Sunday Notebook: Griz riding momentum into rivalry week

The Montana Grizzlies appear to be peaking at just the right point in the season.

Fueled by a lock-down defensive effort and another deadly day by Samori Toure, the Griz gashed No. 3 Weber State for 35 points in three quarters (tied for the most point scored against them all season) and held the visitors to just 69 rushing yards for a statement 35-16 win.

The win is likely to move UM up in the national polls this week and puts the Griz in a position to win a Big Sky title with the biggest game of the year on the horizon.

Player of the Week Nominations:

Offense: Samori Toure
In the FCS game of the Week, Samori Toure carved up the top-ranked defensive unit in the Big Sky for a career-high 193 yards and three touchdowns on just eight catches, with a season-long reception of 79 yards.

Those three touchdowns were the most receiving scores in the Big Sky on week 12, and, along with his 193 yards, were the most one player has racked up against the defending Big Sky Champion Wildcats all season long.

In fact, only two other players in the conference have had more receiving yards in a game this season: EWU's Dre'Sonte Dorton (289) against D-II Lindenwood, and UNC's Jaren Mitchell (242) in a loss at UND. Toure is also only the second player in the Big Sky to have five 100-yard receiving games this season – tied for the most in the league with NAU's Brandon Porter.

Saturday marked the second game in the last three the junior has hauled in three TDs, totaling seven touchdown catches and 462 combined yards in that time frame. He also now has the most receiving yards in the Big Sky with 1,052 and becomes the first Grizzly to pass the 1,000-yard mark in a season since Jamaal Jones' 2015 season (1,217). With one regular-season game left to play, Toure's 2019 receiving total is currently the eighth-best in UM history behind Scott Gurnsey's 1993 total of 1,079 yards.

On Sunday, Toure was named the Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week by online sports publication College Sports Madness, and he also received an honorable mention for the "National Performer of the Week" by the College Football Performance Awards. He is currently ranked No. 9 in the nation in total receiving yards.

Defense: Jace Lewis
Montana linebacker Jace Lewis was instrumental in holding the vaunted Weber State rushing offense to an average of only 1.9 yards per carry on Saturday with a game-high 16 tackles (7 solo) and 1 TFL – the most tackles by anyone on a winning team in the Big Sky this week.

Lewis has been one of UM's most dominant defenders in recent weeks, racking-up double-digit tackles in four of the last seven games for a season total of 104 takedowns, the fifth-most in the Big Sky to date.

Special Teams: Michael McGinnis
McGinnis forced a fumble by WSU punter Doug Lloyd early in the second quarter that led to a 15-yard Marcus Knight touchdown run two plays later that put the Griz up 21-3, and gave Montana what turned out to be an insurmountable lead.

Up Next: Montana returns to the road for the final regular-season home game of the year in Bozeman as the Griz (9-2, 6-1 BSC) take on the Bobcats in the 119th Brawl of the Wild game. In a contest full of implications for the Griz, Montana could not only reclaim the Great Divide Trophy for the first time in three years, a win could also give UM a share of its first Big Sky championship since 2009.

The Griz/Cat game is set for Noon on Saturday, Nov. 3, and will be broadcast nation-wide on ROOT Sports and DirecTV's Audience Network.

Fans around the country can gather to watch at one of over 100 Griz/Cat watch parties around the nation organized by the UM Office of Alumni Relations.

University of Montana Athletics

Sunday Notebook: Griz riding momentum into rivalry week

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Players Mentioned

Jamaal Jones

Marcus Knight

Jace Lewis

Michael McGinnis

Samori Toure

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