SPOKANE, Wash. — The countdown to kickoff is on.
Football coaches and players from around the Big Sky Conference gathered Monday at the Northern Quest Resort & Casino for their annual media day to conclude the Big Sky Kickoff.
Watch a behind-the-scenes look at Big Sky Conference football media day:
"It certainly signifies that it's almost here, for one," Montana State coach Brent Vigen said of the Kickoff event. "But I do appreciate the Big Sky, the commissioner for seizing this opportunity to bring us all together. There's some practical pieces to it as coaches to get together along with the (athletic directors) and work through the the evolution of college football.
"But I think for the players to have the spotlight shine on them I think is cool. Not every league takes the steps to do this. I think in this day and age, the promotion side of college football is a pretty big aspect, and you need an event like this to promote your individuals, promote your league, promote your teams, and I'm grateful that we're in a league that does this."
All 12 football-playing teams from the conference participated in the media day, which wrapped up a weekend that included meetings for officials, coaches and ADs, as well as a youth football clinic put on by the players and the Big Sky Hall of Fame Gala on Saturday.
During the event, reigning conference champion Montana State was recognized as the preseason favorite in the coaches and media polls, and Bobcats running back Adam Jones was named the league's preseason offensive MVP. UC Davis defensive back Rex Connors, who participated in the Big Sky Kickoff for the third consecutive year, was selected as the preseason defensive MVP.
Big Sky commissioner Tom Wistrcill also addressed those in attendance to outline the state of the conference and its place in the overall landscape of college football. He announced Monday that the league would be expanding its regular-season schedule to include nine conference games in 2026.
The expanded league slate comes on the heels of the NCAA approving a 12-game regular season for FCS programs. The NCAA Division I Council announced in June that the first contest date for FCS football will change, starting in the 2026 season, to enable FCS programs to compete in 12 regular-season games every year. Going forward, the regular season will start 13 weeks before the FCS championship selections date.
"We have, as you all know, trouble getting teams to come out and play us at home, so we made a decision, hey, if we're going to play this 12th game, let's add a conference game," Wistrcill said. "We can still have three nonconference games, nine conference games.
"We think that's the right decision for us, is let's make that a conference game, so we're working through that process. It's not completely finished yet, so that's why we don't have a formal announcement on that, because we're going to work through some of the processes first, but we're laser-focused on making sure that that's set up for '26."
With the imminent departure of Sacramento State and additions of Utah Tech and Southern Utah, the Big Sky will feature 13 football programs in 2026. Twelve of those teams will play nine regular-season conference games, and one — either Utah Tech or Southern Utah — will play eight.
This season will be Sac State's final year playing in the Big Sky, and the Hornets are one of the most interesting college football programs in the country. They've publicly expressed their desire to move to the FBS level, but their waiver to do so as an independent was denied.
Instead, they'll begin playing as an FCS independent in 2026.
"I love to be in a place where guys are trying to reach the highest level and get after it and go for big things," said Brennan Marion, who was hired as Sacramento State's head coach in December. "Our players, they've been excited about all the things coming and things to look forward to.
"Recruits, families, I think everybody in the Sacramento area is really excited about the future of Sacramento State football and also, everything that's going on in the university, as well."
Sac State begins its season Aug. 30 against perennial FCS powerhouse South Dakota State in Brookings, S.D., but three Big Sky teams start their seasons Aug. 23 in Week 0. Idaho State plays at UNLV, Portland State hosts Tarleton State and UC Davis plays Mercer in the 2025 FCS Kickoff Classic in Montgomery, Ala. Those programs begin fall practices this week.
The rest will begin official preparations for the 2025 season in either late July or early August. Montana State kicks off its season Aug. 30 at FBS Oregon, while Montana doesn't start until Sept. 6 with a home game against NCAA Division II Central Washington. That will begin a gauntlet of 12 games in 12 weeks for the Grizzlies.
"If my memory serves me correctly, I think we did this in (2008), and it was good, and I liked it," Montana coach Bobby Hauck said. "I don't know if we won them all, but I think we might have won them all (Montana went 14-2 that season, losing at Weber State in the regular season and to Richmond in the national championship game).
"Over the years, I've always been in kind of conundrum on what to do with the open date, it kind of depends on the health of your team.
"So, I think we're going to like it. I think we're going to like that extra week of summer training. The downside to it is we're going to have to overcome some guys missing some games due to injury, and we aren't going to have that pause in the season to try to freshen up, but we'll manage that, and I think it'll be good."
