2020 BIG SKY FOOTBALL KICKOFF QUOTES

COACHES

Cal Poly Head Coach On returning to coach in the Big Sky

“When it all happened it was just an opportunity that definitely had so many positives to it. It wasn’t so much returning to the Big Sky over anything else, it was just an opportunity with Cal Poly. The leadership between President Jeffrey Armstrong and Athletic Director Don Oberhelman, and different things that I thought were in place made Cal Poly a very special place.”

Eastern Washington Head Coach On what he would like to see out of QB Eric Barriere this season

“Eric came in as a redshirt in 2016 so we were awarded the opportunity to see his growth on and off the field over the next four or five years. I’d like to see him continue to progress what he did last year and that’s maintaining the football and not turning the ball over. I want him to continue to challenge his players not just offensively but defensively, stay engaged, and continue to direct traffic.”

Idaho Head Coach On the most challenging element of playing in the Big Sky

“We have such good play week in and week out. It’s usually the team with the best quarterback wins. There’s just so many highly-talented and the offensive coordinators and head coaches do such a good job with them.”

Idaho State Head Coach On what his team needs to improve on this season and building a consistent winner at ISU

“We need to grow in the quarterback and offensive line positions and play better defense. We’re only as good as our quarterback and I think that was evident last year. The challenge here at Idaho State is the fact that we’re still working on building that winning tradition. It sure helps when you’re coming off a 6- 5 or 7-4 year. That gets the kids hungry.”

Montana Head Coach On the importance of depth

“We’ve had good depth when we had attrition and guys have gone down. The man coming in and picking up the flag has been capable, and in some cases exceeded, the guy in front of him. If you’re playing in the national championship game, you’re playing 15 or 16 games and that really takes a tremendous physical toll on your team so you have to have depth and overcome setbacks.”

Montana State Head Coach Jeff Choate On his team taking that next step

“I didn’t think we were the most physically gifted team over the last couple of years but I do think we had really good chemistry and a toughness about us that allowed us to play a lot of tight games and win a lot of tight games. My concern in taking that next step is how quickly are we going to be able to reestablish our standards and culture.”

Northern Arizona Head Coach On his expectations for year two at NAU

“We have a lot of kids coming back on both sides of the ball. We’ve improved on positions that needed to be improved in recruiting. You have to show up every day and make yourself better. We talk to our kids and say ‘when your feet hit the floor in the morning you decide who you’re going to be.’ If you can make yourself a little better each day then we’re going to be just fine.”

Northern Colorado Head Coach Ed McCaffrey On his decision to become a coach and leading the UNC program

“I just followed my heart and an opportunity presented itself. It all started for me at Northern Colorado so I’m really proud and honored to serve as their head coach. I spent seven or eight years there as a Denver Bronco practicing in training camp and I have many fond memories. I met a lot of wonderful people. It’s a great community.”

Portland State Head Coach On his team’s biggest strength this season

“I think we’re going to be able to score. I like us offensively. I like how we bolstered some positions that were already strong. Between my quarterback and a core of receivers, I have some smart, tough and productive football players.”

Sacramento State Head Coach Troy Taylor On staying on top of the conference race

“We don’t feel like we’re on the top. Every day we’re trying to fight and crawl to be consistent. Honestly, I think the biggest challenge is having to come in here the year before and building a culture and not seeing your guys for a number of months. It feels very uneasy, there’s just a strange feeling about it.” Southern Utah Head Coach On what makes Big Sky schools so attractive to recruits

“I think being on the West Coast helps but there’s also excellent universities in our conference with great locations. There are great football players. If you want to go to the next level, the Big Sky has consistently put out players from different programs and has the respect from the NFL.”

UC Davis Head Coach On the departure of QB Jake Maier

“He was great. He signed with Calgary up in the Canadian Football League and he’ll have a great career there. He was a really tremendous leader on our football team. But Tim Plough is one of the greatest coordinators in the country and does a good job in the quarterback room. We feel like we have a ton of guys there that have an opportunity to play, we just don’t know who that is right now.”

Weber State Head Coach Jay Hill On the key to reloading his defense this season

“We reloaded and the next guy stepped up and we had another good defensive year last year. That’s part of college football. You’re going to reload at least every four years. You hopefully have your backups learning until it’s their time.”