Yeah I think we'll get #5 too. Just saying that if there's an equal argument to be made between one of those 3 programs (or the Montana ones) and ours, they'll get the nod over us.

As for whether there's an equal argument between USD and UCD... UCD has more quality wins (and wins overall) but USD just beat one of the perennial FCS powers.

I agree, but some other things have changed which might or might not make a difference. When they decided on the the top 10, SUU was not expected to be in the playoffs. If they make it out of the bubble then that gives UCD 3 wins over playoff teams and USD would only have 1. I don't think we can overcome the pro-Dakota bias, though.

Another great episode! Sent you a DM, by the way.

I think the only scenario where we aren’t confident about a top 4 seed is if USD beats NDSU and Montana beats MSU. That would leave NDSU, SDSU, USD, UCD, and MSU all with 1 FCS loss, mostly to each other. I’m hoping in that scenario Portland State’s whooping cough (which meant one less win for USD) makes USD the #5 seed.

I don’t love that the Big Sky’s representative on the committee (until 2028) is Sac State’s AD.

Is “stingers down” a thing yet? Because if not I would love for that to be part of Chancellor May’s already-great legacy.

he’s talking about the second TD to make it 14-30. I see the math but at the same time i get it because we were anemic up to that point and Plough just wanted some momentum. Getting a TD but losing the 2 point conversion would have blunted the momentum.

They've been on sale. I think the end zones are sold out now...

Was close. Buddy of mine tuned in at the end of the 3rd, then Stanford took the lead back. We can blame him.

Might as well join forces, right?

Abilene Christian is ranked #14 and literally just beat SUU last week. SUU is unranked.

For me the main difference between MSU and UCD is how we each played Idaho in our home stadiums. Granted, Idaho was plagued with injuries when they played MSU and Bozeman is not Davis but I still think the margin of victory shows how good MSU is.

All of this just demonstrates how small the margin for error is in the Big Sky, especially this year. The BSC has so many sub-.500 teams that there’s only a couple opportunities to get quality wins. Really makes having a strong OOC schedule important. Idaho is still in conversation for a top 8 seed because although they lost both games in BSC play that were opportunities for quality wins (MSU, UCD), they played a really strong OOC and only lost to #1 FBS Oregon throughout it.

If we beat both teams and win out it would be crazy for the committee to not give UCD at least the #2 seed. We would be undefeated in FCS play, which only one other team (NDSU if they win out) would be able to say. Conference championship would be amazing but I think Saturday’s game is also for home field advantage throughout playoffs, until Frisco.

yeah that’s not a knock on Biggs. He accomplished so much with far fewer resources than most others would have been able.

Biggs shared on the podcast how the Hayward miracle win really solidified the team’s identity and philosophy in a way that launched the 37 year winning season streak. Every win helps your season but some do a lot more for your program than others do. That’s the metric I’m trying to apply here (without the benefit of foresight) but I completely agree that by other equally valid metrics the Stanford game was probably the greatest win in Aggie history.

Stanford was definitely the bigger upset but I don’t know if it advanced the program all that much. We were a below average Division 1AA team stuck in neutral for most if not all years from 2005 until when Hawk took over. The jury is obviously still out for how this season will shape up, how Plough will be able to build on its success, and what role this win has in all that but it just seems like in the larger context, this win has the chance to matter a lot more for the trajectory of Aggie football than the Stanford win did. Here’s hoping, at least.

Montana’s AD was until recently. This year the big sky rep is the sac state AD.

I wasn’t around during the D2 days but imo it was the biggest win in program history given all the context/implications:

- The game itself: Did not just win, but won comfortably, in a very hostile environment, where all 3 phases showed up in a big way
- The season: Even losing to MSU and beating sac gives us a resume for top 4 seed.
- The program: Take the above 2 things and add a national television audience, and handily defeating not just another top 10 team this season but also one of the most successful programs in FCS. The win is huge for the momentum of our season but also for the momentum of our program. And another solid performance under the brightest lights by Lan could only have helped his draft stock, which is also ultimately good for the program.
- The record books: Establishes a new win streak for # of undefeated games in D1.

It’s hard to think of another game that comes close. Maybe our home playoff game in 2018 or the 2005 Stanford win.

I’ve been very interested this season in following other fan podcasts and forums, and the general consensus has been that UCD is good but not really that great (the Tubs guys still think Idaho would beat UCD if they played again, and a lot of Big Sky fans treat our PSU game as a loss). The team has had to prove itself over and over again and maybe after this game it will finally get the respect it deserves. To me, this game was the definition of a statement win: our coaching staff, players, and program announcing to the rest of FCS that UCD football is on the rise.

I'm curious how Massey has 3-5 Sac State favored over 7-1 UCD?

I think that as of 2023, both the STATS poll and coaches poll are actually official criteria that are taken into consideration by the selection committee:

https://www.ncaa.com/news/football/article/2023-10-26/south-dakota-state-montana-state-lead-fcs-football-committees-top-10

EDIT: This was just 2023. Sam Herder reported today that the committee will no longer consider the two polls in seeding and at-large berth determinations.

https://x.com/SamHerderFCS/status/1850964365588984100

I don’t know if this would help us? Wouldn’t it be to our benefit for MSU to be ranked as high as possible entering our game with them? If we lose we won’t drop too far and if we win we move up and have a top 3 win for the playoff committee’s consideration. Winning a share of the title with MSU where they have the H2H doesn’t seem as important as our playoff seeding.