Great! Well earned and deserved. This is a great reward for all the hard work this team and coaching staff has done to this point. Great finish to a difficult season and time. Congrats to this team and coaching staff, go get 'em!
So, Weber State. Ranked #2 in the FCS poll. 5-0, but a lot of their games were pretty close. Anyone know how good or bad this matchup is for us?
Awesome! The crazy thing is if Western Illinois doesn't opt out, we don't get in. The quality victory over SELA got us in!!! A Western Illinois win would have meant nothing! Great job by coach Hill and the AD!!!!
Sweet! Glad to see the program rewarded for dealing with lots these past few years: most of all COVID challenges, but also the recent playoff snub, injuries at QB, etc. Thank goodness for SELA.
Still hard to wrap my head around college football in April, but I’ll be juiced for kickoff next weekend. Let’s aim for another 700-plus yards of offense like yesterday.
A couple quick observations after doing some research. Weber State is the only team from the Big Sky to made the playoffs. Their best win was at home against #14 UC Davis in week 2 of the spring. They won that game 18-13. None of the other teams they have beaten are ranked, or even receiving points in the polls. The biggest matchup problem for us that I see is that they have the 15th best rushing offense in FCS. We have been abused by good rushing teams at times this season. A potential good sign is they are only 44th in FCS in rushing defense, so hopefully we can run on them! They are a very good 5th in FCS in passing defensive efficiency. We don't throw the ball downfield much, so hopefully that doesn't hurt us too much and we are still able to set up our swing passes and let our talented WR's make plays. They are 42nd in passing offense, so not world beaters there. We will probably be able to run on them, but will need to keep their run game somewhat in check to win.
Also, looks like they are allowing just under 5k to attend their home games. They may have somewhat of a home field advantage.
The Weber St. Briquettes, inventers of the famous backyard grill, have a balanced offense, couple of good RBs. One was an All-American last year (Josh Davis) who didn't play last game. They had two games where a RB went over 100 yards. Also played a different QB against NAU - ran for 96 yds. Their starting QB, Bronson Barron, does not have great numbers passing but does not throw interceptions.
They did Not play E. Wash., played Idaho St twice, blowing them out 1st game and coming from behind in 4th qtr to squeak by them in the last game (at home too.) Other than the 1st game blowout at Idaho St., every game they played was close and they came from behind in the 4th qtr more than once to squeak out wins. Only ranked team they beat was #23 UC-Davis, coached by Jim Les in his spare time when he's not detailing his Ferrari.
GO DAWGS!!!!!
I’m really happy for this program, and especially for Hill. Dude bleeds maroon. You can tell how much he loves this school.
This season should be able to give him quite the boost in recruiting, regardless of what happens in the playoffs.
Feels good to be back on the national stage after 12 years!
We can beat the Briquettes, and I think we will!
Didn't think they'd have a chance to get in but they deserve it for not quitting when others did
I’m really happy for this program, and especially for Hill. Dude bleeds maroon. You can tell how much he loves this school.
This season should be able to give him quite the boost in recruiting, regardless of what happens in the playoffs.
Feels good to be back on the national stage after 12 years!
100% agree on Coach Hill . Also really happy for the players that have stuck with it. Congratulations 🎊🎉🍾🎈
GO Dawgs
I still think it is a stretch, but here is some of what Coach Hill is looking at. His thinking makes sense, but when does anything the NCAA does make sense.
Auto-bids: James Madison, Weber State, South Dakota State, Sam Houston, Jacksonville State, Monmouth, VMI, Davidson, Sacred Heart, Holy Cross.
Here are the remaining teams in the top 20 who were ranked above us last week with their strength of schedule, record and result this week:
#2 NDSU (17) 6-2 Lost
#6 N. Dakota (12) 4-1 DNP
#7 Delaware (61) 5-0 Won
#8 E. Washington (27) 5-1 DNP
#10 Villanova (34) 2-2 Lost
#11 Richmond (56) 3-1 Lost
#13 UC-Davis (19) 3-2 DNP
#14 Mo. State (4) 5-4 DNP
#16 Kennesaw State (38) 4-1 DNP
#17 Southeastern Louisiana (43) 4-3 Lost
#18 Southern Illinois (8) 5-3 WonYou can pencil in Delaware and scratch SE Louisiana.
Nick points out that Villanova did not beat anyone with a winning record and should be scratched. He says the same thing about Richmond. Both of them lost this week and neither have a top 25 win.
Let's look at #16 Kennesaw. Throw out the Division 2 win and they are 3-1 with a SoS of 38. Here's another team with zero wins against a team with a winning record. Their loss was a blowout to league champion Monmouth. I agree with Nick...scratch them.
#14 Mo. State. They beat us and shared the league title. Their results are mixed, but let's put them in for now.
#13 UC-Davis. Another team with no wins against teams with a winning record. SoS is 19, but they are 0-2 against top-25 teams. Scratch them.
That leaves E. Washington, N. Dakota, and N. Dakota State above us. For discussion sake, let's slide them all in. E. Washington doesn't have the most impressive resume, but put them in anyway. I've already penciled in Delaware and Mo. State. That is five bids with one remaining.
None of the teams that were scratched and that are ranked ahead of us last week can stand when put side-to-side with the factors that the committee is supposed to look at. The NCAA also claims that they don't look at conference affiliations when determining bids. We all know that doesn't guarantee anything. Our three losses are all against MVFC tri-champions. No one else that we are presumably competing against for that final sport can claim a win against a top-25 team, nor against a team with a winning record. We have a much better SoS than any of them. We have four top-25 wins.
We have a strong argument. Will it be enough.
you pretty much nailed the bracket 100%.
Craving a McBride Special!
Congrats to coach Hill, the staff and players! It's been a long time coming.
One thing that we must consider is the altitude. The run game will be essential because the ball will carry in the thin air. Ball control will be essential to keep guys rested throughout the game. We will not have the time to get acclimated to the altitude.
Congrats to coach Hill, the staff and players! It's been a long time coming.
One thing that we must consider is the altitude. The run game will be essential because the ball will carry in the thin air. Ball control will be essential to keep guys rested throughout the game. We will not have the time to get acclimated to the altitude.
Altitude of Weber State is 4715ft., not terrible but it may have some effect on the Dawgs. Weather forecast for Saturday is partly cloudy, 71 and a 12 mph wind.
You can find video replays of Weber State football games here: https://bigskyconf.com/sports/2015/11/19/WatchBigSky.aspx
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