Big Sky notes: In a QB-rich league, watch for Idaho’s No. 4

Montana Grizzlies quarterback Lucas Johnson has been reminding Big Sky Conference fans why he started at San Diego State.

Same with Sean Chambers, who started at Wyoming before coming to Montana State.

It’s a league full of excellent QBs, many of whom started somewhere else. One that didn’t, and maybe gets overlooked, is Idaho’s Gevani McCoy.

Recruited as a 160-pounder by former Vandals coach Paul Petrino, McCoy got in three games last season, and threw for 123 yards and a touchdown (with two interceptions) in a 34-14 loss to the Grizzlies in Moscow, Idaho.

A year later Idaho is coming to Missoula Saturday and McCoy is lighting it up.

“They’re really balanced on offense, and then the quarterback is leading the nation in completion percentage,” Griz coach Bobby Hauck said Monday. “That’s a concern. And not turning it over, by the way.”

After throwing two interceptions at Washington State — including one at the Cougars’ 10-yard line with 12 seconds left in a 24-17 loss — McCoy has gone 93 passes without a pick. He’s completed 70 of those throws for 861 yards and nine TDs.

His .728 completion percentage ranks third in the Football Championship Subdivision, but he does lead the Big Sky in that category and in passing efficiency.

So yeah, watch for No. 4 on a Vandals squad that is 3-2 overall and 2-0 in the Big Sky.

“Idaho is a huge game,” said Hauck, whose Griz are 5-0, 2-0 heading into Saturday’s 1 p.m. home contest. “It’s our second-oldest rivalry. They’ve got a very good team. So I like where we’re at, and I’m sure they like where they’re at, on a three-game winning streak and coming off an open week as well.”

Last time the Griz played they had a thumping of Idaho State turn into a one-possession win, 28-20. Meanwhile Idaho was outsourcing Northern Colorado on the road, 55-35.

McCoy played so well he earned Stats Perform’s freshman player of the week honors. Freshman, you ask? Yes, because with just three games played last season he was able to redshirt.

Stan Becton at NCAA.com has been writing weekly FCS quarterback ranking articles and notes that a pair of Bobcat transfers — Matt McKay did transfer to Montana State before he transferred back out to Elon — are moving on up.

Chambers, who excelled in two starts for the Bobcats in place of Touchdown Tommy Mellott, sits at No. 12 after completing 16 of 22 passes against Idaho State. OK, Becton actually groups Mellott and Chambers together, but last week was notable in that the Cats did not rely on Chambers’ running ability much, but still ground out a big win with backs Elijah Elliott and Dane Sumner.

On Monday MSU coach Brent Vigen announced that Mellott, who suffered a concussion on Sept. 24 against Eastern Washington, had been cleared to return to practice.

“Our idea will be to start him (at Northern Colorado),” Vigen added.

Back to McKay: he transferred from North Carolina State to MSU and started every regular-season game for the Bobcats a year ago, then abruptly hit the transfer portal when Mellott was named the starting QB after the Cat-Griz loss.

Mellott then guided MSU to the FCS title game; McKay ended up at Elon where he’s been having a very good senior campaign: He threw three more TD passes last week for the Phoenix, who are unbeaten 5-1 overall and 3-0 in the CAA. McKay ranks in the top 10 in the FCS in several categories, including total offense (No. 5), passing yards (ninth) and passing efficiency (eighth).

In Becton’s rankings McKay is No. 9, while Montana’s Lucas Johnson is No. 7.

If you think things are going smoothly in Northern Colorado, they are not. The Northern Colorado Bears followed up the Idaho loss with a 55-7 shellacking at Sacramento State.

“I thought we played a really good football team that was well-coached and prepared,” UNC coach Ed McCaffrey told the Greeley (Colo.) Tribune. “I feel like we were not prepared and played our worst game of the year.

“We didn’t play well. They could have taken their team off the field, and I don’t think we would have played well.”

In a 34-7 home win over Idaho State, Dylan McCaffrey - the coach’s graduate student son – was 23 for 28 for 234 yards. He threw for 264 yards and two TDs at Idaho, but then was 16 of 35 for just 103 yards against the Hornets, which has still lost just one Big Sky game under coach Troy Taylor (17-1).

The Bears’ Elijah Dotson ran 16 times for 50 yards and one TD against his former team, for which he was all-Big Sky twice, including Taylor’s first year in Sacramento.

Idaho State coach Charlie Ragle had a press conference Monday to clear speculation about his health-related absence Saturday, when his Bengals lost 37-6 at Montana STate.

“The last 12 months I’ve dealt with A-Fib (Atrial fibrillation),” he said. “My A-Fib was fine; I have that under control with medication. Ultimately, here in the next few weeks I have to undergo a procedure. I am hoping to get through the end of the season to do it. It’s very standard, is what I should say.”

Ragel said a trip to Santa Barbara Thursday, then a return to Bozeman Friday affected his health.

“I think – I don’t think, I know –, I was worn down and was dehydrated,” he said. “I had an adverse reaction to some medicine that I take for A-Fib. All the things checked out fine but they thought … it would be best to sit it out.”

QUICK KICKS: UM’s Hauck has four wins against Idaho, which ties him for Don Read among Griz coaches in the Little Brown Stein game. … Idaho leads the series 55-30-2, and is the only Big Sky school to own a series lead over the Griz. … Montana is No. 1 among FCS schools in the Sagarin Ratings, which ranks every Division I program regardless of subdivision for USA Today. Sagarin, which plays a part in the Big Sky’s tie-breaking process, has the Griz No. 72 overall, ahead of Nebraska, Navy and yes, North Dakota State (77). Sac State is No. 2 among Big Sky schools at No. 82.