Portland State Picked 12th Out of 13 In Big Sky Preseason Poll
Portland State athletics press release –
Big Sky Conference Releases Preseason Football Polls
The Big Sky Conference released its Preseason Polls prior to the upcoming Big Sky Kickoff Event at Northern Quest Casino and Resort in Spokane, WA, July 25-27. The Preseason All-Conference teams will be released on Sunday.
Portland State has been picked 12th among 13 teams in both the Big Sky Coaches and Media Polls. That came as no surprise as the Vikings come off a 1-11 season, 1-7 in the Big Sky in 2025.
However, it will certainly provide motivation for a new era of Vikings Football led by first-year Head Coach Chris Fisk. Fisk, with a new coaching staff and heavy roster turnover, plans to disprove the prognosticators in 2026. It won’t be easy though, as Portland State plays in the strongest FCS conference in the nation.
Montana State, the defending national champion and 2024 runner-up, was no surprise as the choice to win the Big Sky again in 2026, leading both the coaches and media polls. In fact, the Bobcats earned 11 of 13 first-place votes from the coaches and 35 of 38 first-place votes from the media.
The Bobcats were followed by Montana and UC Davis in both polls. Northern Arizona and Idaho State shared the numbers four and five spots.
The Vikings do not play Montana State this season in the 13-team conference, but will face Montana, UC Davis, Northern Arizona and Idaho State, with three of the four games coming on the road.
For the past two seasons, Portland State was considered to have among the most challenging schedules in all of FCS. The strength of schedule ranked number one in 2024 and in the top ten in 2025.
This year won’t be much different with nationally-ranked opponents in UC Davis, North Dakota, Northern Arizona and Montana coming up. Also, the Vikings play San Diego State of the Pac-12 Conference and FBS powerhouse Oregon from the Big 10.
Portland State will participate in the Big Sky Conference Football Kickoff this weekend, introducing new coach Chris Fisk to the league and media, as well as player representatives Jaxton Helmstetler (SR LB) and Terence Loville (SR WR).
The Vikings will open preseason practice on Wednesday, July 29 at Stott Community Field on the PSU campus (9:15 a.m.). The season begins on Aug. 29 with a Big Sky home game at Hillsboro Stadium against UC Davis (Noon).
Big Sky Football Preseason Coaches Poll
1. Montana State (11) – 143
2. Montana – 130
3. UC Davis (2) – 121
4. Northern Arizona – 108
5. Idaho State – 99
6. Southern Utah – 82
7. Idaho – 77
8. Eastern Washington – 70
9. Weber State – 48
10. Northern Colorado – 47
11. Cal Poly – 46
12. Portland State – 24
13. Utah Tech – 19
Big Sky Football Preseason Media Poll
1. Montana State (35) – 490
2. Montana (1) – 448
3. UC Davis (2) – 421
4. Idaho State – 349
5. Northern Arizona – 339
6. Idaho – 283
7. Southern Utah – 273
8. Eastern Washington – 246
9. Cal Poly – 168
10. Weber State – 155
11. Northern Colorado – 153
12. Portland State – 68
13. Utah Tech – 65
*Parentheses denote first-place vote // Coaches could not vote for their own team