giovannie Dixon who was the primary backup last year. Outside of that, there are three freshman who should see playing time. Daiveun Curry-Chapman is the only senior in a group of untested wideouts, and looks to be more of a target this year. Oh, and then there is Walter Payton Award candidate Michael Herrick, returning to quarterback a team on which he was 11th in the FCS in passing efficiency last year. The defense returns a lot of talent, including senior safety Matt Estrada, and LB Cody Dowd returns after missing 2009 with an injury. NAU is rightfully ranked, and open against a Western New Mexico squad that went 2-9 in the RMAC (DII) last year; this will be the opening game for them as well. This one is never close, NAU gets a good look at every skill player they could possibly want to, and NAU cruises at home against an over-matched DII opponent. If the Mustangs are able to score on the veteran, touted NAU defense, things may not be as solid on that side of the ball as NAU would hope.

Final Score: 3 – 55

#14 Eastern Washington @ Nevada

The Eagles are also dealing with the loss of some offensive firepower from a season ago. Matt Nichols had a stint in the NFL, and was one of the most profilic passers the Sky has seen this decade. His main target Tony Davis has also extinguished his eligibility. To fill the void left by Nichols, Eastern went out and grabbed themselves a bona-fide transfer from SMU, Bo Levi Mitchell, who started for two and a half seasons for the FBS Mustangs, before losing his job after being sidelined with an injury. Mitchell is a pure gunslinger, and interceptions do not bother him (he threw 23 as a freshman). Running back Taiwan Jones may be the most explosive player currently in the Big Sky, and possibly all of FCS football, and looks to continue his impressive run after he burst onto the scene last year. Can he go a whole season and stay healthy? EWU has a tough task in Nevada, a very prolific offensive team that only lost 1 conference game in the now defunct WAC last year. Colin Kaepernick is the toughest QB/threat the Eagles will face all season, as he is just as much, if not a bigger threat running the ball than he is passing. Eagles fans think they have a shot at this one, but this isn’t your average Nevada squad. They look to be nationally ranked this year, and to win the WAC outright. They were the #2 offensive in all of FBS last year, and return just about every key player. This one may stay close, but Nevada is too much for the Eagles.

Final Score: 24 – 42

Unfortunately, I have run out of time tonight. I will finish the rest of the previews by Friday.

Here We Go Again…

catbob — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 05:19:08 +0000

Howdy! This blog has remained silent for too long, and I am as much to blame as anyone. But this year is going to be different. It’s game week for every school in the Big Sky, and darnit, I’m excited as… as… well a person who has a very good reason to be very exited. I plan to do a weekly matchup and prediction blog on Wednesday’s, as well as a recap of the week’s events every Sunday, with my own ingenious insight added for good measure.

So to kick this party off, let’s talk about the one thing, the word of the year in the Big Sky: uncertainty.

Smith was 1st team all-conference all 4 years

The league lost some amazing talent this last year: two of the elite running backs in the Sky and all of FCS in Alex Henderson & Trevyn Smith. An accurate passer who decimated the Sky for four years, Matt Nichols. Gone are 5 of the top 6 receivers in terms of yards per game in the Sky, including Marc Mariani, Tim Toone & Tony Davis. Hell, even one of the best tights ends this decade in the Big Sky is now departed in Nathan Overbay.

It doesn’t end with players though, as there were a couple coaching changes in this past offseason. Bobby Hauck, after leading his Grizzlies to a national championship appearance, left to take the reigns at FBS UNLV. The Jerry Glanville experiment in Portland ended with a dismal 9-24 record in 3 seasons. Robin Pflugrad takes the reigns from Hauck after serving as wide receivers coach for UM last year, and Nigel Burton takes over for Glanville as he hopes to revamp the PSU offense (and uniforms, apparently).

So what, every year there are players graduating, and coaching carousels. So why male models? Well there is also this whole FBS conference re-alignment that is shaking up the college football landscape as we know it. Heard of it? Well the word around the… internet… is that the WAC, which is in a serious crisis right now, has possibly set its’ sights on a few Big Sky schools, namely UM, PSU, Sac & a distant MSU. Everyone seems to love talking about how their team would compete, what they would need for a move up, etc etc. But if even just two teams leave the Sky, it creates a gap in scheduling for the remaining members and the future of the conference would be in jeopardy, and would likely go shopping for another west team or two, and there isn’t a lot of options out this way (Southern Utah anyone). But enough of that, that is a topic worthy of a full-fledged post in the near future. In the meantime, you can read an article by Mark Vinson of the Helena Independent Record if you need a move up discussion fix like STAT.

Sherritt lead the league with 170 total tackles in '09

But just as there is uncertainty, there is clarity. True, some of the great offensive weapons have graduated and moved on to bigger and better things. But defensively, the Sky is brimming with stars returning for another crack at opposing offenses. Aside from a few standouts now in the NFL in some capacity (Dane Fletcher, Schann Shillinger (sorry if I missed anyone)), much of the defensive specialists are back, including 3 Buck Buchanon award nominees: J.C. Sherritt, Trumaine Johnson, & Christian Clark. Returning a solid group of defenders will certainly help ease the replacement of some of the offensive firepower.

It should be a very interesting year in the Big Sky, and many of these pressing questions will be answered in just a few short weeks. Until then, nobody is certain.

I also apologize for the formatting, it is being very stubborn.

Montana wins the Big Sky Tournament

chris — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 06:44:45 +0000

Montana came back from a 40-20 deficit at the half to beat Weber State 66-65 in the Big Sky Conference Tournament. Anthony Johnson scored a Tournament record 42 points, 34 of which came in the second half. This was probably one of the most exciting games I have watched in a long time, reminds me of the Montana vs South Dakota State football game last fall. Good luck to Weber State in the NIT and to Montana in the NCAA Tournament! Make us proud boys!

Wildcats could pile up awards tomorrow

Matthew Gerrish — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 04:26:52 +0000

OGDEN – The Big Sky Conference will release its All-Big Sky mens basketball selections tomorrow and if history has taught us anything, Weber State has a good chance at piling up the accolades.
Ever since the Big Sky cut it’s first-team selections down to only six players during the 2006-07 season, the Big Sky regular season winner has notched two first-teamers in every season.
Last season, the Wildcats (15-1 Big Sky, 21-10 Overall) saw senior guard Kellen McCoy and freshman guard Damian Lillard each get a first-team nod. The Wildcats posted no second-teamers, and senior forward Daviin Davis was named to the third-team.
OK, enough with the history lesson.
Lillard — the Big Sky scoring leader at 19.7 points per game — is a shoe-in for first-team this season and is the front-runner for the league MVP award. However, if WSU is to get a second first-teamer, that is debatable.
Four of the other first team selections are all locks (Montana senior Anthony Johnson, Portland State senior Dominic Waters, Northern Colorado senior Devon Beitzel and Northern Arizona junior Cameron Jones) but the sixth and final spot could go to any number of Big Sky players, with two WSU studs among them.
WSU senior center Steve Panos has displayed flashes of dominance all season long, but his lack of consistency in the paint may force him down to a second-team selection. Junior transfer Franklin Session has been a stat machine, ranking in the top 10 of five different categories. For further details on his stats make sure you check out Jasen Asay’s column in tomorrow’s Standard-Examiner.
Both have shots at first-team, but WSU coach Randy Rahe has a tendency to make pushes for his seniors in All-Big Sky ballots, so Panos is more likely to get the nod, if in-fact a WSU player gets that final spot.
However, there are strong cases for other players, such as UNC’s Will Figures and Idaho State’s Amorrow Morgan, so it will be interesting to see how it all plays out.
Outside of Lillard, Panos and Session, WSU could even see senior guard Nick Hansen steal a third-team nod, based of his hot shooting in the season’s final few weeks.
As far as awards go, once again, WSU is in line for another MVP in Lillard, who should mark the third Wildcat to win the award in the past four seasons, joining McCoy and 2006-07 winner David Patten.
Session and Idaho State junior Broderick Gilchrest both have legitimate cases for Newcomer of the Year, but based off the Bengals’ position in the standings, I can see this tipping in Session’s favor.
While there have been solid defensive efforts from several Wildcats this season, I don’t see anyone from WSU competing in the thick Defensive Player of the Year field. Northern Colorado’s Yahosh Bonner has been shut-down on some of the league’s best players this season (including Lillard) and has a great shot at winning. Portland State’s Jamie Jones and Montana’s Brian Qvale, who have been formidable defensive foes, also have outside shots at winning. No Wildcats though.
WSU hasn’t seen considerable playing time from it’s freshmen this season, and have virtually no shot at Freshman of the Year as well. Eastern Washington’s Glen Dean is the obvious choice there anyway.
For my full All-Big Sky Team and awards predictions, click the link below.

http://www.bigskyfans.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=547

Northern Arizona 42 Southern Utah 39

RWPatten — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 14:13:37 +0000

Northern Arizona 42 Southern Utah 39

Lumberjacks hold off Thunderbirds

The NAU Lumberjacks jumped out to a 35-17 lead after 3 quarters, then had to hold off a furious rally by Southern Utah in the 4th quarter, prevailing over the Thunderbirds 42-39.

Alex Henderson led the way for the Jacks, with 32 carries for 168 yards and 2 TDs. He also recovered his own fumble in the end zone for a 3rd TD. Micheal Herrick completed 15 of 21 passes for 306 yards and a TD. 4 of those were complete to Conrad Meadows for 121 yards. Austin Shanks and Giovannie Dixon added TD Runs. NAU has 554 yards of total offense.

The Thunderbirds gashed the NAU defense for 540 yards of total offense, led by 425 yards passing by Cade Cooper. Cooper completed 33 of 48 for 4 TDs and no INTs. Austin Minifee had 89 yards rushing and 85 receiving, including 3TDs receiving. Tysson Poots had 6 catches for 109 yards and a TD.

The Lumberjacks evened their record at 1-1, while Southern Utah dropped to 1-2. The Lumberjacks will be in action Saturday September 26, hosting the Montana Grizzles.

Scoreboard
Final 1 2 3 4 T
Southern Utah (1-2) 7 7 3 22 39
Northern Arizona (1-1) « 14 14 7 7 42

Scoring Summary
NAZ Daiveun Curry-Chapman 5 yd pass from Michael Herrick (SHAUN FITZPATRICK 2pt run)
NAZ Alex Henderson 0 yd run (failed 2pt rush)
SUT Austin Minefee 17 yd pass from Cade Cooper (Ryan Griffith kick)
NAZ Austin Shanks 35 yd run (Matt Myers kick)
NAZ Alex Henderson 3 yd run (Matt Myers kick)
SUT Tysson Poots 25 yd pass from Cade Cooper (Ryan Griffith kick)
NAZ Alex Henderson 57 yd run (Matt Myers kick)
SUT Ryan Griffith 17 yd FG
SUT Major Gray 1 yd run (Ryan Griffith kick)
NAZ Giovannie Dixon 30 yd run (Matt Myers kick)
SUT Austin Minefee 15 yd pass from Cade Cooper (Fesi Sitake 2pt pass from Cade Cooper)
SUT Austin Minefee 40 yd pass from Cade Cooper (Ryan Griffith kick)

Team Stats
SUT NAZ
First Downs 29 23
Third Down Efficiency 8-16 5-10
Fourth Down Efficiency 2-2 1-2
Plays-Net Yards 81-540 61-554
Rushes-Yds 32-109 40-248
Passing Yds 431 306
Kick Return Yds 74 82
Punt Return Yds 15 4
Passes 34-49-0 15-21-0
Punts 4-167 3-154
Fumbles-Lost 3-1 4-1
Penalties-Yds 10-105 7-118
Time of Poss. 34:10 25:50

Individual Stats
RUSHING
SUT: Austin Minefee 19-89, Trevor Ward 1-14, Ammon Olsen 1-12, Major Gray 3-2, Cade Cooper 8–8
NAZ: Alex Henderson 32-168, Giovannie Dixon 7-45, Austin Shanks 1-35
PASSING
SUT: Cade Cooper 33-48-425-0, Ammon Olsen 1-1-6-0
NAZ: Michael Herrick 15-21-306-0
RECEIVING
SUT: Fesi Sitake 10-80, Tysson Poots 6-109, Austin Minefee 5-83, Mitch Jessop 4-74, Jared Ursua 4-48, Karl Williams 3-29, Deckar Alexander 1-5, Abbel Aiono 1-3
NAZ: Conrad Meadows 4-121, Alex Henderson 3-64, Daiveun Curry-Chapman 3-47, Ed Berry 2-33, Ryan Rauschert 2-19, Giovannie Dixon 1-22

Southern Utah @ Northern Arizona Preview

RWPatten — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 13:00:05 +0000

Southern Utah @ Northern Arizona
6:05pm ET Saturday September 19, 2009

The Lumberjacks come into Saturday’s showdown with the visiting Thunderbirds off of a 34-17 loss at Arizona. The Jacks put up a good fight, being as close as 21-10 with the ball deep inside Wildcats territory. NAU will look to kick off the 2009 home season on a positive note.

The Thunderbirds are coming off of a 35-19 loss at San Diego State this past Saturday. They stand at 1-1 after starting the season off with a 36-7 victory over Dixie State.

Look for the Lumberjacks offense, under the direction of Micheal Herrick to attack the SUU defense through the air . San diego State had a great deal of seuccess through the air. Having success through the air will allow Alex Henderson to find some gaps in the Thunderbird defense.

Another key factor will be if the Lumberjack defense can force Southern Utah QB Cade Cooper into forcing throws and throwing interceptions. In the win for the Thunderbirds: 0 turnovers; the loss: 3 turnovers.

Prediction: The NAU defense force the Thuderbirds to turn the ball over numerous times, and Herrick has a big day. NAU 31 SUU 20

Arizona 34 Northern Arizona 17

RWPatten — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 16:42:02 +0000

NAU Puts Up Fight, Bows to Cats

The Northern Arizona Lumberjacks gave the Arizona Wildcats all they wanted for a half, but the Wildcats proved to be too much, pulling away late for a 34-17 victory at home. The Lumberjacks trailed only 14-10 in the 2nd quarter, but Arizona outscored NAU 20-7 the rest of the way.

The Jacks had no answer for Arizona running back Nic Grigsby. Grigsby carried the ball 15 times for 207 yards and 2 TDs, with a long run of 94 yards in the 3rd quarter.

Micheal Herrick made the start at quarterback for the Lumberjacks, completing 20 of 30 passes for 2 TDs and 2 INT.

Grigsby led off the scoring with a 25 yard TD jaunt in the 1st quarter. After a 43 yard field goal by NAU kicker Matt Myers, Grigsby took it in from 30 yards out to give the Cats a 14-3 lead. The Lumberjacks then went on a 14 play, 79 yards scoring drive to cut the Wildcat lead to 14-10, early in the 2nd quarter. Micheal Herrick hit Ed Berry with a 4 yard TD pass to finish the drive.

The 2nd quarter was uneventful, until Matt Scott hit Terrell Turner with a 2 yard TD pass with 30 seconds to go before the half to give the Cats a 21-10 halftime advantage.

NAU’s last opportunity to get back in the game was foiled by a Terrell Wade INT near the Arizona goal line, stopping a Lumberjack scoring drive. Nic Grigsby went 94 yards on the next play to the NAU 1. Keola Antolin plunged in on the next play and the Cats took a 27-10 lead.

Arizona backup QB Nick Foles threw a TD pass early in the 4th quarter to make the score 34-10. Herrick and Berry teamed up again for a 19 yard TD completion to close out the scoring.

The Lumberjacks host Southern Utah on Saturday.

SCOREBOARD
Final    1    2    3    4    T
Northern Arizona (0-1)    3    7    0    7    17
Arizona (2-0) «    14    7    6    7    34

SCORING SUMMARY
AZ    Nic Grigsby 25 yd run (Alex Zendejas kick)
NAZ    Matt Myers 43 yd FG
AZ    Nic Grigsby 30 yd run (Alex Zendejas kick)
NAZ    Ed Berry 4 yd pass from Michael Herrick (Matt Myers kick)
AZ    Terrell Turner 2 yd pass from Matt Scott (Alex Zendejas kick)
AZ    Keola Antolin 1 yd run (missed kick)
AZ    Juron Criner 5 yd pass from Nick Foles (Alex Zendejas kick)
NAZ    Ed Berry 19 yd pass from Michael Herrick (Matt Myers kick)

Team Stats
NAZ    AZ
First Downs    13    27
Third Down Efficiency    4-9    8-13
Fourth Down Efficiency    0-0    3-4
Plays-Net Yards    49-226    75-559
Rushes-Yds    19-67    47-365
Passing Yds    159    194
Kick Return Yds    88    84
Punt Return Yds    0    0
Passes    20-30-2    20-28-1
Punts    4-169    0-0
Fumbles-Lost    1-0    1-1
Penalties-Yds    1-5    5-35
Time of Poss.    24:8    35:52

Individual Stats
RUSHING
NAZ: Alex Henderson 14-56, Giovannie Dixon 2-13, Austin Shanks 1-6, Team 1–1, Michael Herrick 1–7
AZ: Nic Grigsby 15-207, Keola Antolin 9-60, Matt Scott 7-48, Greg Nwoko 9-32, Nick Booth 3-17, Terrell Turner 2-6, Nick Foles 1–2, Delashaun Dean 1–3
PASSING
NAZ: Michael Herrick 20-30-159-2
AZ: Matt Scott 14-20-150-1, Nick Foles 6-8-44-0
RECEIVING
NAZ: Ed Berry 7-71, Daiveun Curry-Chapman 4-34, Conrad Meadows 4-18, Alex Henderson 2-16, Mike Czyz 1-12, Austin Shanks 1-7, Curt Sweeney 1-1
AZ: Terrell Turner 5-46, David Douglas 5-43, Delashaun Dean 2-26, A.J. Simmons 2-21, David Roberts 2-17, William Wright 1-21, Nic Grigsby 1-12, Juron Criner 1-5, Chris Gronkowski 1-3

NAU-Arizona Preview

RWPatten — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 14:34:50 +0000

Northern Arizona @ Arizona Preview

10:00pm ET Saturday September 12, 2009

The Arizona Wildcats are coming off of a season opening victory over the Central Michigan Chippewas, 19-6. New Wildcat quarterback Matt Scott completed 19 out of 30 passes for 202 yards and an interception. Nic Grigsby led the Wildcat rushing attack with 23 carries for 118 yards and a touchdown. Scott added 83 yards on 9 carries. Alex Zendejas jr. added a career high 4 field goals. The Wildcats owned a time of possession advantage of 38 minutes to 22 minutes, thanks to a balanced offensive output of 246 yards on the ground and 202 yards through the air.

The Wildcat defense was spectacular, holding a potent Central Michigan offense to under 300 yards of total offense. Central Michigan QB Dan LeFevour never got going against the Wildcat defense, throwing for only 108 yards and an INT.

This is a tough opener for the Lumberjacks. Starting the season with a new QB, new RB and rebuilding the defense is tough enough, but beginning the season with an FBS opponent on the rise makes an already tough task even tougher. Look for the Lumberjacks to put up a fight, but the Cats to be too much.

Score Prediction: Arizona 41 NAU 7

UNC @ Kansas Recap

uncbears8228 — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 17:28:59 +0000

Todd Reesing and the #25 Kansas Jayhawks ran all over the Bears yesterday in Lawrence to a 49-3 victory. Reesing went 13-20 and 208 passing and 2 touchdowns and added another 79 yards and 2 touchdowns running as well. The Jayhawks had a total of 328 rushing yards against the Bears defense with senior Jake Sharp leading the way with 123 yards on 21 carries. Northern Colorado did play well in the first and third quarter trailing only 7-0 after one and not allowing Kansas to score in the third. Bryan Waggener played well for the Bears going 19-30 for 165 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. The run game had only 73 yards though for the game, but Andre Harris looked pretty good when he was running the ball. Penalties hurt the Bears in the redzone as the Bears went 1-2 with Michael York making a 29 yard field goal and missing a 25 yarder. The defense will have to improve on the run defense as San Diego comes to Greeley next week to take on the Bears in their home opener. San Diego beat Azusa Pacific 24-12 to open the season yesterday

Scoring Summary

FIRST QUARTER				UNCO	KU
	TD	10:10	Todd Reesing 1 Yd Run (Jacob Branstetter Kick)	0	7
SECOND QUARTER				UNCO	KU
	TD	13:42	Todd Reesing 13 Yd Run (Jacob Branstetter Kick)	0	14
	TD	10:03	Jake Sharp 10 Yd Pass From Todd Reesing (Jacob Branstetter Kick)	0	21
	TD	03:01	Tertavian Ingram 16 Yd Pass From Todd Reesing (Jacob Branstetter Kick)	0	28
THIRD QUARTER				UNCO	KU
	FG	12:27	Michael York 29 Yd	3	28
FOURTH QUARTER				UNCO	KU
	TD	14:17	Jake Sharp 1 Yd Run (Jacob Branstetter Kick)	3	35
	TD	04:38	Toben Opurum 10 Yd Run (Jacob Branstetter Kick)	3	42
	TD	00:33	Toben Opurum 26 Yd Run (Jacob Branstetter Kick)	3	49

Northern Arizona 2009 Football Preview

RWPatten — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 20:46:49 +0000

Northern Arizona 2009 Football Preview

2008 Record: 6-5, 4-4 Big Sky

Postseason: None

Head Coach: Jerome Souers

Returning Starters: 14 (7 Offense, 7 Defense)

Preseason Ranking: #21 by the Sporting News

Schedule

Sep 12, 2009 at Arizona Tucson, Ariz. All Day

Sep 19, 2009 Southern Utah Flagstaff, Ariz. 3:05 PM

Sep 26, 2009 Montana* Flagstaff, Ariz. 3:05 PM

Oct 03, 2009 Northern Colorado* (Family Weekend) Flagstaff, Ariz. 3:05 PM

Oct 10, 2009 at Montana State* Bozeman, Mont. 12:35 PM

Oct 17, 2009 at Portland State *Portland, Ore. 1:05 PM

Oct 24, 2009 Idaho State* (Homecoming) Flagstaff, Ariz. 3:05 PM

Oct 31, 2009 at Sacramento State Sacramento, Calif. 2:00 PM

Nov 07, 2009 at Ole Miss Oxford, Miss. All Day

Nov 14, 2009 at Weber State Ogden, Utah 12:05 PM

Nov 21, 2009 Eastern Washington* Flagstaff, Ariz. 3:05 PM

* Big Sky Conference

OFFENSE

NAU must replace multiple skill position performers. Junior Micheal Herrick (6’1″ 195lbs) takes over the quarterback responsibilities for NAU. He appeared in 10 games last year for the Lumberjacks, completing over 65% of his passes for 1043 yards, 3 TDs and 6 INTs. His best performance last year was in the season finale vs Eastern Washington, throwing for 283 yards. At running back, senior Alex Henderson (5’10″ 205lbs) takes over after an injury plagued 2008 season. He ran for over 400 yards at a 5.9 yards per carry clip, but only appeared in 6 games due to injury. The Lumberjacks return their top 3 receivers from 2008 in senior Ed Berry (5’9″ 185lbs), senior Curt Sweeney (5’11” 179lbs) and senior Conrad Meadows (5’9” 180lbs). The 3 combined for 128 catches, 1722 yards and 6 TDs.

DEFENSE

The Lumberjacks boasted one of the best defenses in the NCAA FCS in 2008, ranking in the top 10 in many defensive categories. The leader of the 2009 defensive unit will be preseason Big Sky All Conference pick, LB Cody Dowd (Sr. 6’3″ 250lbs). Dowd is the only Lumberjack to be picked preseason All Big Sky. Sr. DE Micheal Battisti (6’3″ 235lbs) will anchor the NAU defensive front. Battisti had 6 QB sacks last year and was named to the Big Sky Honorable Mention team in 2008.

Outlook

The Lumberjacks are coming off of their 3rd consecutive 6-5 season in 2008, looking to challenge Montana and Weber State for supremacy in the Big Sky Conference. Facing the Lumberjacks are many different challenges in the 2009 season.

The schedule provides both challenges and opportunities for NAU. The Lumberjacks face two FBS (formerly Division I-A) opponents in the Arizona Wildcats in the season opener, and the Ole Miss Rebels on November 7. Both teams won 8 or more games, as well as their bowl games. The Lumberjacks must also travel to Ogden, Utah to face Big Sky power Weber State, as well as Bozeman, Montana to challenge Montana State. NAU does get to host Big Sky preseason favorite Montana on September 26 and Eastern Washington on November 21. The other home games for NAU are: September 19 against Southern Utah; October 3 against the Northern Colorado Bears; October 24 against the Idaho State Bengals for homecoming. The other road games for the Lumberjacks are: October 17 at Portland State; October 31 at Sacramento State.

Season Prediction:

Overall Record: 7-4

Conference Record: 6-2 3rd Place