The 2018 Preseason Big Sky Football Media Poll is indicative of just how crazy this conference is going to be in 2018. Eight, yes eight, different teams received first-place votes. The preseason polls, all-conference team, offensive and defensive player of the year and interviews with head coaches and players highlighted the Big Sky Media Days held July 15-16 in Spokane, Washington.
It was the first look at the 2018 season, one in which the Big Sky is expected to return to a national power it's been known for. More than half of the conference has an argument to be in the discussion as a playoff team. North Dakota is on its way out as Idaho returns from the FBS. And the conference is home to several offensive players in the running for the Walter Payton Award.
There's a lot to digest, but we'll break down some of the highlights from the media day events.
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Preseason All-Conference Team
Coming off a trip to the quarterfinals, many expected Weber State to take a step down this season after losing a big and talented senior class. But people tend to forget about the amount of talent the Wildcats are bringing back. The preseason all-conference team may serve as a reminder as Weber had the most players listed with six.
Offense
QB – Gage Gubrud, Sr., Eastern Washington
RB – James Madison, Sr., Idaho State
RB – Antoine Custer, Jr., Eastern Washington
WR – Keelan Doss, Sr., UC Davis
WR – Emmanuel Butler, Sr., Northern Arizona
WR – Andre Lindsey, Sr., Sacramento State
WR – Alex Wesley, Sr., Northern Colorado
FB – Joe Protheroe, Sr., Cal Poly
TE – Charlie Taumoepeau, Jr., Portland State
TE – Wes Preece, Jr., UC Davis
OT – Iosua Opeta, Sr., Weber State
OT – Marquez Tucker, Sr., Southern Utah
OG – Noah Johnson, Jr., Idaho
OG – PJ Nu’usa, Jr., Southern Utah
C – Zach Larsen, Jr., Southern Utah
PK – Trey Tuttle, So., Weber State
RS – Rashid Shaheed, So., Weber State
Defense
DE – George Obinna, Sr., Sacramento State
DE – Jonah Williams Jr., Weber State
DT – Jay-Tee Tiuli, Sr., Eastern Washington
DT – Tucker Yates, Sr., Montana State
OLB – Josh Buss, Sr., Montana
OLB – Kaden Ellis, Sr., Idaho
ILB – LeGrand Toia, Sr., Weber State
ILB – Chinedu Ahanonu, Sr., Southern Utah
CB – Khalil Dorsey, Jr., Northern Arizona
CB – Jalen Russell, So., Southern Utah
S – Wes Sutton, Sr., Northern Arizona
S – Mister Harriel, Sr., Sacramento State
P – Cade Coffey, So., Idaho
ST – Brady May, Sr., Weber State
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Preseason Players of the Year
Offense: Keelan Doss, UC Davis WR
Doss is one of the top 2019 NFL Draft prospects coming out of the FCS. He's ranked as the 15th best receiver in college football by NFLDraftScout. Last year, he had 115 catches for 1,499 yards and seven touchdowns.
Defense: Josh Buss, Montana LB
Buss is as solid as they come. Another NFL Draft prospect with the combination of speed and size, Buss may very well be the best linebacker in all of FCS football. In 2017, he totaled 94 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, two interceptions and seven passes defended.
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Preseason Polls
For not even making the playoffs last season, EWU was voted the favorite to win the Big Sky in both preseason polls. It's consistent with national preseason polls that have the Eagles as a Top 10 team. With 16 returning starters, big expectations surround this team.
Coaches Poll
Eastern Washington 134 (6)
Weber State 124 (3)
Northern Arizona 121 (3)
Idaho 101 (1)
Sacramento State 94
Southern Utah 91
Montana 82
Montana State 76
UC Davis 64
Cal Poly 40
Northern Colorado 30
Idaho State 29
Portland State 21
Media Poll
Eastern Washington 651 (27)
Weber State 636 (19)
Northern Arizona 535 (1)
Montana 496 (2)
Idaho 483 (3)
Southern Utah 449 (1)
Sacramento State 415
Montana State 391 (1)
UC Davis 331 (1)
Idaho State 170
Cal Poly 169
Northern Colorado 166
Portland State 103
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The Highlights
Dan Hawkins, UC Davis – "(Keelan Doss is) really a unique individual. He's hard to accurately describe. Everybody looks at his size and speed. He led all of Division I in catches. He's a really, really talented player. He could've went out early or transferred up, but had a real loyalty to UC Davis. Had a real loyalty to the guys in the locker room. Had some unfinished business. It says a lot about his character."
Jerome Souers, Northern Arizona – "We're striving to be there. We want to be a program that's always going to be in it in November. But we haven't been as good in November as we need to be to be a champion. That's the last step we need to take."
Tim Walsh, Cal Poly – "I think every coach and every player that has played on the defensive side of the ball, there's nothing more mentally defeating than seeing the offense get three yards, three yards, four yards, first down. Three yards, three yards, four yards, first down. Then once in awhile play-action over their head and get a touchdown."
Jody Sears, Sacramento State – "A year ago going into the season we were awful statistically. The two things that really stood out that we need to continue to build on is our run game and our run defense."
Bruce Barnum, Portland State – "I had to fix the vibe at Portland State in my locker room and in my coaching staff. So along with that, you have to make some tough decisions and we made those. I love where Portland State is right now. And actually, I love that we're picked at the bottom because right now nobody is expecting anything."
Demario Warren, Southern Utah – "We have to get back to what gets us there. After the season, to be honest I was overwhelmed. It was more of after the recruiting cycle, it was late December and I was saying in bed like, 'oh crap.' That was a lot of work. We went right back to work and put a plan together and now we've been executing that for the last six months and now we're two weeks from camp and getting started all over again."
Earnest Collins Jr., Northern Colorado – "At any program, it all boils down to the young men that you bring into your program and how you lead them. The thing for us coming from Year 1 in 2011 to 2018, the young men have learned how to lead themselves. I don't have to be the general all the time. They are policing themselves and that's what I love about it."
Jeff Choate, Montana State – "We were pretty open and honest with our team. All the way back in May we had conversations with our team. Chris (Murray) got up in front of the team and talked about his situation and what he was going to need to do and what the possible consequences might be. It really wasn't a surprise within the walls. We've been planning for this for awhile."
Rob Phenicie, Idaho State – "The conference is tough. Every week, it doesn't matter who you're playing, it's not an easy game. It's a different perspective from when I was at Montana. At Montana, we were at the top with people shooting at us all the time. Now where we are at Idaho State, we're trying to break into that. We're the hunter and not the hunted."
Jay Hill, Weber State – "It was bittersweet. It was so good to prove to our players and our program that we belong at that level and we can play with the elite teams in this country. I think it was good for our conference, too. Our top teams in this conference can play with anybody. And we proved that with James Madison."
Bobby Hauck, Montana – "Josh (Buss) is a tremendous guy. He's a good teammate, a good leader, a tough guy. He's what you want. The big problem with Josh is we don't know how available he's going to be. He's had some severe health problems. I don't know, even stretching well into the season, how much availability he's going to have. I hope for his sake and our team's sake that we've got him for a good part of the season. But I don't know how fast he's going to be able to come off these injuries."
Paul Petrino, Idaho – "It hasn't changed a lot. It's still all about offense. There's still a bunch of high-powered offenses, good quarterbacks … It starts with the offense and scoring where the Sun Belt was more based on defenses and the d-line. That's probably the biggest difference."
Aaron Best, Eastern Washington – "It's very humbling when you're picked to be the champ. It says a lot of things. But what it doesn't say is where you are in November. I'd certainly rather be picked there than a few other places. It's a testament to this program."
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