Five Big Sky teams soldier on, four rest

By: Amber Kuehn
GameDay Kaimin

Only five of the nine Big Sky Conference teams will take the field today.
Eastern Washington, Montana State, Sacramento State and Weber State all take the weekend off for a welcomed bye week. Of those teams, EWU was the only one to post a win last weekend.
Northern Arizona is the only Big Sky team to hit the road this weekend.
Here's a look at the other games going on today around the conference.

Idaho State hosts Southern Oregon (3:05 p.m.)
The Bengals are the only team that didn't play a game last weekend. They kick off their 2007 season today with a new head coach, John Zamberlin. Zamberlin spent the previous 10 years on the sideline at Central Washington University. In his time there, Zamberlin never lost a game to Southern Oregon.
ISU will take on the Red Raiders from Southern Oregon inside the confines of Holt Arena. It is the first of six home games for the Bengals, the first time ISU has had more home games than road games since 2003.
Zamberlin isn't the only one making his debut this game. It is also the first game for redshirt freshman quarterback Russel Hill.
The Raiders have already played two games this season, losing one and winning the other - a 45-42 quadruple overtime thriller over Eastern Oregon. In 2006, Southern Oregon was 3-8. Head coach Steve Helminicek has never faced ISU. In fact, this is the first time ever the two teams will meet on the gridiron.
Idaho State has won 18 straight against lower-division opponents since 1990, and they shouldn't have any trouble winning this one.

Portland State hosts UC Davis (6:05 p.m.)
UC Davis (a member of the Great West Athletic Conference) comes to PGE Park off a disappointing loss, falling 28-21 to Division II Western Washington last weekend. But the Vikings are coming off of their own disappointing loss - or losses. Not only did they suffer a season-opening loss to McNeese State, they also lost two key players to serious injuries in that game. Fullback Bobby McClintock (ACL) and quarterback Tygue Howland (metatarsal) are now out for the season. Senior Brian White will replace Howland as starting quarterback. He threw for 150 yards on 11-of-18 passing last weekend.
Portland State has won six straight games against UC Davis, and five straight home openers. UC Davis has lost three straight road games, and is in only its third season in Division I football. The Aggies have had 37 consecutive winning seasons, including a 6-5 record last year.
The Vikings have never scored fewer than 32 points against UC Davis in PGE Park.
Portland State and new head coach Jerry Glanville are looking to bounce back after last weekend's defeat, and this seems like the perfect opportunity to do so victoriously.

Northern Arizona at Arizona (7:05 p.m.)
Last weekend's game against Western New Mexico proved easy for the Lumberjacks. That's a good thing, considering this game against PAC-10 Arizona will be one of the most difficult match-ups this season. But perhaps an even tougher game looms in the distance. In just a week, NAU will face top-seeded Appalachian State, whose upset over Michigan is still resounding in the sporting world. But first, Northern Arizona has to set its sights on the team in Tucson - the Wildcats.
Arizona is coming off an opening-weekend 20-7 loss to Brigham Young University, where the Wildcats only managed to run 64 plays. They likely have a better chance at winning this week, but don't count out NAU just yet. The Lumberjacks could be the next Mountaineers, and perhaps Arizona is their Michigan. Upset? Probably not. But no one expected last weekend's knock-off either.

Northern Colorado hosts Chadron State (1:05 p.m.)
After getting stomped on by Division I Hawaii, the Bears now face a lower-division opponent: Chadron State. But don't let the Division II label fool you. Many of the same players return from last year's Chadron State team that upset Montana State.
The Eagles are coming off a 55-14 triumph over Wayne State, in which the offense scored on seven of 10 possessions. It marks the most points Chadron State has scored in a game since 2002.
The Bears and Eagles haven't faced each other in 44 years. To be honest with you, I don't know who to take in this game - it really could go either way.