Saturday, November 14
Missoula, Mont.
8:30 PM
Montana
vs
Idaho State
Photo by: Montana Photography
11/10/2026 5:42:00 PM | Football
Full of mojo following a historic day and a big beat-down of Portland State the Montana Grizzlies are back home for a second straight week looking to go on a run at the business end of the season as Idaho State pays a visit.
A shootout at the Washington-Grizzly Corral in front of a national television audience is on tap as two of the best passing attacks in the Big Sky Conference collide in Missoula on Saturday night. The winner is likely to be sitting in the catbird seat for a playoff appearance. The loser could be home for Thanksgiving.
No. 12 Montana enters the game at 7-3 overall and 5-2 in league play with momentum, having outscored their previous two opponents 99-57 and looking to keep their foot on the gas heading into the last week of the regular season.
No. 21 Idaho State is in the midst of an impressive season that includes an FBS win at Utah State, sitting at 6-4 overall but at 3-4 in league play as the Bengals come to town licking their wounds after dropping a 3-OT battle with Montana State in Pocatello last week.
Kickoff is set for 8:30 p.m.
WATCH: The Grizzlies return to the national spotlight this week for Montana's first game of the year on linear ESPN Networks as Washington-Grizzly Stadium gets ready to shine under the lights on ESPN2. The game will be available to millions of viewers on basic cable, streaming, and satellite packages around the nation. The game is also available to stream on the ESPN App (subscription required).
Jason Ross Jr. will lead the broadcast as the play-by-play announcer. With him in the booth is 12-year NFL vet defensive end Tyoka Jackson. MK Rotenberry will report from the sidelines.
Montana hits the airwaves immediately following an ACC clash between North Carolina and Louisville in Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill.
For complete broadcast details visit GoGriz.com/WhereToWatch.
ON THE "WORLDWIDE LEADER": This week's game is the first for the Grizzlies on ESPN2, a place Montana has drawn big-time audiences and had overall success when UM is featured.
The Griz are 5-1 when playing on ESPN2 inside Washington-Grizzly Stadium dating back to a 2022 playoff game against SEMO. UM is 10-7 since 2015 when appearing on Disney network TV overall, including a pair of blockbuster playoff games on ABC last season that saw nearly 2 million viewers tune in to a quarterfinal game against South Dakota in Missoula and nearly 3 million tune in to the semifinal in Bozeman. The Griz have also won five of the last six games shown on ESPN networks.
LISTEN: "Voice of the Griz" Riley Corcoran is in his 11th season behind the mic at Montana and will once again bring you all the Grizzly action over the airwaves on the Grizzly Sports Radio Network and its 16 affiliate stations around the state.
Joining Corcoran in the booth this season is Chase Reynolds – a Montana native, Grizzly Sports Hall of Famer, five-year NFL veteran and one of the most decorated players in UM history – who brings his knowledge of the game to the airwaves as the Grizzlies' new radio analyst.
"Grizzly Gameday" starts two hours before kickoff each Saturday with the official pregame radio show featuring Ace Sauerwein and Denny Bedard before Corcoran and Reynolds take over 30 minutes before kickoff.
Griz fans outside the radio footprint can stream all of Montana's broadcasts on their mobile device LIVE and FREE of charge with the Varsity Network App, powered by Learfield and Sidearm Sports.
BOBBY KENNEDY RADIO SHOW: The Grizzly Coaches show returns to The Den on Upper Miller Creek Road each Wednesday at 7 p.m. this season as Coach Kennedy and Corcoran provide an exclusive breakdown of this week's opponent and relive all the highlights of last week's win. The Coaches Show can be heard on select Grizzly Sports Radio Network stations around the state, originating from 98.3 FM and 1290 AM KGVO Missoula.
GRIZZLY INSIDER: The Grizzly Insider takes fans inside the huddle every Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. on The Spot – MTN. Corcoran and Scripps TV sideline reporter Kyle Hansen break down that week's game with Kennedy and a featured player each week with up-to-date features on other Grizzly sports as well.
HAPPENINGS: Saturday's showdown with ISU marks Senior Day for 22 Grizzlies who are in their final season of eligibility at Montana.
Be sure to get in your seats early this year. Grizzly Athletics will honor the contributions each player has made to the program roughly 20 minutes prior to kickoff on Saturday night, right when the team finishes its final pregame warmups.
• The annual Can the Cats Food Drive also continues this week at Washington-Grizzly Stadium, now in its 27th year helping those in need around our state have a brighter holiday season. This year's Can the Cats Food Drive runs Nov. 7-21, with a goal of gathering 600,000 pounds of food statewide. Food drop-off locations will be distributed around the venue in the hours before kickoff. For more information, visit CantheCats.com.
///GRIZ TRACKS///
GILLMAN GREATNESS: We've run out of superlatives to describe Eli Gillman's record-breaking career as the senior running back continues to make his case for the Walter Payton Award.
Gillman became the Big Sky Conference's new all-time leading scorer, breaking NFL All-Pro Cooper Kupp's decade-old record with his 78th career total touchdown against Portland State.
Gillman put up video-game-like numbers against the Vikings, tying a school single-game record with four touchdowns on just nine touches of the ball. He rushed for 196 yards on eight carries, a 24.5-yard average, and caught a 48-yard pass for 244 all-purpose yards.
Another record-setting day in a season full of record-setting days earned him a sweep of the weekly awards Monday.
Gillman was named the Stats Perform FCS National Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this year. He shared the honor from Stats Perform with Youngstown State quarterback Beau Brungard as co-players of the week.
Gillman was also named the Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week for the third time this year and the fifth time in his career.
National scouts took notice as well, with Gillman being named the East-West Shrine Bowl's Offensive Player of the Week, presented to "the all-star game eligible player that displays the most NFL traits that week," according to Shrine Bowl personnel. He is in good company with the award alongside Tennessee's Qua Moss, their Defensive Player of the Week.
• Against PSU Gillman hit home run after home run, starting the day with a 48-yard reception on the third play of the game before rushing for touchdowns from 45 yards, 15 yards and 43 yards out, then capping the day with an eye-popping 84-yard scramble to break Kupp's record.
That last score from 84 yards out is the second-longest in the Big Sky this season and the second-longest in school history behind his own record of 85 yards set in 2023 at UC Davis.
• He now sits fourth in FCS history for total TDs (78) and rushing TDs (68) in subdivision history as well, chasing Villanova's Brian Westbrook, who has 89 total TDs and Georgia Southern's Adrian Peterson's career mark of 84 rushing scores.
• He now owns five school records and three Big Sky career records for total touchdowns. His Big Sky records include most points scored, total touchdowns and rushing touchdowns. He is now one of just five players in league history to rush for 5,000-plus yards with 5,034 yards in his career and 1,357 this year – his third straight 1,000-yard season. He owns school career records for rushing yards, rushing TDs, total TDs, all-purpose yards and points scored.
• With 795, Gillman is just 12 carries away from another school record, set to surpass Lex Hilliard's career mark of 806 carries.
He's also 13th in school history in total yardage (QB passing included), seventh in all-purpose yards per game and fifth in touchdowns responsible for (passing and rushing).
• He remains the NCAA's active career leader for rushing yards and all-purpose yards and is second for the most career rushing TDs in all levels of college football.
• With two regular season games to play, his 1,357 rushing yards rank fifth in UM history, while his current total and career-high of 25 touchdowns is tied for the most ever in a season in Missoula with Marcus Knight. Nineteen of his 25 scores have been rushing, currently the fifth-most in that category as well.
• Gillman now leads the FCS in all-purpose yards this season with 1,666 rushing, receiving and return yards – a top 12 total in UM history. He also leads the FCS in total touchdowns, points scored, rushing yards, and rush yards per game.
BROOKS HAVING A BANGER: Montana made it back-to-back FCS Offensive Player of the Week recipients with receiver Brooks Davis earning national accolades last week following a blowout day at Eastern Washington with 231 yards and three touchdowns on nine catches.
Davis is on track for perhaps the greatest receiving season in program history, currently leading all Division I football in receiving yards (1,233) and catches (81), ahead of Oregon State's Jesse Legree, Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith, and Miami's Malachi Toney.
• With two regular season games to play his yardage total of 1,233 puts him just 262 yards shy of breaking Samori Toure's 2019 record of 1,495 yards in a season. However, he needs just 7 more grabs to break Toure's record of 87 catches.
• Davis' current torrid pace of 123.3 yards per game is second in program history behind Joe Douglass' school record average of 133.6 per game, and Davis needs just seven more touchdown catches to break Douglass' 1996 record of 18.
AH YAT ACCURACY: Keali'i Ah Yat has continued to etch his name in the Grizzly record books with another superlative season that has him leading the Big Sky and top five in the FCS in five different statistical categories.
He currently leads the Big Sky with the best completion percentage, most passing yards, most passing TDs, most yards per game, and best passer efficiency rating.
With 8,328 passing yards to his name he's now fourth in UM history and needs just 284 more yards to pass Jordan Johnson and move into third behind his dad.
• Ah Yat threw the ball 30 times on Saturday against PSU, bringing his career attempt total over 1,000 to put him at 695-1027-19 as a Grizzly – currently the best completion percentage in program history at 67.7. That average is bolstered by his season completion percentage of 70.3 percent – currently a new school single season record. Dave Dickenson has completed the most passes in program history at 1,208 in his illustrious career.
• With 281 against Portland State, Ah Yat's four-game streak of throwing for 300-plus was snapped by less than 20 yards. That streak was a rare feat among Grizzly signal callers. The last Grizzly to go over 300 yards four games in a row? Drew Miller in 1999 when he started the year with games of 354, 377, 498, and 402 yards.
• Ah Yat enters Saturday's game averaging 203.1 yards passing per game throughout his career. That's the exact same average his position coach and Offensive Coordinator Brent Pease finished his two-year career with at Montana before being drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in 1987.
KEEPING HIM CLEAN: Montana's offensive line enters the week with a combined 50 career starts among them, with the debutant group making 10 straight starts each to offer rock-solid consistency up front. Despite new faces at each position, the Grizzly O-Line has shaped up to be one of the most effective in program history.
With two games left to play in the regular season Montana has given up just nine sacks for 72 yards lost over 10 games, currently the fewest given up by a Grizzly O-line in modern program history.
That average of less than one per game leads the Big Sky and is seventh in the FCS this week, is a big reason why the Grizzly offense has flourished. Considering all the great offenses the Griz have had over the years, UM has given up an average of 29 sacks per season since 1991, with the fewest ever recorded at 10 in 2011.
Pro Football Network – a draft analytics organization – graded Montana's offensive line the second-best in the FCS so far this season on Tuesday with a 98.0 rating.
STACKS OF SACKS: Conversely, Montana turned the pressure up to 11 on Eastern Washington two weeks ago and logged a program record 11 sacks against the Eagles, then added 4 TFLs against Portland State on Saturday.
The Grizzly defense now leads the Big Sky in sacks with 26 in 10 games for an opponent loss of 175 yards, paced by D-end Tyler King who has led the league for the bulk of the year and currently totals 8.5 sacks.
OTHER SATURDAY STARS • Tanner Huff posted a career-high nine tackles (5 solo) and a TFL to lead Montana against Portland State, helping hold the Vikings to just 10 first half points in a 57-24 rout and forcing the visitors to punt or turn it over on downs on five of nine drives. Huff must have something against the state of Oregon, setting his previous career high for tackles with eight against Oregon State earlier this season.
• Sophomore cornerback Sage Salopek has been thrust into action this season as the Grizzly backfield has dwindled in healthy bodies but has emerged as one of the top defenders in the league. The Seattle native leads Montana in pass breakups with seven – tied for the third-most in the Big Sky.
He posted a career-high nine tackles against PSU and is now sixth on the team in total stops with 39 this season.
• D-lineman Justin Eklund has helped alleviate some of Montana's injury issues up front, moving from linebacker and having his best game as a Grizzly with seven tackles last week.
• Georgetown transfer Nai Mose also continued to be a revelation with eight tackles and a half-TFL on Saturday. He now leads the team in stops and is top 15 in the league with 66 tackles.
STOP THE RUN: After holding Portland State to less than 150 yards rushing Saturday Montana enters this week's game second in the Big Sky in total rush defense, giving up an average of just 130 yards on the ground over 10 games.
• This comes despite Montana losing four starting defensive linemen to injury and at points having 9 of 11 defensive starters go down.
40 YEARS OF FUN: Montana logged win No. 250 inside Washington-Grizzly Stadium last week, entering the ISU game with a 250-39 record as the venue turns 40 years old this season.
Just in time for spooky season, Montana's last win was also No. 666 in program history dating to 1897. The Griz are the only team in Big Sky Conference history and one of just six FCS teams west of the Mississippi to log more than 600 victories in their program's history.
SERIES HISTORY WITH ISU: Coincidentally, Montana's first-ever game inside Washington-Grizzly Stadium was against Idaho State back in October of 1986 – a 38-31 win for UM paced by quarterback (and current Grizzly offensive coordinator) Brent Pease.
Montana leads the all-time series between the two founding members of the Big Sky Conference 49-13 dating back to the first meeting in 1921. In 105 years of competition, the Griz are 34-3 in games played in Missoula and have never lost to Idaho State inside Washington-Grizzly Stadium at 19-0, dating to that first game in '86.
LAST MEETING: In a wild 2025 meeting between UM and ISU in Pocatello, the Griz found themselves trailing the Bengals by as many as 13 in the third quarter but scored 24 of the last 31 points and shut out ISU's high-flying offense in the fourth quarter to earn a gutsy 46-38 win.
In a shootout with over 1,000 yards of combined offense and over 150 plays from scrimmage, Ah Yat outdueled ISU star QB Jordan Cooke with 350 passing yards and a TD on 23 of 40 completions.
Gillman persisted for 48 hard-earned yards rushing with a touchdown on the ground and another through the air for two TDs on the day. But the straw that stirred Montana's drink was Michael Wortham. The dynamic, do-everything receiver indeed did a bit of everything for the Griz, and did it well when the team needed him most.
Wortham totaled 247 all-purpose while throwing for a touchdown and rushing for two more, including the game-winner. He had 41 yards on the ground, 124 receiving yards, and another 82 on kickoff returns.
Davis also crossed the 100-yard receiving barrier for the first time in his career with 104 on 6 catches.
///QUICK HITS///
THE NIGHTTIME IS THE RIGHT TIME: Saturday's 8:30 p.m. kickoff marks just the second home game under the lights at Washington-Grizzly Stadium this season, a time and place the Griz have historically fared well in.
Montana has won four straight night home games and 15 of the last 16 games under the lights, holding a 21-3 record in those games since 2011.
NIFTY FIFTY: Montana beat Portland State last week to improve to 37-13 against the Vikings in the 50th all-time meeting between the two longtime foes.
The Griz will be looking for win No. 50 overall against Idaho State this weekend, leading the Bengals in the all-time series 49-13. Idaho State is the Big Sky opponent Montana has beaten the most in program history, outside of 74 wins over Montana State.
KEEPING IT CLEAN: Montana has cleaned up its act in the penalty count in recent weeks, tying its season low with just two flags against the Vikings last week. After averaging nearly eight penalties per game through the first half of the season (including a 16-penalty flag fest against Drake), the Griz have cut their penalties in half later in the year, averaging just four per game in the last five outings, including two against PSU and two against Idaho.
BALL SECURITY: Montana stayed at +5 in the turnover differential this week after going even with PSU with no takeaways or giveaways. The Grizzlies' giveaway count is on pace to be an all-time low with just nine turnovers across 10 games this season, the fewest in program history since 1991. UM's record for fewest giveaways in a season is 11, set in 2014.
600 YARD GAMES: Montana posted its second 600-plus yard game of total offense this season on Saturday against PSU, putting up 644 against the Vikings. That the eighth-most yards in a single game in program history and one of 24 600-plus games in modern program history.
• One common thread between many of those 600-plus yard games has been Pease, who has now called 11 games over 600 and 28 games over 500 yards in his two tenures as UM's OC.
LIGHT UP THE SCOREBOARD: Pease and the Montana offense set a record in 2025 for most points scored in a season with 615 on the board, averaging 41 per contest. This year's Grizzlies are on a similar tear, averaging 41.1 PPG to total 401 with two regular season games to play. With another deep playoff run the Griz could be in the conversation for most or second most ever, with 2009's total of 537 sitting second.
A shootout at the Washington-Grizzly Corral in front of a national television audience is on tap as two of the best passing attacks in the Big Sky Conference collide in Missoula on Saturday night. The winner is likely to be sitting in the catbird seat for a playoff appearance. The loser could be home for Thanksgiving.
No. 12 Montana enters the game at 7-3 overall and 5-2 in league play with momentum, having outscored their previous two opponents 99-57 and looking to keep their foot on the gas heading into the last week of the regular season.
No. 21 Idaho State is in the midst of an impressive season that includes an FBS win at Utah State, sitting at 6-4 overall but at 3-4 in league play as the Bengals come to town licking their wounds after dropping a 3-OT battle with Montana State in Pocatello last week.
Kickoff is set for 8:30 p.m.
WATCH: The Grizzlies return to the national spotlight this week for Montana's first game of the year on linear ESPN Networks as Washington-Grizzly Stadium gets ready to shine under the lights on ESPN2. The game will be available to millions of viewers on basic cable, streaming, and satellite packages around the nation. The game is also available to stream on the ESPN App (subscription required).
Jason Ross Jr. will lead the broadcast as the play-by-play announcer. With him in the booth is 12-year NFL vet defensive end Tyoka Jackson. MK Rotenberry will report from the sidelines.
Montana hits the airwaves immediately following an ACC clash between North Carolina and Louisville in Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill.
For complete broadcast details visit GoGriz.com/WhereToWatch.
ON THE "WORLDWIDE LEADER": This week's game is the first for the Grizzlies on ESPN2, a place Montana has drawn big-time audiences and had overall success when UM is featured.
The Griz are 5-1 when playing on ESPN2 inside Washington-Grizzly Stadium dating back to a 2022 playoff game against SEMO. UM is 10-7 since 2015 when appearing on Disney network TV overall, including a pair of blockbuster playoff games on ABC last season that saw nearly 2 million viewers tune in to a quarterfinal game against South Dakota in Missoula and nearly 3 million tune in to the semifinal in Bozeman. The Griz have also won five of the last six games shown on ESPN networks.
LISTEN: "Voice of the Griz" Riley Corcoran is in his 11th season behind the mic at Montana and will once again bring you all the Grizzly action over the airwaves on the Grizzly Sports Radio Network and its 16 affiliate stations around the state.
Joining Corcoran in the booth this season is Chase Reynolds – a Montana native, Grizzly Sports Hall of Famer, five-year NFL veteran and one of the most decorated players in UM history – who brings his knowledge of the game to the airwaves as the Grizzlies' new radio analyst.
"Grizzly Gameday" starts two hours before kickoff each Saturday with the official pregame radio show featuring Ace Sauerwein and Denny Bedard before Corcoran and Reynolds take over 30 minutes before kickoff.
Griz fans outside the radio footprint can stream all of Montana's broadcasts on their mobile device LIVE and FREE of charge with the Varsity Network App, powered by Learfield and Sidearm Sports.
BOBBY KENNEDY RADIO SHOW: The Grizzly Coaches show returns to The Den on Upper Miller Creek Road each Wednesday at 7 p.m. this season as Coach Kennedy and Corcoran provide an exclusive breakdown of this week's opponent and relive all the highlights of last week's win. The Coaches Show can be heard on select Grizzly Sports Radio Network stations around the state, originating from 98.3 FM and 1290 AM KGVO Missoula.
GRIZZLY INSIDER: The Grizzly Insider takes fans inside the huddle every Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. on The Spot – MTN. Corcoran and Scripps TV sideline reporter Kyle Hansen break down that week's game with Kennedy and a featured player each week with up-to-date features on other Grizzly sports as well.
HAPPENINGS: Saturday's showdown with ISU marks Senior Day for 22 Grizzlies who are in their final season of eligibility at Montana.
Be sure to get in your seats early this year. Grizzly Athletics will honor the contributions each player has made to the program roughly 20 minutes prior to kickoff on Saturday night, right when the team finishes its final pregame warmups.
• The annual Can the Cats Food Drive also continues this week at Washington-Grizzly Stadium, now in its 27th year helping those in need around our state have a brighter holiday season. This year's Can the Cats Food Drive runs Nov. 7-21, with a goal of gathering 600,000 pounds of food statewide. Food drop-off locations will be distributed around the venue in the hours before kickoff. For more information, visit CantheCats.com.
///GRIZ TRACKS///
GILLMAN GREATNESS: We've run out of superlatives to describe Eli Gillman's record-breaking career as the senior running back continues to make his case for the Walter Payton Award.
Gillman became the Big Sky Conference's new all-time leading scorer, breaking NFL All-Pro Cooper Kupp's decade-old record with his 78th career total touchdown against Portland State.
Gillman put up video-game-like numbers against the Vikings, tying a school single-game record with four touchdowns on just nine touches of the ball. He rushed for 196 yards on eight carries, a 24.5-yard average, and caught a 48-yard pass for 244 all-purpose yards.
Another record-setting day in a season full of record-setting days earned him a sweep of the weekly awards Monday.
Gillman was named the Stats Perform FCS National Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this year. He shared the honor from Stats Perform with Youngstown State quarterback Beau Brungard as co-players of the week.
Gillman was also named the Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week for the third time this year and the fifth time in his career.
National scouts took notice as well, with Gillman being named the East-West Shrine Bowl's Offensive Player of the Week, presented to "the all-star game eligible player that displays the most NFL traits that week," according to Shrine Bowl personnel. He is in good company with the award alongside Tennessee's Qua Moss, their Defensive Player of the Week.
• Against PSU Gillman hit home run after home run, starting the day with a 48-yard reception on the third play of the game before rushing for touchdowns from 45 yards, 15 yards and 43 yards out, then capping the day with an eye-popping 84-yard scramble to break Kupp's record.
That last score from 84 yards out is the second-longest in the Big Sky this season and the second-longest in school history behind his own record of 85 yards set in 2023 at UC Davis.
• He now sits fourth in FCS history for total TDs (78) and rushing TDs (68) in subdivision history as well, chasing Villanova's Brian Westbrook, who has 89 total TDs and Georgia Southern's Adrian Peterson's career mark of 84 rushing scores.
• He now owns five school records and three Big Sky career records for total touchdowns. His Big Sky records include most points scored, total touchdowns and rushing touchdowns. He is now one of just five players in league history to rush for 5,000-plus yards with 5,034 yards in his career and 1,357 this year – his third straight 1,000-yard season. He owns school career records for rushing yards, rushing TDs, total TDs, all-purpose yards and points scored.
• With 795, Gillman is just 12 carries away from another school record, set to surpass Lex Hilliard's career mark of 806 carries.
He's also 13th in school history in total yardage (QB passing included), seventh in all-purpose yards per game and fifth in touchdowns responsible for (passing and rushing).
• He remains the NCAA's active career leader for rushing yards and all-purpose yards and is second for the most career rushing TDs in all levels of college football.
• With two regular season games to play, his 1,357 rushing yards rank fifth in UM history, while his current total and career-high of 25 touchdowns is tied for the most ever in a season in Missoula with Marcus Knight. Nineteen of his 25 scores have been rushing, currently the fifth-most in that category as well.
• Gillman now leads the FCS in all-purpose yards this season with 1,666 rushing, receiving and return yards – a top 12 total in UM history. He also leads the FCS in total touchdowns, points scored, rushing yards, and rush yards per game.
BROOKS HAVING A BANGER: Montana made it back-to-back FCS Offensive Player of the Week recipients with receiver Brooks Davis earning national accolades last week following a blowout day at Eastern Washington with 231 yards and three touchdowns on nine catches.
Davis is on track for perhaps the greatest receiving season in program history, currently leading all Division I football in receiving yards (1,233) and catches (81), ahead of Oregon State's Jesse Legree, Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith, and Miami's Malachi Toney.
• With two regular season games to play his yardage total of 1,233 puts him just 262 yards shy of breaking Samori Toure's 2019 record of 1,495 yards in a season. However, he needs just 7 more grabs to break Toure's record of 87 catches.
• Davis' current torrid pace of 123.3 yards per game is second in program history behind Joe Douglass' school record average of 133.6 per game, and Davis needs just seven more touchdown catches to break Douglass' 1996 record of 18.
AH YAT ACCURACY: Keali'i Ah Yat has continued to etch his name in the Grizzly record books with another superlative season that has him leading the Big Sky and top five in the FCS in five different statistical categories.
He currently leads the Big Sky with the best completion percentage, most passing yards, most passing TDs, most yards per game, and best passer efficiency rating.
With 8,328 passing yards to his name he's now fourth in UM history and needs just 284 more yards to pass Jordan Johnson and move into third behind his dad.
• Ah Yat threw the ball 30 times on Saturday against PSU, bringing his career attempt total over 1,000 to put him at 695-1027-19 as a Grizzly – currently the best completion percentage in program history at 67.7. That average is bolstered by his season completion percentage of 70.3 percent – currently a new school single season record. Dave Dickenson has completed the most passes in program history at 1,208 in his illustrious career.
• With 281 against Portland State, Ah Yat's four-game streak of throwing for 300-plus was snapped by less than 20 yards. That streak was a rare feat among Grizzly signal callers. The last Grizzly to go over 300 yards four games in a row? Drew Miller in 1999 when he started the year with games of 354, 377, 498, and 402 yards.
• Ah Yat enters Saturday's game averaging 203.1 yards passing per game throughout his career. That's the exact same average his position coach and Offensive Coordinator Brent Pease finished his two-year career with at Montana before being drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in 1987.
KEEPING HIM CLEAN: Montana's offensive line enters the week with a combined 50 career starts among them, with the debutant group making 10 straight starts each to offer rock-solid consistency up front. Despite new faces at each position, the Grizzly O-Line has shaped up to be one of the most effective in program history.
With two games left to play in the regular season Montana has given up just nine sacks for 72 yards lost over 10 games, currently the fewest given up by a Grizzly O-line in modern program history.
That average of less than one per game leads the Big Sky and is seventh in the FCS this week, is a big reason why the Grizzly offense has flourished. Considering all the great offenses the Griz have had over the years, UM has given up an average of 29 sacks per season since 1991, with the fewest ever recorded at 10 in 2011.
Pro Football Network – a draft analytics organization – graded Montana's offensive line the second-best in the FCS so far this season on Tuesday with a 98.0 rating.
STACKS OF SACKS: Conversely, Montana turned the pressure up to 11 on Eastern Washington two weeks ago and logged a program record 11 sacks against the Eagles, then added 4 TFLs against Portland State on Saturday.
The Grizzly defense now leads the Big Sky in sacks with 26 in 10 games for an opponent loss of 175 yards, paced by D-end Tyler King who has led the league for the bulk of the year and currently totals 8.5 sacks.
OTHER SATURDAY STARS • Tanner Huff posted a career-high nine tackles (5 solo) and a TFL to lead Montana against Portland State, helping hold the Vikings to just 10 first half points in a 57-24 rout and forcing the visitors to punt or turn it over on downs on five of nine drives. Huff must have something against the state of Oregon, setting his previous career high for tackles with eight against Oregon State earlier this season.
• Sophomore cornerback Sage Salopek has been thrust into action this season as the Grizzly backfield has dwindled in healthy bodies but has emerged as one of the top defenders in the league. The Seattle native leads Montana in pass breakups with seven – tied for the third-most in the Big Sky.
He posted a career-high nine tackles against PSU and is now sixth on the team in total stops with 39 this season.
• D-lineman Justin Eklund has helped alleviate some of Montana's injury issues up front, moving from linebacker and having his best game as a Grizzly with seven tackles last week.
• Georgetown transfer Nai Mose also continued to be a revelation with eight tackles and a half-TFL on Saturday. He now leads the team in stops and is top 15 in the league with 66 tackles.
STOP THE RUN: After holding Portland State to less than 150 yards rushing Saturday Montana enters this week's game second in the Big Sky in total rush defense, giving up an average of just 130 yards on the ground over 10 games.
• This comes despite Montana losing four starting defensive linemen to injury and at points having 9 of 11 defensive starters go down.
40 YEARS OF FUN: Montana logged win No. 250 inside Washington-Grizzly Stadium last week, entering the ISU game with a 250-39 record as the venue turns 40 years old this season.
Just in time for spooky season, Montana's last win was also No. 666 in program history dating to 1897. The Griz are the only team in Big Sky Conference history and one of just six FCS teams west of the Mississippi to log more than 600 victories in their program's history.
SERIES HISTORY WITH ISU: Coincidentally, Montana's first-ever game inside Washington-Grizzly Stadium was against Idaho State back in October of 1986 – a 38-31 win for UM paced by quarterback (and current Grizzly offensive coordinator) Brent Pease.
Montana leads the all-time series between the two founding members of the Big Sky Conference 49-13 dating back to the first meeting in 1921. In 105 years of competition, the Griz are 34-3 in games played in Missoula and have never lost to Idaho State inside Washington-Grizzly Stadium at 19-0, dating to that first game in '86.
LAST MEETING: In a wild 2025 meeting between UM and ISU in Pocatello, the Griz found themselves trailing the Bengals by as many as 13 in the third quarter but scored 24 of the last 31 points and shut out ISU's high-flying offense in the fourth quarter to earn a gutsy 46-38 win.
In a shootout with over 1,000 yards of combined offense and over 150 plays from scrimmage, Ah Yat outdueled ISU star QB Jordan Cooke with 350 passing yards and a TD on 23 of 40 completions.
Gillman persisted for 48 hard-earned yards rushing with a touchdown on the ground and another through the air for two TDs on the day. But the straw that stirred Montana's drink was Michael Wortham. The dynamic, do-everything receiver indeed did a bit of everything for the Griz, and did it well when the team needed him most.
Wortham totaled 247 all-purpose while throwing for a touchdown and rushing for two more, including the game-winner. He had 41 yards on the ground, 124 receiving yards, and another 82 on kickoff returns.
Davis also crossed the 100-yard receiving barrier for the first time in his career with 104 on 6 catches.
///QUICK HITS///
THE NIGHTTIME IS THE RIGHT TIME: Saturday's 8:30 p.m. kickoff marks just the second home game under the lights at Washington-Grizzly Stadium this season, a time and place the Griz have historically fared well in.
Montana has won four straight night home games and 15 of the last 16 games under the lights, holding a 21-3 record in those games since 2011.
NIFTY FIFTY: Montana beat Portland State last week to improve to 37-13 against the Vikings in the 50th all-time meeting between the two longtime foes.
The Griz will be looking for win No. 50 overall against Idaho State this weekend, leading the Bengals in the all-time series 49-13. Idaho State is the Big Sky opponent Montana has beaten the most in program history, outside of 74 wins over Montana State.
KEEPING IT CLEAN: Montana has cleaned up its act in the penalty count in recent weeks, tying its season low with just two flags against the Vikings last week. After averaging nearly eight penalties per game through the first half of the season (including a 16-penalty flag fest against Drake), the Griz have cut their penalties in half later in the year, averaging just four per game in the last five outings, including two against PSU and two against Idaho.
BALL SECURITY: Montana stayed at +5 in the turnover differential this week after going even with PSU with no takeaways or giveaways. The Grizzlies' giveaway count is on pace to be an all-time low with just nine turnovers across 10 games this season, the fewest in program history since 1991. UM's record for fewest giveaways in a season is 11, set in 2014.
600 YARD GAMES: Montana posted its second 600-plus yard game of total offense this season on Saturday against PSU, putting up 644 against the Vikings. That the eighth-most yards in a single game in program history and one of 24 600-plus games in modern program history.
• One common thread between many of those 600-plus yard games has been Pease, who has now called 11 games over 600 and 28 games over 500 yards in his two tenures as UM's OC.
LIGHT UP THE SCOREBOARD: Pease and the Montana offense set a record in 2025 for most points scored in a season with 615 on the board, averaging 41 per contest. This year's Grizzlies are on a similar tear, averaging 41.1 PPG to total 401 with two regular season games to play. With another deep playoff run the Griz could be in the conversation for most or second most ever, with 2009's total of 537 sitting second.
Players Mentioned
QB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
LB
/ Football
RB
/ Football
S
/ Football
DL
/ Football
LB
/ Football
CB
/ Football
WR
/ FootballMonday, November 09
Sunday, November 08
Saturday, November 07
Monday, November 02
