Sunday Notebook: Griz back on track with win over EWU
10/27/2019 3:47:00 PM | Football
The Montana Grizzlies got back in the win column this week with an authoritative 34-17 win over the defending national runner-up Eastern Washington Eagles on a snowy day in Missoula thanks in large part to an old-school, grind-it-out, run game that saw UM outrush EWU by more than 150 yards.
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With Cam Humphrey taking the reins at QB for an injured Dalton Sneed for his first start, the Grizzly offense didn't skip a beat with 430 total yards, and the defense once again clamped down in the second half, holding the Eagles dangerous offense to just three points in the final 36 minutes of the game.
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The No. 10/11 ranked Grizzlies improve to 6-2 (3-1 BSC) with the win and takes sole possession of second place on the Big Sky table as the only one-loss team, while the Eagles fall to 3-5 (2-2 BSC).
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The win improves the Griz to 28-17-1 all-time against EWU, and 17-6-1 against them in Missoula, while also snapping a two-game slide against the Eagles.
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MAJOR MILESTONE: Saturday's win marked the 600th win in program history for the Grizzlies, becoming the only school in Big Sky Conference history and only the fifth FCS team located west of the Mississippi to do so.
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It's only fitting that - in the same year the nation celebrates 150 years of college football – Montana becomes one of just 22 FCS teams to accumulate 600 wins, joining the ranks of historic programs like Princeton, who played in the first intercollegiate football game in 1869, nearly 30 years before Montana started its program in 1897.
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Player of the Week Nominations
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Offense: Sophomore running back Marcus Knight carried Montana to victory over Eastern Washington with a career-high 196 all-purpose yards, leading the Griz in both rushing and receiving. With a first-time starter at QB, it's hard to argue against the importance of Knight's 131-yard rushing, 65-yard receiving, three-touchdown performance – totaling the second-most all-purpose yards in the Big Sky Saturday.
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With three scores on the day and 13 this season, Knight now leads the Big Sky in overall scoring and scoring by touchdown, and is ranked No. 8 in the FCS in total touchdowns.
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For his efforts, Knight was named the Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week by CollegeSportsMadness.com on Sunday.
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Defense: Fellow sophomore Robby Hauck was all over the field for the Grizzlies totaling 10 tackles (six solo), and a tide-turning sack against the vaunted Eagle offense, helping to hold them to just three second-half points.
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Hauck now has five games with 10 or more tackles so far this season and is ranked fourth in the Big Sky and eighteenth nationally in total tackles.
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Special Teams: Adam Wilson continued his superb performance in the punting game against EWU, helping keep the Eagles buried in their own territory with an average of 48.4 yards on five punts, including a career-long 68-yard boot.
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UP NEXT: The Griz return to the state of Oregon for a second time this season looking to avenge a 2018 loss to Portland State on Saturday.
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The Vikings (5-4, 3-2) are coming off a narrow 29-31 loss at Northern Arizona last week. After falling down 14-0 in the first quarter, PSU battled back to take a 29-28 lead over the home team with 1:26 to play. But it was too much time for the 'Jacks to work with as NAU kicker Luis Aguilar slotted what would be the game-winning field goal from 38-yards out to give them the win.
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With a league-leading 11 interceptions and a clock-controlling offense that is producing the second-most first downs in the league behind Montana, Portland State has been impressive this season with a narrow 13-20 loss to the SEC's Arkansas Razorbacks and 24-0 shutout of the Idaho Vandals.
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With two of the final three games at home and a win total already matching last year's 6-5 season, Montana is on track to return to the FCS playoffs for the first time since 2015, but will first need to get past the Vikings, who are 4-0 at Hillsboro Stadium.
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With Cam Humphrey taking the reins at QB for an injured Dalton Sneed for his first start, the Grizzly offense didn't skip a beat with 430 total yards, and the defense once again clamped down in the second half, holding the Eagles dangerous offense to just three points in the final 36 minutes of the game.
Â
The No. 10/11 ranked Grizzlies improve to 6-2 (3-1 BSC) with the win and takes sole possession of second place on the Big Sky table as the only one-loss team, while the Eagles fall to 3-5 (2-2 BSC).
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The win improves the Griz to 28-17-1 all-time against EWU, and 17-6-1 against them in Missoula, while also snapping a two-game slide against the Eagles.
Â
MAJOR MILESTONE: Saturday's win marked the 600th win in program history for the Grizzlies, becoming the only school in Big Sky Conference history and only the fifth FCS team located west of the Mississippi to do so.
Â
It's only fitting that - in the same year the nation celebrates 150 years of college football – Montana becomes one of just 22 FCS teams to accumulate 600 wins, joining the ranks of historic programs like Princeton, who played in the first intercollegiate football game in 1869, nearly 30 years before Montana started its program in 1897.
Â
Player of the Week Nominations
Â
Offense: Sophomore running back Marcus Knight carried Montana to victory over Eastern Washington with a career-high 196 all-purpose yards, leading the Griz in both rushing and receiving. With a first-time starter at QB, it's hard to argue against the importance of Knight's 131-yard rushing, 65-yard receiving, three-touchdown performance – totaling the second-most all-purpose yards in the Big Sky Saturday.
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With three scores on the day and 13 this season, Knight now leads the Big Sky in overall scoring and scoring by touchdown, and is ranked No. 8 in the FCS in total touchdowns.
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For his efforts, Knight was named the Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week by CollegeSportsMadness.com on Sunday.
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Defense: Fellow sophomore Robby Hauck was all over the field for the Grizzlies totaling 10 tackles (six solo), and a tide-turning sack against the vaunted Eagle offense, helping to hold them to just three second-half points.
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Hauck now has five games with 10 or more tackles so far this season and is ranked fourth in the Big Sky and eighteenth nationally in total tackles.
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Special Teams: Adam Wilson continued his superb performance in the punting game against EWU, helping keep the Eagles buried in their own territory with an average of 48.4 yards on five punts, including a career-long 68-yard boot.
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UP NEXT: The Griz return to the state of Oregon for a second time this season looking to avenge a 2018 loss to Portland State on Saturday.
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The Vikings (5-4, 3-2) are coming off a narrow 29-31 loss at Northern Arizona last week. After falling down 14-0 in the first quarter, PSU battled back to take a 29-28 lead over the home team with 1:26 to play. But it was too much time for the 'Jacks to work with as NAU kicker Luis Aguilar slotted what would be the game-winning field goal from 38-yards out to give them the win.
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With a league-leading 11 interceptions and a clock-controlling offense that is producing the second-most first downs in the league behind Montana, Portland State has been impressive this season with a narrow 13-20 loss to the SEC's Arkansas Razorbacks and 24-0 shutout of the Idaho Vandals.
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With two of the final three games at home and a win total already matching last year's 6-5 season, Montana is on track to return to the FCS playoffs for the first time since 2015, but will first need to get past the Vikings, who are 4-0 at Hillsboro Stadium.
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