Bobcats, Grizzlies roll over rivals

MISSOULA — Another early deficit, another large win at home. Saturdays inside Washington-Grizzly Stadium have followed a pretty familiar script this season, and that trend continued in a 42-17 win against Idaho. The details were a little different this time around, but the No. 6 Grizzlies scored 28 unanswered points in three quarters after facing a double-digit deficit early en route to the win.

The Grizzlies and improved Montana to 2-0 against Idaho since it returned to the Big Sky. Montana also retained ownership of the Little Brown Stein and moved to 8-2 on the season in the process.

"It was a good hard-fought win for our team. Our defense held the rope for us," Head Coach Bobby Hauck said. "We were struggling on offense. With the three turnovers in the first quarter, we were lucky to not be down 28-0 or something, and after we got that fixed, we played really well in all three phases. It was a great win for us."

Montana received a breakout performance by true freshman Nick Ostmo, who ran for the first two touchdowns of his career. His fellow running back Marcus Knight had a trio of touchdowns, as the running game was limited in yardage but not in impact. The most important moment of the game came on Montana's first drive of the second quarter when starting quarterback Dalton Sneed took the field for the first time since being injured on Oct. 19. Sneed's return fired up the crowd, and quickly paid dividends.

After Montana's offense had turned the ball over three times in its first three drives, Sneed led the Griz to a touchdown that flipped the momentum of the game. The emotion was evident in the senior quarterback, who summed up how he felt about returning to the field following the game.

"No better feeling than playing football," Sneed said. "I've got such great teammates and coaches around me. They were out there saying, 'Hey man, we are going to go do this together.' It's a team sport, a team game, and I was just happy to be out there."

As a team, they would go on to score 28 straight points and close the game on a 42-10 run. It was the latest comeback for a Griz team that has made a living in the second half this year. The Grizzlies outscored the Vandals by 21 in the second half on Saturday, bringing their season-long point differential in the second half to +154.

"I'm proud of our guys because we weathered the storm and then won going away," Hauck said. "They have a game bunch, but I think we have a pretty good football team."

In his return, Sneed threw for 241 yards and a touchdown to lead the Grizzlies to the win. He fed the hot hand of Samori Toure, who had nine catches for 129 yards and a touchdown. In the last two games, Toure has 16 catches for 269 yards and four scores.

The Grizzly defense locked up Idaho's offense for most of the game. After the Vandals scored on two of their first four drives of the game, Montana allowed just one score over the final eight drives of the game. They also flipped the story in the turnover game. Montana turned the ball over three times early, but the defense kept working and ended up forcing Idaho into four turnovers of their own.

Jesse Sims and Milton Mamula each forced a fumble, while Dante Olson and Patrick O'Connell fell on top of them. Joe Babros and Nash Fouch each added an interception as well, as Montana fought their way back and won the turnover battle.

They had a difficult time containing elusive Idaho quarterback Mason Petrino early, but as the game wore on, the Grizzlies had more and more success. The defense has consistently ground away at opposing offenses all year, and Saturday was no exception.

Olson had yet another big game, recording 13 tackles (six of which were solo) and a massive 14-yard sack to go along with his fumble recovery. Mamula had two sacks himself as the Grizzlies were able to bring Petrino down five times on the game. Robby Hauck also had a nice day with 10 tackles.

Early in the game, it was the turnovers that helped the Vandals build a lead. Montana turned it over on its first three possessions, which Idaho turned into 10 points. Montana faced another early deficit but had plenty of game left.

Enter Sneed.

The Grizzly quarterback returned for Montana's first drive of the second quarter and quickly connected on two big passes for 42 yards. Add in an unsportsmanlike penalty by Idaho, and the Griz were back in the red zone. Nick Ostmo capped off an impressive drive with a seven-yard rushing touchdown, the first of his career.

The Grizzlies had another chance to score at the end of the half after a good defensive stop. Samori Toure gave the Griz their first lead of the game with two massive plays. First, a 31-yard reception down the sideline that he hauled in with one hand. Then he found all sorts of space across the middle of the field, breaking free for a 44-yard touchdown grab.

It kept an impressive streak going for Toure. In the first half alone on Saturday, he had five catches for 101 yards and a score.

Idaho broke a run of 28 straight Montana points with a touchdown, but the Grizzlies answered right back. Montana went 75 yards in seven plays, scoring on Knight's second of the day. He got his hat trick on Montana's next drive, scoring from two yards out to make it 42-17 with under five minutes remaining. The score brought Knight's season total to 17 touchdowns (16 rushing, one receiving), which ties him with Lex Hilliard (2004) and Yohance Humphery (2001) for the fourth-most in a single season in program history.

The eighth win of the year matches the most in a single season for the Grizzlies since an 8-5 campaign in 2015. It also sets Montana up for a difficult end to the season. The Grizzlies will return home next weekend to take on No. 3 Weber State in a top 10 matchup. After that, the Grizzlies close out the season on the road against Montana State.

The Griz wrap up their home schedule Saturday against the Wildcats.

"If you asked me where we are at now, compared to where I thought we would be at now when I first got here two springs ago, I'd say we're probably a year ahead of where I thought we would be," Hauck said. "That's because we've got a bunch of great guys wearing our helmets and playing for us."

Bobcats 45, N. Colorado 14

GREELEY, Colorado — Montana State spent the early part of Saturday "softening the edges" of Northern Colorado's defense. The rest of the afternoon, the Bobcats pounded the middle of the line. The result was 451 rushing yards and a 45-14 Bobcat win.

"We talked all week about softening the edges," said MSU running back Lane Sumner, who rushed for 72 yards. "That helped get downhill and crease them."

The Bobcats rushed for 451 yards, the third-highest total in MSU history and the most in the history of UNC's Nottingham Field. Logan Jones gained 122 yards, receiver Tyrone Marshall rushed for 64, and Davine Tullis had 63 yards.

"This team has been playing very stingy run defense tackle-to-tackle," said MSU head coach Jeff Choate. "No matter who they've played, whoever has tried to run right at them hasn't been that effective. We knew coming in, that's what we do. The plan was to soften the edges and counter punch as the game went."

MSU's first series attacked UNC's perimeter. Jones gained 17 yards outside, Marshall gained 39 yards on a sweep, and Willie Patterson scampered for 10 on an end-around. The Cats capped the scoring drive when linebacker Troy Andersen, lined up at quarterback, tossed the ball to defensive tackle Jason Scrempos, lined up at tight end, for a touchdown pass.

The counter-punch, as Choate called it, came soon after halftime. Logan Jones tore off a 57-yard run to open the third quarter "right in the middle," Sumner said, crediting the early commitment to running outside. Jones ran for five more, and after an incomplete pass barged into the end zone. That play gave the Cats an insurmountable 31-7 lead.

Northern Colorado's only first-half score came on a pick-six. Late in the first quarter, a Tucker Rovig pass was intercepted by Brooks Talkington and returned 10 yards for a touchdown.

The whole while, Montana State's defense was brilliant. UNC rushed for just 44 yards on the afternoon, and through three quarters had gained just 202 total yards.

Linebacker Josh Hill led MSU with 10 tackles, two for a loss. Troy Andersen and Bryce Sterk each logged sacks.

Montana State raised its record to 7-3 overall, 4-2 in the Big Sky, and faces a crucial tilt at UC Davis next Saturday.