Big Sky Conference

The Big Sky Conference (BSC) is an intercollegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I, with football competing in the Football Championship Subdivision. Member institutions are located in the western United States in the nine states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Oregon, Utah, and Washington. Two new affiliate members, from California, are football-only participants. Initially conceived for basketball, the BSC was founded in 1963 with six members in four states; four of the charter members remain, and a fifth will return to the conference in 2014.

Former members
Notes:


 * Gonzaga and Idaho were charter members in 1963; Gonzaga has not fielded a football team since 1941.
 * Idaho will rejoin the Big Sky Conference for the 2014 school year (except football, which will play as independent in FBS).

Membership timeline
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Sports
As of the 2012–13 school year, the Big Sky sponsors championships in men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, football, women's golf, women's soccer, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's indoor and outdoor track, women's volleyball, and softball. The sport most recently added is softball; the 2012 expansion gave the Big Sky enough softball-playing institutions to form a softball conference. Cal Poly and UC Davis participate as football-only affiliates, with the rest of their sports participating in the Big West.

The Big Sky is unusual among Division I all-sports conferences in not sponsoring baseball. The conference originally sponsored baseball, with all members participating. When Boise State and Northern Arizona arrived for the 1971 season, competition was split into two divisions of four teams each, with the winners in a best-of-three championship series. Montana State and Montana soon dropped the sport and by the 1973 season, only six teams remained but the divisions were kept, and Boise State moved over to the North Division for two years. In May 1974, the Big Sky announced its intention to discontinue five of its ten sponsored sports. It retained football, basketball, cross-county, track, and wrestling, and dropped conference competition in baseball, golf, tennis, swimming, and skiing. Of the eleven Big Sky baseball titles, four each went to Idaho (1964,'66,'67,'69) and Gonzaga (1965,'71,'73,'74), and three to Weber State (1968,'70,'72). Gonzaga won the final title in 1974 over Idaho State in three games, after losing the first game in Pocatello. Southern division champion Idaho State chose to end its baseball program weeks following the conference's announcement, and Gonzaga, Idaho, and Boise State joined the new Northern Pacific League (NorPac) for baseball in 1975. Boise State and Idaho competed in the NorPac for six seasons, then discontinued baseball after the 1980 season.

Facilities
Note: Future members highlighted in gray.

Conference

 * Eastern Washington and Portland State
 * Idaho State and Weber State
 * Idaho State and Montana
 * Montana and Montana State
 * Portland State and Sacramento State
 * Weber State and Southern Utah
 * Eastern Washington and Montana

Non-conference
Rivalries in italics will once again become conference matchups once Idaho returns to the Big Sky.
 * Weber State and Utah State/Utah/BYU/Utah Valley
 * Eastern Washington and Gonzaga
 * Idaho State and Idaho
 * Idaho State and Wyoming
 * Montana and Idaho
 * Montana and Wyoming
 * Montana State and Wyoming
 * Sacramento State and UC Davis
 * Portland State and Portland
 * Northern Colorado and Colorado State
 * Northern Colorado and Denver
 * North Dakota and North Dakota State (defunct)
 * North Dakota and South Dakota

Commissioners

 * 1963 – Jack Friel
 * 1971 – John Roning
 * 1977 – Steve Belko
 * 1981 – Ron Stephenson
 * 1995 – Doug Fullerton

Headquarters

 * 1963 – Pullman, Washington
 * 1971 – Boise, Idaho
 * 1996 – Ogden, Utah

Big Sky football titles
Season, conference record, and champion


 * 1963 - (3-1) - Idaho State
 * 1964 - (3-0) - Montana State - won Camellia Bowl
 * 1965 - (3-1) - Weber State^ and Idaho
 * 1966 - (4-0) - Montana State
 * 1967 - (4-0) - Montana State
 * 1968 - (3-1) - Idaho, Montana State, and Weber State
 * 1969 - (4-0) - Montana


 * 1970 - (5-0) - Montana
 * 1971 - (4-1) - Idaho - (Boise State won Camellia Bowl, UI was Div. I)
 * 1972 - (5-1) - Montana State
 * 1973 - (6-0) - Boise State - Div. II semi-finalist
 * 1974 - (6-0) - Boise State
 * 1975 - (5-0-1) - Boise State
 * 1976 - (6-0) - Montana State - won Div. II national championship
 * 1977 - (6-0) - Boise State - not invited to Div. II playoffs
 * 1978 - (6-0) - Northern Arizona - not invited to inaugural four-team I-AA playoffs - (independent Nevada selected from West)
 * 1979 - (6-1) - Montana State - (Boise State (7-0) ineligible) - Nevada (5-2) to four-team I-AA playoffs


 * 1980 - (6-1) - Boise State - won I-AA national championship
 * 1981 - (6-1) - Idaho State^ - (also 6-1 - Boise State - both to eight-team I-AA playoffs) - ISU won I-AA national championship
 * 1982 - (5-2) - Montana^ - (also 5-2 - Idaho, Montana State - UM @ UI in twelve-team I-AA playoffs, MSU excluded)
 * 1983 - (6-1) - Nevada - I-AA semi-finalist
 * 1984 - (6-1) - Montana State - won I-AA national championship
 * 1985 - (6-1) - Idaho^ - (also 6-1 - Nevada - both to I-AA playoffs)
 * 1986 - (7-0) - Nevada - I-AA semi-finalist
 * 1987 - (7-1) - Idaho^ - (also 7-1 - Weber State - both to I-AA playoffs)
 * 1988 - (7-1) - Idaho - I-AA semi-finalist
 * 1989 - (8-0) - Idaho - (Montana - I-AA semi-finalist)


 * 1990 - (7-1) - Nevada - I-AA runner-up, defeated Boise State in I-AA semi-finals in 3OT
 * 1991 - (8-0) - Nevada
 * 1992 - (6-1) - Idaho^ and Eastern Washington - (both to I-AA playoffs)
 * 1993 - (7-0) - Montana - (Idaho - I-AA semi-finalist)
 * 1994 - (6-1) - Boise State - I-AA runner-up - (Montana - I-AA semi-finalist)
 * 1995 - (6-1) - Montana - won I-AA national championship
 * 1996 - (8-0) - Montana - I-AA runner-up
 * 1997 - (7-1) - Eastern Washington - I-AA semi-finalist
 * 1998 - (6-2) - Montana
 * 1999 - (7-1) - Montana


 * 2000 - (8-0) - Montana - I-AA runner-up
 * 2001 - (7-0) - Montana - won I-AA national championship
 * 2002 - (5-2) - Montana, Montana State, and Idaho State - (UM, MSU to I-AA playoffs, ISU excluded)
 * 2003 - (5-2) - Montana State^, Montana, and Northern Arizona - (all three to I-AA playoffs)
 * 2004 - (6-1) - Montana^ and Eastern Washington - (both to I-AA playoffs) - UM - I-AA runner-up
 * 2005 - (5-2) - Eastern Washington^, Montana State, and Montana - (EWU, UM to I-AA playoffs, MSU excluded)
 * 2006 - (8-0) - Montana - FCS semi-finalist
 * 2007 - (8-0) - Montana
 * 2008 - (7-1) - Weber State^ and Montana - (both to FCS playoffs) - UM - FCS runner-up
 * 2009 - (8-0) - Montana - FCS runner-up
 * 2010 - (7-1) - Montana State^ and Eastern Washington - (both to FCS playoffs) - EWU won FCS national championship
 * 2011 - (7-1) - Montana^ and Montana State (both to FCS playoffs)
 * 2012 - (7-1) - Eastern Washington^, Montana State, and Cal Poly - (all three to FCS playoffs)

^ - winner of head-to-head matchup(s) in conference game(s) during the regular season.

Football

 * Eastern Washington Eagles football
 * Montana Grizzlies football
 * Idaho State Bengals football
 * 2012 Big Sky Conference football season

Basketball

 * Big Sky Conference Men's Basketball Tournament
 * Big Sky Conference Women's Basketball Tournament