(Editor’s note: Big Sky Conference release)
OGDEN, Utah — The Big Sky climbs in both the STATS FCS and American Football Coaches (AFCA) Top 25 national polls and adds a fourth team.
After capturing the 4-5-6 spots in the STATS FCS Poll the past two weeks, the Big Sky scooted up to the 3-4-5 spots after a solid week of wins. Weber State leads the way at No. 3, while UC Davis jumped two spots to No. 4, and Eastern Washington was slotted fifth. All three teams were listed in the FCS Committee’s Top 10 reveal last week. UC Davis (3rd), Weber State (4th) and Eastern Washington (9th).
In the AFCA Coaches’ poll, the Eagles moved up one spot to No. 3 – their highest ranking six Week 6. The Eagles scored 28 points in the second half versus Northern Colorado, as it went on to capture a 48-13 road win. Eastern Washington has now been ranked in the top 10 for 10 consecutive weeks. The Eagles will host fellow Top 10 conference foe UC Davis on Saturday.
Weber State picked up its fourth straight win, after it topped Sacramento State, 26-14. The Wildcats moved up to No. 4 in the AFCA Coaches’ poll – its highest ranking all season. Weber State has its final two games of the regular season on the road at rivals Southern Utah and Idaho State.
The Aggies are two wins away from an undefeated conference season and one win away from the league title. UC Davis defeated Northern Arizona at home, 42-20, to improve to 8-1 overall and 6-0 in conference play. The Aggies improved from No. 9 to No. 7 in the AFCA Coaches’ poll. It’s the second straight week and first time in school history that UC Davis has ever ranked in the top 10 in both national polls two weeks in a row. UC Davis plays at Eastern Washington this weekend.
For the first time since 2015, the Idaho State Bengals are ranked in the FCS Top 25 polls. The Bengals were voted No. 24 in the FCS STATS Poll and No. 25 in the AFCA Coaches’ Poll. Idaho State is undefeated at home this season, as it sports a 6-3 overall record and a 5-1 league mark. The Bengals are coming off a 48-45 win at Portland State and will play at Cal Poly this weekend.
This is the fourth consecutive week the Big Sky has three teams in the top 10 poll. Prior to this season, the Big Sky last had three teams in the top tier in Week 1 of the 2015 season – Eastern Washington (7th), Montana (8th) and Montana State (9th) in the Coaches’ Poll.
Other Big Sky teams receiving votes were Montana State and Montana.
The STATS FCS poll is below. To view the AFCA coaches poll, please click here.
| STATS FCS Poll | |||
| Rankings as of 11/5/2018 | |||
| Rank | School | Votes | Prev |
| 1 | NORTH DAKOTA STATE (9-0) | 3950 (158) | 1 |
| 2 | KENNESAW STATE (8-1) | 3739 | 2 |
| 3 | WEBER STATE (7-2) | 3539 | 4 |
| 4 | UC DAVIS (8-1) | 3364 | 6 |
| 5 | EASTERN WASHINGTON (7-2) | 3326 | 5 |
| 6 | SOUTH DAKOTA STATE (6-2) | 3193 | 7 |
| 7 | ELON (6-2) | 2928 | 8 |
| 8 | JACKSONVILLE STATE (7-2) | 2591 | 10 |
| 9 | JAMES MADISON (6-3) | 2577 | 3 |
| 10 | COLGATE (8-0) | 2520 | 12 |
| 11 | DELAWARE (7-2) | 2383 | 13 |
| 12 | STONY BROOK (6-3) | 1910 | 16 |
| 13 | PRINCETON (8-0) | 1826 | 18 |
| 14 | NORTH CAROLINA A&T (7-2) | 1799 | 17 |
| 15 | WOFFORD (6-3) | 1756 | 9 |
| 16 | MAINE (6-3) | 1371 | 23 |
| 17 | NICHOLLS (6-3) | 1301 | 20 |
| 18 | MCNEESE (6-3) | 1221 | 11 |
| 19 | ETSU (8-2) | 1166 | 22 |
| 20 | TOWSON (6-3) | 1024 | 15 |
| 21 | SOUTHEAST MISSOURI STATE (7-2) | 871 | 25 |
| 22 | UNI (5-4) | 653 | NR |
| 23 | ILLINOIS STATE (5-4) | 584 | 14 |
| 24 | IDAHO STATE (6-3) | 449 | NR |
| 25 | DARTMOUTH (7-1) | 240 | 24 |
