Last Big Sky tune-ups for Cats, Griz

With a rare 12-game schedule in the Football Championship Subdivision this season, both the Montana State Bobcats and Montana Grizzlies have had a little more time to prepare for the rigors of Big Sky Conference play.

However, the time for preparing is almost over.

The Cats (2-1) and Griz (2-1) each have one Big Sky tune-up left, and both of those games come Saturday afternoon at home.

The No. 8 Bobcats will host Norfolk State of the Big South Conference Saturday afternoon in Bozeman. MSU is coming off a hard-fought win at MVC rival Western Illinois last Saturday, in a game that saw MSU's offense struggle at times, but also showed how much depth the Cats have at running back as senior Logan Jones rushed for a career high in yards and almost single-handedly carried the Cats to 23-13 road win.

Jones got as many touches as he did because star sophomore running back Isaiah Ifanse left with an injury, and star LB/RB/QB Troy Andersen also got dinged up and played mostly just defense, where he registered a key sack.

Of course, MSU also leaned heavily on its stout defense, which is quickly becoming one of the best in the FCS. Head coach Jeff Choate's squad is allowing just 25 ppg, a number which has steadily been coming down since the Cats' season-opening loss at Big 12 power Texas Tech.

However, moving forward, Choate and Co. would like to see MSU's offense show more balance, and that means more passing. The Cats are averaging nearly 200 yards rushing per game, but red-shirt freshman Casey Bauman is throwing for 161 yards per outing, which has MSU 11th in the Big Sky in passing offense. Bauman has struggled at times this season, but against the Spartans (1-2), he's looking to have a breakout performance, even though Norfolk won't be a pushover. The Spartans have lost two games to FBS opponents this season and are playing their first game against a fellow FCS squad when they come to Bozeman.

The No. 19 Griz are also playing an FCS non-conference team for the second time at home this season, as Monmouth (2-1) coming to Missoula Saturday. The Hawks were a playoff team two years ago and went 8-3 last season, and their only loss thus far is to FBS Western Michigan.

So, like Norfolk in Bozeman, Monmouth will be no pushover for the Griz. Having said that, Montana is coming off a very impressive outing at Pac 12 Oregon last Saturday night.

The Grizzlies held the high-octane Ducks to just 35 points in a 35-3 loss and did much better than most likely anyone thought they would. In that game, Montana's defense really stood tall, stopping the Ducks, and star QB Justin Herbert on three different fourth-down tries. Oregon native Dante Olson had a huge outing back in his home state as well, recording 14 tackles, and proving UM's defense is becoming a force to be reckoned with.

Offensively, the Griz didn't get in the endzone against a stellar Oregon defense, but Dalton Sneed still looked poised at quarterback, throwing for nearly 200 yards, while wide receivers Sammy Akem and Jerry Louie-McGee showcased their talents on a big, big stage.

Moving forward though, Montana wants to refocus this week against the Hawks. The Griz are still looking to run the ball better, with tailback Marcus Knight managing just 12 yards at Oregon. They also want to avoid the slow starts they had at South Dakota and at home against North Alabama. So expect the Griz to come flying out of the gates Saturday, as they play their final game before their Big Sky opener at No. 4 UC Davis Sept. 29.

Saturday's game between Montana and Monmouth kicks off at 1 p.m. inside Washington-Grizzly Stadium. The game will be televised on Montana ABC/Fox affiliates. MSU's game against Norfolk State also kicks off at 1 p.m. at Bobcat Stadium. The game will be televised on Montana ABC/Fox affiliates as well.