Football Notes - Oct. 31

10/31/2011 4:00:05 PM

Jon Kasper - Big Sky Conference

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This Week’s Sky Highlights

 

Just three weeks remain in the regular season. Second-ranked Montana State can clinch at least a share of the Big Sky Conference regular-season title on Saturday as it travels to Weber State. With a win, the Bobcats will move to 7-0 in conference and 9-1 overall, and will clinch at least a share of the conference championship. Weber State is 3-2 in league, 3-5 overall, and looking to snap a two-game losing streak...Sacramento State travels to Portland State, and Northern Colorado is at Northern Arizona in the other conference games. Portland State is looking to snap a three-game losing streak to the Hornets. Northern Arizona has won eight straight over Northern Colorado...No. 10 Montana guns for its sixth straight win as it plays Western Oregon in a non-conference game...Eastern Washington and Idaho State are idle...All four games can be viewed for free on Big Sky TV.

BOBCATS KEEP ROLLING: Montana State won its eighth straight game with a 54-13 victory over Idaho State on Saturday, and moved into position to clinch a share of the Big Sky regular-season title on Saturday against Weber State. The running back duo of Cody Kirk and Tray Robinson combined for 338 yards and six touchdowns. Kirk had 184 yards and four touchdowns. Robinson had 154 and two touchdowns. Montana State’s eight-game winning streak is tied with North Dakota State for the second-longest active streak in the FCS. Sam Houston State has won 10 straight dating back to last season. With a win over Weber State on Saturday, Montana State will clinch at least a share of the regular-season title for the second straight season. The Bobcats’ showdown at home against rival Montana on Nov. 19 will be for the Big Sky’s automatic bid to the playoffs. Montana State is seeking its first outright Big Sky title since 1984. MSU shared the league title in 2002, 2003, 2005 and 2010. 

WALKER TOPS 300: Northern Colorado senior wide receiver Patrick Walker became the first receiving in Big Sky history to amass more than 300 receiving yards in a game last Saturday. Walker caught 10 passes for 315 yards with two touchdowns in the Bears’ 27-25 loss to North Dakota. Walker caught TD passes of 80 and 88 yards from Seth Lobato. The previous record for receiving yards in a game was 299 set by Nevada’s Treamelle Taylor in a 1989 game against Montana. The 315 yards are the most in an FCS game this season, and ended just 61 yards shy of the all-time record of 376 set by Cal Poly’s Kassim Osgood in a 2000 game against Northern Iowa. Walker’s 315 broken the previous Northern Colorado school record of 265 set by Barry West in 1970 against Colorado school of Mines.

RUMBLE-LING TO THE TOP: Idaho State junior wide receiver Rodrick Rumble has set a Big Sky single-season record for catches in the season. Rumble caught 13 more passes in the Bengals’ 54-13 loss to Montana State on Saturday. Rumble now has 98 catches, breaking the previous single-season record of 96 set by Idaho State’s Ed Bell in 1969. Bell played 10 games that season. Rumble leads the nation in catches per game with an average of 10.9. He has 1,224 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. The FCS record for catches in a season is 123 by Elon’s Terrell Hudgins in 2009.

MCKNIGHT SETS PAT MARK: Montana’s Brody McKnight has become the Big Sky’s all-time leader in PATs made. McKnight made six PATS in Montana’s 45-10 victory over Weber State. McKnight has made 189 extra points in his career, topping the old record of 182 set by Montana’s Chris Snyder and Dan Carpenter. McKnight has scored 336 points in his career, which places him fourth all-time on the Big Sky’s kick scoring list and eighth all-time in overall scoring.

IN THE POLLS: Montana State moved up to No. 2 in this week’s Sports Network/Fathead.com top 25. The Bobcats earned 19 first-place votes and 3,671 points. North Dakota State took over the No. 1 spot. The Bison beat No. 2 Northern Iowa last Saturday. North Dakota earned 133 first-place votes and 3,918 total points. Previous No. 1 Georgia Southern, which lost to Appalachian State last week, is now fifth. Appalachian State moved up to No. 3. Undefeated Sam Houston State is fourth. Montana improved one spot to 10th in this week’s poll. Montana State is second in the coaches’ poll. The Bobcats earned two first-place votes and 654 total points. North Dakota State is No. 1 in the coaches’ poll. Montana remained eighth in the coaches’ poll.

KAVANAUGH SETS QB MARK: Portland State senior QB Connor Kavanaugh rushed for 154 yards in Portland State’s 43-26 win over Eastern Washington. Kavanaugh has rushed for 807 yards this season, a single-season record for quarterbacks in the Big Sky. Kavanaugh topped the previous mark of 686 set by Northern Arizona’s Lance Kriesien in 2007. Kavanaugh has rushed for 1,711 yards in his career, and is closing in on the Big Sky record for quarterbacks. Idaho’s Ken Hobart rushed for 1,826 yards at Idaho from 1980-83.

Extra points: EWU WR Nicholas Edwards has 20 catches for 358 yards and seven touchdowns the last two games…Road teams are 12-15 in conference play. ISU and NC are the only two teams who haven’t won a road conference game…Northern Arizona’s Zach Bauman rushed for a career-high 246 yards and two touchdowns in the Lumberjacks’ 27-26 win over Sacramento State. He carried the ball 38 times…NAU’s Dan Pela blocked a Sacramento State extra point with 4:46 to play…North Dakota’s Zeb Miller made a career-long 54-yard field goal with 1:52 remaining as it beat Northern Colorado 27-25…Montana State is ranked fifth among FCS teams in this week’s Sagarin ratings. Montana is ninth....Montana’s Jabin Sambrano tied a school record with four touchdown catches in a 45-10 against Weber State...Portland State has 2,232 rushing yards this season and averages 5.6 yards per carry with 25 rushing touchdowns. The Vikings are only 16 yards short of the school record of 2,248 yards set in 2004 (204.4 ypg)...PSU has blocked six punts this season, and has eight blocked kicks overall...EWU QB Bo Levi Mitchell has eclipsed the 3,000-yard passing mark for the second straight year. Mitchell has 3,176 passing yards, which leads the nation.