Grizzlies top Bearkats on road to the I-AA championship
12/11/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
The Montana Grizzlies blew past their last obstacle - Sam Houston State - on the road to Chattanooga, Tenn., and a chance to compete in their fifth Division I-AA national championship game.
The Grizzlies were led by sophomore cornerback Tuff Harris who picked off two key passes in the first half to help the Griz defeat the Bearkats 34-13 Saturday afternoon at Washington-Grizzly Stadium.
The announced attendance of 23,607 was a record for the largest crowd for a semifinal playoff game in the I-AA playoffs.
With the win, Montana advances to the championship game in Chattanooga, Tenn., where the Griz will take on James Madison. The Dukes defeated No. 3 seed William & Mary, 48-34, in the other semifinal on Friday night.
Redemption was on the minds of the Griz coming into the game remembering their early season 41-29 loss to the Bearkats in September.
"Having to watch that film (against Sam Houston on Sept. 18) was heartbreaking," said Montana defensive end, Dustin Dlouhy who had two sacks and a forced fumble. "We made so many mistakes, but ever since the Bobcat-Griz game there's been an aura around this team ... every body has a purpose."
Harris' two picks doubled his season total and nullified the fact that - statistically - Montana got it handed to them in the first half. The Griz had nearly 100 fewer total yards on offense, combined for just 20 yards rushing and had just four first downs to Sam Houston's 10.
"We didn't execute that well in the first half," Griz coach Bobby Hauck said. "It wasn't that they had our number - it was more of us not executing our plays."
But the one stat that the Griz dominated during the game, and all season long, was in the turnover margin.
"We didn't get a take-away and we gave up four," Sam Houston State coach Ron Randleman said. "You're not going to win on the road against anybody doing that. That's just the way football's played."
Montana's defensive line came up big as well.
Coming into the game Bearkat quarterback Dustin Long was sacked three times all season, but Montana's defense doubled that total with solid coverage in the secondary and good defensive pressure from the line.
Long threw for 375 yards despite being sacked six times, three of which were tallied by sophomore defensive end Mike Murphy. But as coach Hauck said after the game to Ochs, "The difference was that we had the better quarterback."
Ochs legs almost outshined his arm as he led all rushers with 81 yards on eight carries. Yet he didn't let the fans forget about his arm, completing 22-of-30 passes for 204 yards and three touchdowns. He completed passes to six different receivers and connected with Tate Hancock, Jon Talmage and Willie Walden on touchdown passes.
Redemption was on the mind of Harris as well on the first of his two interceptions.
Harris got beat by Jason Mathenia for a 38-yard completion in the first quarter. On the next play, Long threw Harris's way again, but this time, Harris stepped in front of the Bearkat receiver's slant pattern and ran it back 74 yards to the Bearkat 25-yard line.
"(The defensive secondary) was in the right position at the right time," Harris said about his interception.
Montana used the change in momentum to their advantage on the next possession when Ochs connected with Walden on a 25-yard score. Walden made a tough over-the-shoulder catch for the games first touchdown - capitalizing on the SHSU mistake for a potential 14-point swing.
"It was a good time to hit a team with a big play," Ochs said. "I made it a bit difficult to catch for (Walden), but he made an incredible catch. He's a wonderful athlete and he showed it."
Harris' second pick came late in the second quarter when Long rolled left and threw across his body directly to Harris. Harris used his blazing speed and returned it down to the Bearkat 4-yard line. "Those two interceptions gave us great team position," Ochs said. "It gave us the momentum before the half."
Two plays later with 1:25 left in the first half, Ochs tried to thread the needle to Levander Segars but the ball was deflected away. Luckily for the Griz, Hancock was in perfect position to fall under the tipped pass to put UM up 14-6 at the half.
"The guy was all over L.V. (Segars) and the ball went off his shoulder pad. I was able to dive and make the catch," Hancock said of his miraculous 4-yard touchdown reception.
The Bearkats, despite their 209 total yards on offense in the first half, were only able to convert two field goals from 37 and 40 yards.
The Griz started lost much of their momentum in the beginning of the second half with a false start and a sack that put them in the hole at second and 18. But Ochs remained calm while scrambling to his right and completed a big first down pass to Lex Hilliard for 17 yards. Hilliard led all Griz receivers with six catches for 43 yards.
"If we don't get that (catch), it's third and 18," Ochs said about the importance of the drive-saving reception. "We would have lost the momentum we had going into halftime ... it was huge."
Two plays later, Ochs picked up 29 rushing yards, credited by two key blocks by Hancock and Walden. Soon after, Ochs decided to use his arm instead of his legs when he connected with Talmage for a 14-yard touchdown catch that only Talmage, at 6-foot-4, could have caught.
"Craig runs well and he's good with the football," Hauck said. "He's a great football player and he carried us today on the offensive side."
Even though the touchdown put the Griz up 21-6, as Harris said, "They (SHSU) were always in the game."
Sam Houston's offensive power showed on its next possession by driving 55 yards to get within Montana's 30 yard line. The drive quickly came to a halt when Griz defensive end Dustin Dlouhy sacked Long and forced him to fumble, which was recovered by Blake Horgan on Montana's 41-yard line.
Again, Montana was able to capitalize on Sam Houston's turnover, when Hilliard was able to find a hole on the right side of the line. Hilliard's 7-yard touchdown scamper almost put the game out of reach at 28-6 with 4:42 left in the third quarter.
Sam Houston fired right back with a touchdown of its own when Stevie Smith ran it in from 1-yard out to bring the score to 28-13, the only touchdown of the game for the Bearkats. Long and the Bearkats were unable to utilize their explosive passing weapons to reach the end zone through the air, which they had been successful at all year.
Montana's defense shut down any momentum Sam Houston tried to mount by not letting them score the rest of the game. In the mean time, Montana's offense was able to get within striking distance of place kicker Dan Carpenter. The freshman from Helena, Mont., connected on 25- and 40-yard field goals to put the game out of reach.
"We're playing our best football," Hauck said. "We played better darn near every week. It's fun to be on this role we're on. We need to finish the job next week."
Griz fans in attendance could not help themselves in the postgame celebration as they tore both goal posts down, breaking the south goal post into three pieces.
"It was fun to see the fans on our side tear down the goal posts," Hauck said, who has always been on the losing side when fans have torn down the goal posts.
Hauck and the Grizzlies will now face the James Madison Dukes in the NCAA Division I-AA national championship. The title game is Friday at 6 p.m. in Chattanooga, Tenn. ESPN2 will televise the game nationally.
The Grizzlies were led by sophomore cornerback Tuff Harris who picked off two key passes in the first half to help the Griz defeat the Bearkats 34-13 Saturday afternoon at Washington-Grizzly Stadium.
The announced attendance of 23,607 was a record for the largest crowd for a semifinal playoff game in the I-AA playoffs.
With the win, Montana advances to the championship game in Chattanooga, Tenn., where the Griz will take on James Madison. The Dukes defeated No. 3 seed William & Mary, 48-34, in the other semifinal on Friday night.
Redemption was on the minds of the Griz coming into the game remembering their early season 41-29 loss to the Bearkats in September.
"Having to watch that film (against Sam Houston on Sept. 18) was heartbreaking," said Montana defensive end, Dustin Dlouhy who had two sacks and a forced fumble. "We made so many mistakes, but ever since the Bobcat-Griz game there's been an aura around this team ... every body has a purpose."
Harris' two picks doubled his season total and nullified the fact that - statistically - Montana got it handed to them in the first half. The Griz had nearly 100 fewer total yards on offense, combined for just 20 yards rushing and had just four first downs to Sam Houston's 10.
"We didn't execute that well in the first half," Griz coach Bobby Hauck said. "It wasn't that they had our number - it was more of us not executing our plays."
But the one stat that the Griz dominated during the game, and all season long, was in the turnover margin.
"We didn't get a take-away and we gave up four," Sam Houston State coach Ron Randleman said. "You're not going to win on the road against anybody doing that. That's just the way football's played."
Montana's defensive line came up big as well.
Coming into the game Bearkat quarterback Dustin Long was sacked three times all season, but Montana's defense doubled that total with solid coverage in the secondary and good defensive pressure from the line.
Long threw for 375 yards despite being sacked six times, three of which were tallied by sophomore defensive end Mike Murphy. But as coach Hauck said after the game to Ochs, "The difference was that we had the better quarterback."
Ochs legs almost outshined his arm as he led all rushers with 81 yards on eight carries. Yet he didn't let the fans forget about his arm, completing 22-of-30 passes for 204 yards and three touchdowns. He completed passes to six different receivers and connected with Tate Hancock, Jon Talmage and Willie Walden on touchdown passes.
Redemption was on the mind of Harris as well on the first of his two interceptions.
Harris got beat by Jason Mathenia for a 38-yard completion in the first quarter. On the next play, Long threw Harris's way again, but this time, Harris stepped in front of the Bearkat receiver's slant pattern and ran it back 74 yards to the Bearkat 25-yard line.
"(The defensive secondary) was in the right position at the right time," Harris said about his interception.
Montana used the change in momentum to their advantage on the next possession when Ochs connected with Walden on a 25-yard score. Walden made a tough over-the-shoulder catch for the games first touchdown - capitalizing on the SHSU mistake for a potential 14-point swing.
"It was a good time to hit a team with a big play," Ochs said. "I made it a bit difficult to catch for (Walden), but he made an incredible catch. He's a wonderful athlete and he showed it."
Harris' second pick came late in the second quarter when Long rolled left and threw across his body directly to Harris. Harris used his blazing speed and returned it down to the Bearkat 4-yard line. "Those two interceptions gave us great team position," Ochs said. "It gave us the momentum before the half."
Two plays later with 1:25 left in the first half, Ochs tried to thread the needle to Levander Segars but the ball was deflected away. Luckily for the Griz, Hancock was in perfect position to fall under the tipped pass to put UM up 14-6 at the half.
"The guy was all over L.V. (Segars) and the ball went off his shoulder pad. I was able to dive and make the catch," Hancock said of his miraculous 4-yard touchdown reception.
The Bearkats, despite their 209 total yards on offense in the first half, were only able to convert two field goals from 37 and 40 yards.
The Griz started lost much of their momentum in the beginning of the second half with a false start and a sack that put them in the hole at second and 18. But Ochs remained calm while scrambling to his right and completed a big first down pass to Lex Hilliard for 17 yards. Hilliard led all Griz receivers with six catches for 43 yards.
"If we don't get that (catch), it's third and 18," Ochs said about the importance of the drive-saving reception. "We would have lost the momentum we had going into halftime ... it was huge."
Two plays later, Ochs picked up 29 rushing yards, credited by two key blocks by Hancock and Walden. Soon after, Ochs decided to use his arm instead of his legs when he connected with Talmage for a 14-yard touchdown catch that only Talmage, at 6-foot-4, could have caught.
"Craig runs well and he's good with the football," Hauck said. "He's a great football player and he carried us today on the offensive side."
Even though the touchdown put the Griz up 21-6, as Harris said, "They (SHSU) were always in the game."
Sam Houston's offensive power showed on its next possession by driving 55 yards to get within Montana's 30 yard line. The drive quickly came to a halt when Griz defensive end Dustin Dlouhy sacked Long and forced him to fumble, which was recovered by Blake Horgan on Montana's 41-yard line.
Again, Montana was able to capitalize on Sam Houston's turnover, when Hilliard was able to find a hole on the right side of the line. Hilliard's 7-yard touchdown scamper almost put the game out of reach at 28-6 with 4:42 left in the third quarter.
Sam Houston fired right back with a touchdown of its own when Stevie Smith ran it in from 1-yard out to bring the score to 28-13, the only touchdown of the game for the Bearkats. Long and the Bearkats were unable to utilize their explosive passing weapons to reach the end zone through the air, which they had been successful at all year.
Montana's defense shut down any momentum Sam Houston tried to mount by not letting them score the rest of the game. In the mean time, Montana's offense was able to get within striking distance of place kicker Dan Carpenter. The freshman from Helena, Mont., connected on 25- and 40-yard field goals to put the game out of reach.
"We're playing our best football," Hauck said. "We played better darn near every week. It's fun to be on this role we're on. We need to finish the job next week."
Griz fans in attendance could not help themselves in the postgame celebration as they tore both goal posts down, breaking the south goal post into three pieces.
"It was fun to see the fans on our side tear down the goal posts," Hauck said, who has always been on the losing side when fans have torn down the goal posts.
Hauck and the Grizzlies will now face the James Madison Dukes in the NCAA Division I-AA national championship. The title game is Friday at 6 p.m. in Chattanooga, Tenn. ESPN2 will televise the game nationally.
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