Sunday Notebook: Griz rout Lions in home opener
9/8/2019 4:06:00 PM | Football
The No. 22-ranked Montana Grizzlies beat the North Alabama Lions 45-0 in the second half to erase a one-point halftime deficit en route to an emphatic 61-17 victory under the lights at Washington-Grizzly Stadium Saturday.
Despite allowing the Lions to rack up 335 yards of offense in the first half, Montana's defense shut down the pass-heavy UNA attack, allowing just 66 yards in the second.
Meanwhile, Montana's offense went to work posting 61 points, the most allowed by a UNA defense in its program's history.
After taking apart South Dakota in Vermillion on week one, the Griz now have a pair of big wins under their belts and improve to 2-0 on the season heading into the most challenging week on the calendar.
SATURDAY'S STARS: PLAYER OF THE WEEK NOMINATIONS
Offense
Playing in his first-ever game at Washington-Grizzly Stadium, sophomore running back Marcus Knight sparked a Montana rushing attack that racked up 234 total rushing yards with 89 yards and a hat-trick of touchdowns for the Griz in their 61-17 dismantling of North Alabama.
Making his first start, Knight averaged 4.7 yards on 19 carries (none for a loss) and busted loose for a 24-yard long run that resulted in his third TD of the day. On that 24-yard run, he showed his athleticism after being drug down by what would have been a horse collar penalty, only to spring back to his feet without hitting the ground and raced in for the score.
Defense
Sophomore Robby Hauck posted a game-high nine tackles (tied with linebacker Dante Olson) and one TFL against the Lions and came up with one of the biggest defensive plays of the game to give UM an important early stop.
With UNA marching downfield on its first possession of the game, quarterback Christian Lopez was looking for a score that would have capped the 12-play drive. Instead, junior cornerback Dareon Nash was able to get a diving hand on the ball, and Hauck was there to scoop it up for an endzone interception.
Special Teams
Senior punt returner Jerry Louie-McGee showed once again how he earned the nickname "Mr. Electricity" by lighting up the scoreboard with a 74-yard punt return in the third quarter that helped seal the win.
It was the third punt return for a touchdown of his career, and he is now tied for the most in school history with Marc Mariani ('06-'09) and Levander Seagers ('01-'-4).
Against UNA, Louie-McGee ran back five punts for a total of 150 yards, an average of 30 yards per touch. His 150 total yards are the most in a game of any player in FCS football so far this season by a nearly 40-yard margin. That total is also good enough for the second-most in UM history, passing Tuff Harris' total against South Dakota State in 2006, and now sitting behind Mike Rice's all-time mark of 245 against Weber State in 1985.
His individual two-game total of 156 punt return yards (a 26-yard per-return average) is now the second-most in FCS football and the most in the Big Sky Conference.
Louie-McGee also led the Grizzlies in receiving, catching seven passes for 78 yards to give him a grand total of 228 all-purpose yards. The Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, native also needs just three more receptions to break Raul Pacheco's school record for carer catches, now sitting at 190 grabs in his time at UM.
Freshman
In just his second game as a Grizzly, Montana freshman defensive end Alex Gubner had one of the highlights of the day.
Dropping back in coverage from the front line, Gubner picked off a Lion pass and ran it back six yards before being drug down, causing the Grizzly faithful to erupt in cheers. The native of West Hills, Calif. also posted three tackles, a half-TFL, and a QB hit as well in an excellent all-around game.
QUICK HITS
NEXT UP
Montana now prepares to travel to Eugene to take on the No. 15 ranked Oregon Ducks at Autzen Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 14.
After giving up a second-half lead against Auburn in the season opener, the Ducks enter the game at 1-1 following a 77-6 demolition of the Nevada Wolfpack at Autzen on week two.
The Ducks are led by Heisman Trophy hopeful Justin Herbert, who threw for 310 yards and five touchdowns in the first three quarters against Nevada. Protecting Herbert is one of college football's top offensive lines, with each returner bringing 165 combined starts into the matchup with the Griz.
The Montana/Oregon game is a featured "Pac-12 After Dark" game of the week, set to kick off at 8:45 p.m. (MT). Fans can watch the game on the Pac-12 Network, or stream it live at Pac-12.com. Former Cal basketball play-by-play announcer Roxy Bernstein, who called games with former Griz great Mike Montgomery and then-assistant coach Travis DeCuire, will have the call from Eugene.
Despite allowing the Lions to rack up 335 yards of offense in the first half, Montana's defense shut down the pass-heavy UNA attack, allowing just 66 yards in the second.
Meanwhile, Montana's offense went to work posting 61 points, the most allowed by a UNA defense in its program's history.
After taking apart South Dakota in Vermillion on week one, the Griz now have a pair of big wins under their belts and improve to 2-0 on the season heading into the most challenging week on the calendar.
SATURDAY'S STARS: PLAYER OF THE WEEK NOMINATIONS
Offense
Playing in his first-ever game at Washington-Grizzly Stadium, sophomore running back Marcus Knight sparked a Montana rushing attack that racked up 234 total rushing yards with 89 yards and a hat-trick of touchdowns for the Griz in their 61-17 dismantling of North Alabama.
Making his first start, Knight averaged 4.7 yards on 19 carries (none for a loss) and busted loose for a 24-yard long run that resulted in his third TD of the day. On that 24-yard run, he showed his athleticism after being drug down by what would have been a horse collar penalty, only to spring back to his feet without hitting the ground and raced in for the score.
Defense
Sophomore Robby Hauck posted a game-high nine tackles (tied with linebacker Dante Olson) and one TFL against the Lions and came up with one of the biggest defensive plays of the game to give UM an important early stop.
With UNA marching downfield on its first possession of the game, quarterback Christian Lopez was looking for a score that would have capped the 12-play drive. Instead, junior cornerback Dareon Nash was able to get a diving hand on the ball, and Hauck was there to scoop it up for an endzone interception.
Special Teams
Senior punt returner Jerry Louie-McGee showed once again how he earned the nickname "Mr. Electricity" by lighting up the scoreboard with a 74-yard punt return in the third quarter that helped seal the win.
It was the third punt return for a touchdown of his career, and he is now tied for the most in school history with Marc Mariani ('06-'09) and Levander Seagers ('01-'-4).
Against UNA, Louie-McGee ran back five punts for a total of 150 yards, an average of 30 yards per touch. His 150 total yards are the most in a game of any player in FCS football so far this season by a nearly 40-yard margin. That total is also good enough for the second-most in UM history, passing Tuff Harris' total against South Dakota State in 2006, and now sitting behind Mike Rice's all-time mark of 245 against Weber State in 1985.
His individual two-game total of 156 punt return yards (a 26-yard per-return average) is now the second-most in FCS football and the most in the Big Sky Conference.
Louie-McGee also led the Grizzlies in receiving, catching seven passes for 78 yards to give him a grand total of 228 all-purpose yards. The Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, native also needs just three more receptions to break Raul Pacheco's school record for carer catches, now sitting at 190 grabs in his time at UM.
Freshman
In just his second game as a Grizzly, Montana freshman defensive end Alex Gubner had one of the highlights of the day.
Dropping back in coverage from the front line, Gubner picked off a Lion pass and ran it back six yards before being drug down, causing the Grizzly faithful to erupt in cheers. The native of West Hills, Calif. also posted three tackles, a half-TFL, and a QB hit as well in an excellent all-around game.
QUICK HITS
- Montana's offense ran up 34 first downs against the Lions and now leads the nation in total first downs with 64 on the season.
- The Griz were once again strong in the time of possession battle, controlling the clock 32:29, the second-straight game UM has controlled the ball for more than 30 min. Montana is now second in the Big Sky and eleventh in the nation with an average possession time of 33:58.
- With 520 yards of total offense, Montana now has the third-best offensive average in the league and the seventh-best nationally.
- Turnovers were key on Saturday. UNA only gave the ball over twice last season, with Lopez setting a school record for passes without getting picked off heading into the game. Montana's defense was too stout, however, with UM taking three INTs and a fumble from the Lions.
- The Grizzlies' now have four interceptions on the season, tied for the most in the Big Sky and fourth-most in the FCS.
- UM improved its home-opener win-streak to 16-straight games, now tied with McNeese for the sixth-longest in the nation.
NEXT UP
Montana now prepares to travel to Eugene to take on the No. 15 ranked Oregon Ducks at Autzen Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 14.
After giving up a second-half lead against Auburn in the season opener, the Ducks enter the game at 1-1 following a 77-6 demolition of the Nevada Wolfpack at Autzen on week two.
The Ducks are led by Heisman Trophy hopeful Justin Herbert, who threw for 310 yards and five touchdowns in the first three quarters against Nevada. Protecting Herbert is one of college football's top offensive lines, with each returner bringing 165 combined starts into the matchup with the Griz.
The Montana/Oregon game is a featured "Pac-12 After Dark" game of the week, set to kick off at 8:45 p.m. (MT). Fans can watch the game on the Pac-12 Network, or stream it live at Pac-12.com. Former Cal basketball play-by-play announcer Roxy Bernstein, who called games with former Griz great Mike Montgomery and then-assistant coach Travis DeCuire, will have the call from Eugene.
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