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Shocking Reality!
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Colter_Nuanez56
Well-known member
The Big Sky Conference will announce the preseason All-Big Sky football team this week at the Big Sky Kickoff in Spokane. Here is how Brooks & Colter Nuanez of Skyline Sports voted:
SKYLINE SPORTS preseason All-Big Sky football selections
https://skylinesportsmt.com/skyline-sports-preseason-all-big-sky-football-selections
A reminder that these are votes, not the actual selections, which will be released tomorrow. I think Josh Buss will be on the official list. Keenan Curran we think should be but it will not surprise me if Mitch Gueller from Idaho State (first-team all-league last season), Andre Lindsey from Sac State (second-team all-league last season) or Nsimba Webster from Eastern Washington (third-team All-Big Sky last season) get the nod because of past accomplishments.
As the article above states, there were a collection of no-brainers but also a huge amount of question marks and debates for choosing the list.
Here are the Griz we considered and why they ultimate did or did not get earn our vote.
QB — thought about Dalton Sneed for a brief moment because I was impressed watching him during spring drills but no one will pick an unproven commodity over a two-time Walter Payton finalist in Gage Gubrud of Eastern Washington, a two-time All-American in Case Cookus from Northern Arizona or Jake Maier, the third-team All-Big Sky QB last year at UC Davis after ranking third in the country in passing yards per game.
Side note: We are heading over to the Big Sky Kickoff in Spokane today so we will have a ton of Big Sky coverage leading up to fall camp. One interesting story line league wide is that those three premier quarterbacks return as does Kevin Thompson, a former UNLV transfer who lit it up at Sac State before getting hurt last season. Sac State has not gotten any credit for their 7-4 season last year despite leading the league in scoring offense and sacks but a lot of that is because the Hornets did not play the Montana schools. On the QB front, interesting that those four teams have established starters but there will be quarterback battles at Weber State, Southern Utah, Montana, Montana State and Idaho, likely the other Big Sky playoff contenders outside of EWU and NAU in the league this year.
RB — Considered Jeremy Calhoun pretty hard but he sat out during the spring so James Madison, the leading returning rusher in the league from Idaho State, and Jay Green, the top touchdown scorer in the Big Sky from Southern Utah got the nod. I do think with a more conventional offensive system, both Calhoun (if healthy) and Alijah Lee have a chance to make a big jump in terms of production this fall.
OG — Considered Angel Villanueva a bit but he has no all-conference accolades on his resume yet so couldn't vote him above P.J. Nu'usa from Southern Utah (2nd team all-conference last season) or Noah Johnson from Idaho, a second-team All-Sun Belt pick last fall.
OT and C — As everyone knows, the rest of Montana's offensive line has not started a game so not much consideration for them when voting for the other offensive line positions.
TE — Montana has not had a tight end for three years, so no one to justifiably vote for. I think the reintroduction of tight ends under Bobby Hauck will be huge for Montana. The state of Montana produces top level tight ends and Hauck had a ton of success with Montana kids playing the position. I think Colin Bingham will be one of the best tight ends in the Big Sky by the end of this season. Here's a story I wrote on the reintroduction of tight ends at Montana.
Bingham leading tight end reintroduction for Griz
https://skylinesportsmt.com/bingham-leading-tight-end-reintroduction-for-griz/
WR — Curran got our vote as the veteran and leader of a talented group. We also considered Jerry Louie-McGee and Samori Toure. But UC Davis' Keelan Doss, a Payton Award Finalist, and NAU's Emmanuel Butler, a two-time first-team All-Big Sky selection before missing most of last season with a shoulder injury, are the two best NFL prospects and two top receivers in the league this year barring injury. Hard to put anyone above those two. The rest of the crop that Curran has to compete with are comparable in production. It will be interesting to see how the rest of the media voted.
Kicker — Brandon Purdy was one of the best kickers in the Big Sky last season but he missed spring ball after having minor knee surgery. He and punter Eric Williams will take huge jumps learning under Hauck, a special teams guru by all accounts. But Weber State's Trey Tuttle was an All-American as a true freshman last season and an easy preseason selection.
Return specialist — Jerry Louie-McGee will also make a huge jump with Hauck's diverse special teams schemes. He will be in the mix for the honor postseason. But Weber's Rashid Shaheed scored three ST touchdowns last season and was an All-American.
DEFENSE
End — Losing Tucker Schye and Chris Favoroso, there wasn't anybody from the Griz to vote for. Depending on who plays defensive end — Jesse Sims and Reggie Tilleman both played inside and outside during spring ball — a Griz could make their way to the postseason list. Sac State's George Obinna (first-team all-league last season, second in the conference in sacks) and Weber's Jonah Williams (2nd team all-league last season) were easy picks.
Tackle — I do think Sims and Tilleman both have all-league potential. One of them could get here by the end of the season.
OLB — Even with the shoulder surgery that cost him spring ball, Josh Buss is the best outside linebacker in the league if he gets back to full strength. A ton of debate on this board about the Griz talent level...look at Buss's recruiting class, the last under Mick Delaney. Evan Epperly, Shayne Cochran and Buss are the only three scholarship players remaining from that class. That class was the class most affected by the scholarship penalties
https://gogriz.com/news/2014/1/22/Signing_Day_Central_2014.aspx
MLB - I think Cochran is another guy who should adjust seamlessly to Hauck, a tough, hard-nosed kid who knows how to play with a mean streak and can overcome his lack of size by playing hard. But he's never started a game. UM losing Connor Strahm and James Banks and moving Vika Fa'atuise meant no Griz were considered at inside linebacker.
CB — In my opinion, this is Montana's most glaring weakness. While I think Idaho, Montana State, Southern Utah and Weber State will all be better than Sac State or UC Davis, Montana could struggle against the two California schools because they throw the ball down the field so often and that plays right into exploiting Montana's biggest question marks.
Safety — Really considered Josh Sandry here. He was more hurt than most people realized last year. His ankle was pretty busted up. Sac State's Mister Harriel and Northern Arizona's Wes Sutton were both first-team All-Big Sky last season and return as seniors, so impossible to not pick them for the preseason list.
Punter — Williams will make a big jump and be used more prevalently under Hauck, which is a good thing for the Griz.
Special teams — Dante Olson was one of the best special teams players in the league last season. It will be interesting to see if Bobby uses key players to cover kicks and punts this year. I thought Olson had a great spring and is one of the best athletes not only on the team but in the league at his position. He could be a surprise this season. But Brady May is the best ST guy I've seen in the Big Sky since Kendrick Van Ackeren was covering kicks as a young guy at Montana. Easy pick.
We will have a ton of stories over the next few weeks, including:
- What the rest of the league thinks of Hauck being back
- The return of Idaho
- The interesting dynamic of North Dakota playing eight conference games that count as conference games for Big Sky teams but not for UND
- The evolution of defenses in the Big Sky, particularly because the league hasn't had a truly elite pass rusher since Tyrone Holmes graduated.
- The evolution of recruiting and developing offensive linemen and the interesting dynamic of how the power up front offensively used to reside at Montana and Montana State but is now controlled by the Utah schools
- The evolution and challenges of playing safety in the league because of the diverse nature of offensive schemes among the teams...you might play Cal Poly one week, Eastern Washington the next and Southern Utah the next, drastically different assignments for the safeties in particular. Hauck dominated the Big Sky because of a collection of reasons, one of the biggest being Montana's peerless safety play.
- Quality of quarterbacks in the league and the QB competitions that will play out in August among several of the league's playoff contenders.
- Playoff success for Big Sky teams — the league expanded from 9 to 13 teams in an effort to get 4 teams in the playoffs but most years, still only the top team wins in the playoffs. How does the league change that?
Stay tuned!
SKYLINE SPORTS preseason All-Big Sky football selections
https://skylinesportsmt.com/skyline-sports-preseason-all-big-sky-football-selections
A reminder that these are votes, not the actual selections, which will be released tomorrow. I think Josh Buss will be on the official list. Keenan Curran we think should be but it will not surprise me if Mitch Gueller from Idaho State (first-team all-league last season), Andre Lindsey from Sac State (second-team all-league last season) or Nsimba Webster from Eastern Washington (third-team All-Big Sky last season) get the nod because of past accomplishments.
As the article above states, there were a collection of no-brainers but also a huge amount of question marks and debates for choosing the list.
Here are the Griz we considered and why they ultimate did or did not get earn our vote.
QB — thought about Dalton Sneed for a brief moment because I was impressed watching him during spring drills but no one will pick an unproven commodity over a two-time Walter Payton finalist in Gage Gubrud of Eastern Washington, a two-time All-American in Case Cookus from Northern Arizona or Jake Maier, the third-team All-Big Sky QB last year at UC Davis after ranking third in the country in passing yards per game.
Side note: We are heading over to the Big Sky Kickoff in Spokane today so we will have a ton of Big Sky coverage leading up to fall camp. One interesting story line league wide is that those three premier quarterbacks return as does Kevin Thompson, a former UNLV transfer who lit it up at Sac State before getting hurt last season. Sac State has not gotten any credit for their 7-4 season last year despite leading the league in scoring offense and sacks but a lot of that is because the Hornets did not play the Montana schools. On the QB front, interesting that those four teams have established starters but there will be quarterback battles at Weber State, Southern Utah, Montana, Montana State and Idaho, likely the other Big Sky playoff contenders outside of EWU and NAU in the league this year.
RB — Considered Jeremy Calhoun pretty hard but he sat out during the spring so James Madison, the leading returning rusher in the league from Idaho State, and Jay Green, the top touchdown scorer in the Big Sky from Southern Utah got the nod. I do think with a more conventional offensive system, both Calhoun (if healthy) and Alijah Lee have a chance to make a big jump in terms of production this fall.
OG — Considered Angel Villanueva a bit but he has no all-conference accolades on his resume yet so couldn't vote him above P.J. Nu'usa from Southern Utah (2nd team all-conference last season) or Noah Johnson from Idaho, a second-team All-Sun Belt pick last fall.
OT and C — As everyone knows, the rest of Montana's offensive line has not started a game so not much consideration for them when voting for the other offensive line positions.
TE — Montana has not had a tight end for three years, so no one to justifiably vote for. I think the reintroduction of tight ends under Bobby Hauck will be huge for Montana. The state of Montana produces top level tight ends and Hauck had a ton of success with Montana kids playing the position. I think Colin Bingham will be one of the best tight ends in the Big Sky by the end of this season. Here's a story I wrote on the reintroduction of tight ends at Montana.
Bingham leading tight end reintroduction for Griz
https://skylinesportsmt.com/bingham-leading-tight-end-reintroduction-for-griz/
WR — Curran got our vote as the veteran and leader of a talented group. We also considered Jerry Louie-McGee and Samori Toure. But UC Davis' Keelan Doss, a Payton Award Finalist, and NAU's Emmanuel Butler, a two-time first-team All-Big Sky selection before missing most of last season with a shoulder injury, are the two best NFL prospects and two top receivers in the league this year barring injury. Hard to put anyone above those two. The rest of the crop that Curran has to compete with are comparable in production. It will be interesting to see how the rest of the media voted.
Kicker — Brandon Purdy was one of the best kickers in the Big Sky last season but he missed spring ball after having minor knee surgery. He and punter Eric Williams will take huge jumps learning under Hauck, a special teams guru by all accounts. But Weber State's Trey Tuttle was an All-American as a true freshman last season and an easy preseason selection.
Return specialist — Jerry Louie-McGee will also make a huge jump with Hauck's diverse special teams schemes. He will be in the mix for the honor postseason. But Weber's Rashid Shaheed scored three ST touchdowns last season and was an All-American.
DEFENSE
End — Losing Tucker Schye and Chris Favoroso, there wasn't anybody from the Griz to vote for. Depending on who plays defensive end — Jesse Sims and Reggie Tilleman both played inside and outside during spring ball — a Griz could make their way to the postseason list. Sac State's George Obinna (first-team all-league last season, second in the conference in sacks) and Weber's Jonah Williams (2nd team all-league last season) were easy picks.
Tackle — I do think Sims and Tilleman both have all-league potential. One of them could get here by the end of the season.
OLB — Even with the shoulder surgery that cost him spring ball, Josh Buss is the best outside linebacker in the league if he gets back to full strength. A ton of debate on this board about the Griz talent level...look at Buss's recruiting class, the last under Mick Delaney. Evan Epperly, Shayne Cochran and Buss are the only three scholarship players remaining from that class. That class was the class most affected by the scholarship penalties
https://gogriz.com/news/2014/1/22/Signing_Day_Central_2014.aspx
MLB - I think Cochran is another guy who should adjust seamlessly to Hauck, a tough, hard-nosed kid who knows how to play with a mean streak and can overcome his lack of size by playing hard. But he's never started a game. UM losing Connor Strahm and James Banks and moving Vika Fa'atuise meant no Griz were considered at inside linebacker.
CB — In my opinion, this is Montana's most glaring weakness. While I think Idaho, Montana State, Southern Utah and Weber State will all be better than Sac State or UC Davis, Montana could struggle against the two California schools because they throw the ball down the field so often and that plays right into exploiting Montana's biggest question marks.
Safety — Really considered Josh Sandry here. He was more hurt than most people realized last year. His ankle was pretty busted up. Sac State's Mister Harriel and Northern Arizona's Wes Sutton were both first-team All-Big Sky last season and return as seniors, so impossible to not pick them for the preseason list.
Punter — Williams will make a big jump and be used more prevalently under Hauck, which is a good thing for the Griz.
Special teams — Dante Olson was one of the best special teams players in the league last season. It will be interesting to see if Bobby uses key players to cover kicks and punts this year. I thought Olson had a great spring and is one of the best athletes not only on the team but in the league at his position. He could be a surprise this season. But Brady May is the best ST guy I've seen in the Big Sky since Kendrick Van Ackeren was covering kicks as a young guy at Montana. Easy pick.
We will have a ton of stories over the next few weeks, including:
- What the rest of the league thinks of Hauck being back
- The return of Idaho
- The interesting dynamic of North Dakota playing eight conference games that count as conference games for Big Sky teams but not for UND
- The evolution of defenses in the Big Sky, particularly because the league hasn't had a truly elite pass rusher since Tyrone Holmes graduated.
- The evolution of recruiting and developing offensive linemen and the interesting dynamic of how the power up front offensively used to reside at Montana and Montana State but is now controlled by the Utah schools
- The evolution and challenges of playing safety in the league because of the diverse nature of offensive schemes among the teams...you might play Cal Poly one week, Eastern Washington the next and Southern Utah the next, drastically different assignments for the safeties in particular. Hauck dominated the Big Sky because of a collection of reasons, one of the biggest being Montana's peerless safety play.
- Quality of quarterbacks in the league and the QB competitions that will play out in August among several of the league's playoff contenders.
- Playoff success for Big Sky teams — the league expanded from 9 to 13 teams in an effort to get 4 teams in the playoffs but most years, still only the top team wins in the playoffs. How does the league change that?
Stay tuned!
Colter_Nuanez56
Well-known member
Ursus1 said:
Exactly. If you look at our list, reigning league champion Weber State has 7 but 3 are on ST, NAU has four selections, Southern Utah has 3. Those will likely be the Top 3 teams in the preseason poll after all three making the playoffs last season. No other team has more than 2, including Montana and Montana State.
