MISSOULA — Montana and Montana State held firm in the latest Stats Perform FCS Top 25 Poll, which was released Monday. The Grizzlies (11-0 overall, 7-0 Big Sky) are second and the Bobcats (9-2, 7-0) are third.
North Dakota State (11-0) is the unanimous No. 1-ranked team after the Bison received all 56 first-place votes. Lehigh (11-0) and Tarleton State (10-1) are Nos. 4 and 5. View the complete rankings.
When Montana and Montana State kick off in their annual rivalry matchup on Saturday, November 22, 2025, it'll be the highest combined rankings between the teams in the series. The game will also serve as the de facto Big Sky Conference championship, with the winner securing the league's automatic bid to the FCS playoffs and a top-two seed.
This week's FCS top 25 poll featured few drastic movers. Of this week's first 15 teams, only two moved up or down more than one spot — Illinois State climbed from No. 14 to No. 11 following last week's 35-21 win at then-No. 16 South Dakota State, and UC Davis fell from ninth to 15th after its 38-17 loss at No. 3 Montana State.
SDSU, which has now lost four consecutive games, slid to No. 22 in the rankings, one spot ahead of Northern Arizona. The Lumberjacks, the fourth and final Big Sky team in the poll, defeated Cal Poly 35-27 last week and close out the regular season at Weber State as they try lock up an at-large playoff bid.
In addition to the Brawl of the Wild (which airs at noon Saturday on KRTV and other CBS stations across Montana) and NAU's game at Weber State, No. 15 UC Davis host Sacramento State in a Big Sky game that could have playoff implications. The Aggies and Hornets are tied at 5-2 in the league standings and both have seven regular-season wins.
This Saturday's Big Sky schedule:
- No. 3 Montana State at No. 2 Montana, noon
- No. 23 Northern Arizona at Weber State, 1 p.m.
- Sacramento State at No. 15 UC Davis, 2 p.m.
- Portland State at Northern Colorado, 1 p.m.
- Idaho State at Idaho, 2 p.m.
- Eastern Washington at Cal Poly, 3 p.m.
