HELENA, Mont. (AP) - The Montana State football team is favored to win the expanded Big Sky Conference this fall according to polls of league coaches and the media that cover the conference.
The coaches and media agree on the top five, with Eastern Washington ranked second, Montana third, Portland State fourth and newcomer Cal Poly fifth. MSU received seven first-place votes, while EWU got four and Montana and newcomer Southern Utah each received one.
The coaches picked Weber State sixth, Northern Arizona seventh and Southern Utah eighth, followed by Sacramento State, North Dakota, Idaho State, UC Davis and Northern Colorado.
The media picked North Dakota sixth, Weber State seventh and Southern Utah eighth, followed by Northern Arizona, Sacramento State, UC Davis, Idaho State and Northern Colorado.
North Dakota and UC Davis are also new to the league this fall.
