It's not just UM...
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Big Sky Conference home teams won three of five league games Saturday but home-field superiority has not been in evidence at least past the halfway pole of the circuit season.
While the Grizzlies fell just a taste in the latest Sports Network poll they still are solidly in the playoff race even after falling to a league title also-ran.
You remember when Big Sky Conference home teams were solid favorites to hold serve and in some venues would be up to seven-point favorites on the basis alone of being the home team?
That though was in the days of nine teams yet now with 13 league football members, visiting teams are winning at about the same rate as their home counterparts.
In 29 games thus far, home teams have only a 15-14 advantage.
Now granted any number can be skewed by situation. In other words which teams are particularly tougher at home and which opponent has thus far visited.
Of particular note of example is Idaho State which now has lost 43 consecutive road games and take for example this week in Greeley where the Bears entertain defending-champ Montana State and in Pocatello where co-league leader Eastern Washington visits Idaho State.
There was no movement in the top six teams this week with two-time defending champion North Dakota State the unanimous leader with Eastern Washington standing third behind Eastern Illinois and Montana State standing firmly in the five hole.
Once-beaten Towson jumped Sam Houston State into the seven position with Fordham and Maine rounding out the top ten.
The Grizzlies slipped to 12th while Northern Arizona, even in beating formerly ranked Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo, made just a two-spot jump to 14th.
I have talked before about the challenge of finding about the last five spots in the poll and with 24 teams to be selected to the post season, the NCAA needs to get ready to struggle likewise.
Villanova even managed to stay on the list in 20th but just with a 4-4 mark but not to insult anybody here is the bottom three - Tennessee State (7-1), Charleston Southern (6-2) and Southeast Louisiana (6-2).
Mark my words this will be a post-season field with several teams from obscure former lower division leagues making their inaugural playoff appearance. I'll let you decide whether or not that is good for FCS football.
