Lights looking for a spark at Rocky

The Montana State University-Northern Lights are hungry for a win. And they badly want to rebound from two tough losses to start the season. But there’s a problem — their opponent on Saturday is in the exact same boat.

Both the Lights (0-2, 0-1) and the Rocky Mountain Battlin Bears (1-1, 0-1) are fresh off of blowout losses in their Frontier Conference openers, and when they meet Saturday in Billings, something will have to give. Kickoff between the Lights and Bears is set for 1 p.m. at Herb Klindt Field.

“I can pretty much guarantee they (Bears) didn’t play the way they expected to last week,” said Northern first-year head coach Aaron Christensen. “So we expect that they’re going to play a lot better.”

The Bears were indeed in shock after last Saturday’s 49-6 home loss to the UM-Western Bulldogs. Not only is it unusual for an RMC team under Brian Armstrong to score just six points, but what’s worse is, the Bears’ defense didn’t play that poorly. Instead, RMC turned the ball over five times, and three of those, two fumbles and one interception, were for scores.

Meanwhile, Northern didn’t have the turnover issues in last Saturday’s 58-14 loss to Montana Tech in the Lights’ home opener. Instead, the Lights struggled to stop Tech’s spread offense, and in the end, Northern gave up 312 yards of offense in a game the Lights fell behind 35-0.

And for MSU-N to break out of a slump like that, and to wipe the slate clean, Christensen said the Lights will have to play better in every phase of the game Saturday in Billings.

“In all three phases, we’ve got to be more consistent,” Christensen said. “Right now, it feels like we have one good play and then two or three bad ones, and we can’t do that to ourselves. So, in this game, we just have to limit the mistakes we made last week, and obviously there were a lot of them. But being more consistent is a big key for us.”

Stopping a still dangerous RMC offense, and a Bears’ squad that will be out for revenge after Northern upset them on their home field last November, will be crucial for the MSU-N defense. And while slowing down two-time NAIA All-American wide receiver Andre McCullouch is the biggest goal for the MSU-N defense, getting pressure on Rocky’s young quarterbacks, Chase White and Jacob Bakken, will be huge. And the Lights have the guys up front to do it. Tyler Craig already has three sacks and 4.5 tackles for loss this season, while Jordan Brusio and Pat Barnett are also good pass rushers.

“They’ve (Bears) got some weapons on offense,” Christensen said. “They have one of the best receivers in the country. They can move the ball. So, we’re going to have to play much better defense.”

And while Northern has the personnel on defense to succeed, the Lights have to obviously score more points offensively.

Zach McKinley, who is within reach of MSU-N’s all-time rushing record, had 151 yards against Tech last week, and he’s leading the Frontier Conference in rushing yet again. But he didn’t find the endzone, and that’s something the Lights will look to change this weekend. Northern is averaging just 13.8 points per game so far this season.

But, in order for McKinley to really get on track, MSU-N needs the passing game to be better. Sophomore quarterback Jess Krahn threw two touchdowns last week, even without star receiver Jake Messerly in the lineup. But, Krahn and the Lights are averaging just 60.5 yards passing per game, and if Northern can’t get more balls completed to weapons like Messerly and tight end Kagen Khameneh, then teams like the Bears will be able to key on McKinley and running mate Mario Gobatto more and more.

In order for Northern’s offense to get on track, and for the Lights to get their first win for Christensen Saturday, again, they must clean up the mistakes that have held them back. But no matter how Saturday’s game goes, Christensen knows he has a team that wants to win, wants to get better and loves to work hard. And in the end, he says, if the Lights stay that course, good things will happen.

“That’s one thing that’s pretty hard to coach, and that’s enthusiasm and never giving up,” Christensen said. “And our team has that. This is a really good group of guys and they work really hard.

“Honestly, the mistakes that we’re making are mostly due to inexperience,” he added. “So if they just continue to stay positive, and continue to work hard like they have been, we’re going to get better, game by game.”

The Lights and Battlin’ Bears will meet Saturday at 1 p.m. at Herb Klindt Field in Billings. Northern returns home next Saturday to square off with Western in the Lights’ homecoming game..

Redemption

MSU-Northern Lights (0-1, 0-2) at RMC Battlin' Bears (0-1, 1-1)

Saturday 1 p.m.

in Billings

Streaming: http://www.msun.edu/athletics

Radio: 92.5 KPQX FM

Twitter: Twitter/Havredaily