BOZEMAN — The innovation over the past decade in the Big Sky Conference has been the most fun to witness for Idaho State head football coach Cody Hawkins.

He pointed to the days of former Eastern Washington head coach Beau Baldwin stacking four receivers to one side of the formation (three of whom were All-Americans Cooper Kupp, Kendrick Bourne and Shaq Hill).

In later years, former Sacramento State head coach Troy Taylor iterated on the quarterback run game and Montana State head coach Brent Vigen found versatility out of 12 personnel (one running back, two tight ends). Former Idaho head coach Jason Eck had similar success with his wide zone schemes, Hawkins said.

That tradition carried into 2024, with the addition of UC Davis’ Tim Plough being “absolutely incredible” with his up-tempo

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