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MSU-Northern Game Day Notebook
Carroll College has always been, and will always be, a team with a defense that plays with an edge, and a swagger. Under Mike Van Diest, the Fighting Saints have always embodied physicality and toughness on defense.
The Montana State University-Northern Lights saw that first-hand Saturday in their 32-14 loss to the Saints inside Blue Pony Stadium. But the Lights also saw something else Saturday - their quarterback is one tough son-of-a-gun himself.
Playing quarterback against a relentless Carroll pass rush is never easy, and that's why what Northern senior Tommy Wilson did Saturday afternoon is so impressive.
Not only did Wilson score two rushing touchdowns, he took hit after hit from Carroll monsters like Beaugh Meyer and Chase Bowen, among others, and time and time again, Wilson kept getting up.
In fact, just before he scored his second TD, Wilson, who rushed for 22 yards on 10 carries, lowered his shoulders on a keeper and met Carroll linebacker Reece Quade head-on. It was an explosive hit, and yet Wilson hopped right back up, and scored two plays later.
All day long, Wilson was harassed by the Carroll defense, as he finished the game 17-for-28 for 189 yards, and most importantly, no interceptions. Wilson was also sacked three times, but the senior signal caller never wavered.
When Northern was trying to get one last score on the board, Wilson showed all his teammates just how tough he truly was. The game was out of reach for Northern, but Wilson scrambled up the right sideline and took an ugly late hit from a Carroll defender in the process. Wilson once again got up and kept going. It is that kind of play that showed everybody just how much the attitude is changing at Northern, and just how much of a tough leader the Light's quarterback is.
"Tommy is as tough as they come, and he's a darn good quarterback, too," MSU-N head coach Andrew Rolin said after Saturday's game. "You saw that today. He's the type of competitor you want quarterbacking your team. He hates to lose as much as I do. He's the kind of leader you need on your football team, and I'm darn glad he's on our team. He showed his toughness and his leadership today."
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In their first two games of 2018, the Carroll offense was held to just 10 total points. And things were looking bleak for the Saints, who have suffered through three straight losing seasons.
Now however, Carroll is starting to turn a corner it appears. Saturday's performance by Major Ali was his second straight 100-yard game, and Kolby Killoy has settled into the starting QB job nicely. As a result, Carroll's offense, with a dangerous weapon in Shane Sipes at WR, has started to click. The Saints had season highs in every offensive category Saturday, and they've now won two straight.
"That team (Saints), is very good, and I think you're going to see them get better and better as the season goes on," Robin said.
Clean Game
The scoreboard is all that mattered Saturday, and the Lights were on the wrong end of it against Carroll. But Northern continued to make strides in two areas that have haunted the Lights in recent years.
First, Northern played its second game of the season without committing a turnover, and for the third time in four games, Wilson didn't throw an interception. That's a far cry from the last three years when the Lights were dead last in turnover margin, and they led the Frontier Conference in interceptions thrown in each of those last three years.
Penalties have been another issue in year's past, and yet, Northern committed just two infractions against Carroll on Saturday. That's a huge step forward, and is especially encouraging considering how young the Lights are.
If Northern can continue the kind of disciplined play that it showed Saturday against the Saints, then there's no doubt, the Lights will also continue to show continued improvement on the scoreboard, too.
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