The Montana State University football team finally got back on track in the Big Sky Conference after two straight losses with a 41-10 win over winless Idaho State last Saturday.

While the Bobcats (5-3, 3-2 Big Sky) appear to be the heavy favorites again today at lowly Portland State, they will need to show that they have indeed solidified their previously shaky pass defense.

The Vikings (2-7, 1-5) have struggled without former offensive coordinator and inventor of the run-and-shoot offense Mouse Davis calling plays from the booth this season. Still, junior quarterback Drew Hubel is fourth in the league with 280.1 passing yards per game, even as PSU has focused on establishing the ground game.

"(The system) is a lot different, totally different. Mouse was a system guy, and he was a purist about it," MSU head coach Rob Ash said. "We knew what it was, it was still tough to defend, and they put up an astronomical number of points. Like I said, without Mouse there now, in some ways it's more difficult to defend because it's diversified and there's a lot of variety to it, more run game."

The transition to a balanced offense hasn't exactly worked out how the Vikings had hoped, with the team averaging just 91.9 rushing yards per game. As a result, the team is sitting in the bottom-half of the league in both total offense and scoring offense.

Sophomore part-time quarterback Connor Kavanaugh, who splits time with Kubel, actually leads the team with just 35.9 yards on the ground per contest.

Senior fullback Bobby McClintock is second with 31.2 yards per game.

MSU leads the league in rushing defense, allowing an average of just 77.4 yards on the ground, and will likely have few problems against PSU's ground attack.

Still, the Bobcats have proven vulnerable through the air in losses to pass-happy Northern Arizona and Eastern Washington in two losses preceding the Idaho State victory.

MSU allowed an average of 397 yards and three touchdowns via the passing game in those contests, and currently sits in seventh in passing defense.

Kubel's favorite target this season has been 5-foot-8 junior receiver Ray Fry who is averaging 90 yards per game and 15.3 yards per catch.

Senior Lavonte Kirven, second on the team with 66 yards per game, also leads the receiving corps with four touchdowns.

"I'm more excited than ever. I haven't been getting a lot of plays coming my way, and just watching film they love to throw the ball," MSU senior cornerback Kevin Retoriano said. "Hopefully, knowing they love to do that, I'll get some more plays coming at us. The secondary, we've already talked about it. We know that they're going to challenge us, and we're up to it."

The Bobcats will once again be leaning on the running game, headed by senior tailback Aaron Mason who ran for 108 yards and a pair of touchdowns against Idaho State.

Mason, who was out for two weeks folowing a concussion against Northern Arizona, was named the Big Sky's Offensive Player of the Week for his efforts.

Ash has yet to name his starting quarterback for the week with senior Mark Iddins and junior Cody Kempt taking equal snaps during the week.

Star defensive end Dan Fletcher was medically cleared to practice on Wednesday, but Ash said he will still likely be a game-time decision.