The Big Sky Conference released their 2012 Football Preseason Polls on Tuesday. There were two different polls, one by the media and another by the head coaches from the Big Sky. UND finished #6 in the media poll and #10 in the coaches poll.
We feel UND should have been around #6-7 in the preseason polls. #1-5 in the polls are very solid programs who UND needs to prove they can beat. They are probably on equal footing with the #7-10 teams – Weber State, Northern Arizona, Sacramento State, and Southern Utah. Definitely games they need to win but will not be easy. Basically, there are no more gimmies on the schedule now that it’s Big Sky time and they need to be ready to play at a very high level every single week.
Montana State was the overwhelming favorite in the polls with 30 of 40 first place votes in the media poll and 7 of 13 first place votes in the coaches poll. UND visits Montana State on Oct. 27th, a week after playing Montana at home. Brutal back to back.
UND has arguably the toughest schedule in the conference. They play the top 5 teams in the poll, no other teams in the conference can say that. They get #3-4-5 at home (Montana, Portland State, Cal-Poly) but have to go on the road to #1-2 (Montana State and Eastern Washington).
UND does not play #11-12 in the polls, Idaho State and UC-Davis, but do get to play #13 Northern Colorado, who is setup as one of their two yearly rivals along with Montana State.
The second game of the year vs. Portland State (Sept. 8th) will tell UND alot about where they are as a program when it comes to the Big Sky. The Vikings were picked 4th in both polls coming off their 7-4 record in 2011. Coach Nigel Burton has done a heck of job turning around that program and with 13 returning starters they should continue to improve this season.
Weber State got a random first place vote in the media poll but were picked 7th overall. On the coaches side, Southern Utah got one random first place vote but was finished 8th overall. Interesting.
Despite having the second most Preseason All-Conference selections (4), UC-Davis was picked 11th and 12th in the two polls.
Bozeman Daily Chronicle’s take on the preseason polls.
A Sports Network article on the depth of the new Big Sky Conference.
While we think that UND’s position in the polls is more around #6 than #10, we certainly understand why the coaches would vote that way. Will the players be upset or disappointed about the ranking? Probably, and maybe they should be. However, respect in the Big Sky Conference is something that is earned.
It’s time for the UND Football Program to go out and earn it.