406 MT Sports panel wants Grizzlies and Cats to roll on Saturday

After this week's game at Golden State, the Grizzlies have a home game against fourth-place UC Davis on October 9th. Two weeks later, Montana will face second-place Montana State in Bozeman.

The Mustangs are an interesting bunch. They've only won two of seven games and are on a three-game losing streak, but they played some tough teams right to the end, including Idaho and Idaho State.

Before being sidelined last weekend, Cal Poly hustled the Vandals in Moscow before falling to a 34-29 decision. The Mustangs led this game 14-6 at halftime and then fell victim to a 28-2 Idaho lead.

It has been six years since the Grizzlies played at Cal Poly. Montana defeated the Mustangs 48-28 on home soil in 2018. Two years earlier, the Mustangs won a home thriller 42-41 against the Grizzlies, followed by a 20-19 win for Cal Poly in Montana in 2015 and a 41-21 Mustangs win over the visiting Griz in 2015 and 2014 .

Let a former Grizzly football beat writer tell you: There's no nicer place in the Big Sky Conference to cover a game than San Luis Obispo. Crowds are good, relatively speaking (Cal Poly drew 8,429 fans for homecoming on Oct. 5). There are also palm trees, orange and lemon trees and, my goodness, it's a piece of heaven.

That is, as long as you don't have to get a hotel room in San Luis Obispo. Even at a hotel like Motel 6, you'll pay about $280 per night. Ouch, maybe it would be better to bring your puppy tent.

Here's a look at Saturday's Big Sky Conference games:

No. 8 Montana (3-1, 6-2) at Cal Poly (1-3, 2-5), 3 p.m. TV: Scripps Sports and ESPN+. The Mustangs' only wins came over Northern Colorado and NAIA Western Oregon. They may be competitive for a while on Saturday, but they simply won't beat Montana unless the Grizzlies turn the ball over five times. To their credit, the Mustangs defended the run bravely. They don't defend the pass that well and Montana's aerial attack is good enough to put up big numbers under sunny skies in San Luis Obispo. Perhaps the best thing Cal Poly has to offer heading into the game is coach Timm Rosenbach's extensive knowledge of Montana's offensive personnel. He was on the UM staff from 2018 to 2023 and most recently served as a senior offensive analyst before joining Cal Poly's coaching staff as co-offensive coordinator earlier this year. Speltz: Montana 42, Cal Poly 17. Gogola: Montana 38, Cal Poly 10. Flores: Griz 35, Cal Poly 17.

No. 2 Montana State (4-0, 8-0) at Eastern Washington (1-3, 2-6), 2 p.m. TV: Scripps Sports and ESPN+. The Bobcats are the only undefeated team in the top 20 of the FCS standings. There is another undefeated team in the top 25, but it might be difficult to guess. It's No. 22 Dartmouth, which improved to 6-0 with a 24-21 win over the Columbia Lions last Saturday. Montana State may be the best team in the country. The Cats lead the Big Sky in scoring and scoring defense, allowing an average of just 16.3 points per game. They've had some injuries on defense, so you have to wonder if they can really beat a team like top-ranked North Dakota State. It would be fun to find out in December or January. Look for Montana State's offense to destroy Eastern Washington's defense. The Eagles rank second to last in the league in scoring defense, allowing an average of 38 points per game. Speltz: Bobcats 55, Eagles 21. Gogola: Montana State 49, Eastern Washington 20. Flores: Cats 48, East 24.

Northern Colorado (1-3, 1-7) at No. 4 UC Davis (4-0, 7-1), 2 p.m. TV: ESPN+. The Aggies had a bye last week, while the Bears, with their injury problems at quarterback, were sidelined at home by Montana. It has to be said that Northern Colorado was still in the game with the Grizzlies at halftime, trailing 14-0. The Bears actually drove the ball into the red zone in the first half before falling victim to an interception on a tipped ball. Now everything is under the bridge and Davis will pull off a big win with his league-leading passing attack and impressive defense. Remember, UNC dropped 38 points when it played Montana State in early October. Look forward to a game of the same kind at Davis this week. Speltz: Aggies 52, Bears 10. Gogola: UC Davis 45, Northern Colorado 13. Flores: Davis 34, UNC 10.

Weber State (2-2, 3-5) at Northern Arizona (2-2, 4-4), 1 p.m. TV: ESPN+. This is a tough game between teams that have a bye and are fifth in the conference standings. I'll let recent history help me. The Lumberjacks recorded a 30-26 home win against much-improved Idaho State in their last game. The Wildcats have lost two straight games, including a 21-17 home loss to Northern Colorado and a heartbreaking 51-48 loss to Sacramento State. I expect a good game, but the Jacks are 3-0 at home this season and will win. Speltz: Lumberjack 31, Wildcats 24. Gogola: Northern Arizona 31, Weber State 30. Flores: NAU 27, Weber 24.

Portland State (1-3, 1-6) and Sacramento State (1-3, 3-5), 7 p.m The Hornets are giving away free cowboy hats for this home game. Look for them to have some fun under the Golden State sun. They suffered a disappointing 30-27 overtime loss at Idaho State last week. The Sac State offense should put up a lot of points against the Portland State defense, which is ranked last in the conference. I expect a shootout in which the Vikings will do just as well as they did in the road win against Idaho State. But in the end, the Hornets play well at home and take care of business. Speltz: Hornets 48, Vikings 41. Gogola: Sacramento State 41, Portland State 31. Flores: Bag 31, power supply 21.