2015 Cat-Griz Preview: Powerful Bobcats hungry for more success

In the spring of 2014, the Montana State Bobcats, and veteran head coach Rob Ash saw three of the greatest offensive players the school has ever had graduate. At the time, no one knew just how the 2014 season would go with so much talent lost.

MSU responded though by possessing one of the best and most potent offenses in the Football Championship Subdivision in 2014, a team that averaged nearly 40 points and well over 400 yards per outing. On the flip side, MSU finished 2014, a year in which the Cats went 8-5 and suffered a heartbreaking loss to South Dakota State in the first round of the FCS playoffs, near the bottom of the Big Sky Conference in all almost every defensive statistical category.

But with almost every starter back on offense, including preseason FCS All-American quarterback Dakota Prukop, the formula for MSU this fall is simple. Fix the defensive woes, and the Bobcats could immediately become a major contender, not only to win the Big Sky, which they were picked to do, but, give four-time national champion North Dakota State a run for the FCS title this season.

"I'm excited about getting a good defense here to go with our offense," Ash said. "And I think we'll be really good again, I really do."

But fixing a defense that was so susceptible to both the run and pass last season, won’t be easy considering MSU lost eight starters from that unit. The first thing Ash did was promote Kane Ioane to co-defensive coordinator, and then he went out and looked for instant help on that side of the ball via FBS dropdowns and junior college transfers.

But despite the transfers, MSU’s depth chart is mostly made up of returning letter winners, and players who will be expected to step up and help immediately. On the line, the return of tackle Taylor Sheridan and sophomore end Tyrone Fa’anono are key, while junior Connor Thomas will step into a starting role at the nose guard position. MSU is breaking in three new starters at linebacker, though Blake Braun and Mac Bignell saw significant time there last season. Redshirt freshman Grant Collins will step into the starting MLB position and expectations are high for the former Bozeman standout who won a state championship under former Havre High head coach Troy Purcell. FBS transfer Marcus Tappan will also figure heavily into the linebacker rotation.

In the secondary, MSU will be heavily inexperienced with only senior corner Bryson Keeton returning. Great Falls High’s Trace Timmer has earned a spot at the other corner, while FBS transfer Desman Carter and junior college transfer Bryson McCabe are vying for one spot, and returning standouts Khari Garcia and Demonte King are in a position battle for the free safety position.

So while a new-look MSU defense, a defense that will surely miss four-year starter Alex Singleton, gets adjusted to the high-scoring Big Sky Conference, there are no such worries on offense.

Prukop returns for his junior season after throwing for 2,556 yards and 18 scores and running for another 900 yards a year ago on his way to All-Conference honors. Now, the super-athletic Prukop is a Walter Payton Award candidate, and is even more secure in MSU’s high-flying offense.

“I want to get to the point where we’re firing and every single position on the field is a threat at any given time,” Prukop said.

And he has the weapons at his disposal to do just that. MSU’s offensive line, led by All-American candidate J.P. Flynn and senior tackle John Weidenaar is considered the best in the Big Sky, while running backs Chad Newell, Gunnar Brecke Nick LaSane and Tavon Dodd are all explosive.

Meanwhile, Prukop has all his favorite targets back to throw to, in Mitchell Herbert, Manny Kalfell, Mitch Greibel, Jayshawn Gates, Justin Paige and Tanner Roderick. And with the addition of Baylor transfer Brandon Brown, the emergence of Connor Sullivan and the arrival of former Miami tight end Beau Sandland, the Cats will have as dangerous a passing threat as there is in all of the FCS.

Getting the ball in the endzone is key to MSU’s success, especially as the young defense takes time to gel. But, MSU also has an outstanding kicker in Luke Daly to help the scoring barrage that Cats’ fans expect this season.

And make no mistake, with a magical QB like Prukop at the helm, expectations are high. The Bobcats were picked to win the Big Sky, but this season, that won’t be good enough. … no, with so much talent, MSU must go deeper into the playoffs.

The Cats open the season with a Thursday night game against Fort Lewis in Bozeman, then already have their bye week. Then comes the Sept. 19 showdown at Eastern Washington, a game that won’t count in the Big Sky standings, but will have playoff implications across the board. Last year in Bozeman, the two teams waged an epic battle, but EWU slipped by in the closing seconds. The rematch in Cheney will likely set the tone for the rest of MSU’s season, which includes a conference opener against Cal Poly in Bozeman, a mid-season non-conference game at home against East Tennessee State and a tough closing stretch, a trip to upstart Idaho State Nov. 14 and the annual Brawl of the Wild Nov. 21 in Bozeman.

"I think we’ll be a contender this fall, I really do," said Ash. "I think we've got the talent here. Our offense is extremely good, with veterans coming back at every position. Defensively, I like what I see right now.”

No. 11 Montana State Bobcats

Head Coach: Rob Ash (9th season, 65-32)

2014: 8-5, 6-2, 3rd in Big Sky, lost to South Dakota in FCS 1st rd

2015 Bobcat Schedule

Sept. 3 vs Fort Lewis, 7 p.m.

Sept. 19 at E. Washington, 1:05 p.m.

Sept. 26 vs Cal Poly, 1:30 p.m.

Oct. 3 at N. Arizona, 5 p.m.

Oct. 10. vs Sac. State, 5 p.m.

Oct. 17 at Portland State, 12:30 p.m.

Oct. 24 vs ETSU, 2:30 p.m.

Oct. 31 at North Dakota, 1 p.m.

Nov. 7 vs S. Utah, 1:30 p.m.

Nov. 14 at Idaho St., 1:30 p.m.

Nov. 21 vs Montana, 12:05 p.m.