Cat-Griz Report: Spooky Saturday for Grizzlies, Bobcats

GRAND FORKS, N.D. (AP) - Every week is a career week for North Dakota freshman running back John Santiago.

Santiago ran for a career-high 230 yards and three touchdowns, including the game-winning 4-yard run with 1:41 left, as UND beat No. 18 Montana State 44-38 in the Big Sky Conference.

UND, which snapped a three-game losing streak, drove 80 yards in five plays and was helped by a facemask penalty on the game-winning drive. Brady Oliveira's 28-yard run down to the MSU 4 set up Santiago's touchdown. Oliveira had 167 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries.

"I was pleased with the offensive line," Santiago said. "Credit to them, they played phenomenal the whole game. All I had to do was make one read and the hole was there every time."

As a team, UND rolled up 548 total yards, with 426 on the ground.

North Dakota made some key defensive plays in the fourth quarter, including Jake Disterhaupt knocking down a pass on fourth down that sealed the win.

"We got some turnovers and that big fourth-down stop," UND coach Bubba Schweigert said. "We got after the quarterback in the fourth quarter and that helped our chances. Then offensively we scored a lot of points and ran the ball well again."

The teams combined for 28 points in the first quarter alone.

Santiago broke free around right end and raced 45 yards for a touchdown that gave North Dakota a 7-0 lead with 9:18 left in the first half. He later ran for scores of 75 and 4 yards.

Montana State answered exactly one minute later on a 61-yard lateral pass from Mitch Griebel to Manny Kalfell to make it 7-7.

Oliviera scored his first touchdown on a 30-yard run 59 seconds after Kalfell's score.

UND quarterback Keaton Studsrud and receiver Clive Georges returned to the lineup after missing games to injuries. They hooked up on a 53-yard TD with 4:22 left in the first quarter for a 21-7 lead and a 21-yarder for a 38-31 lead late in the game.

Montana State tied five times, but never led.

Dakota Prukop threw a 13-yard TD pass to Mitchell Herbert just five seconds into the second quarter. Then, MSU's Taylor Sheridan sacked Studsrud and forced a fumble on the UND 39. Two plays later, Jayshawn Gates ran 39 yards to tie the game 21-21 with 11:46 left in the half.

And the points kept coming.

UND's Reid Taubenheim kicked a 44-yard field goal; MSU's Luke Daly kicked a 24-yard field goal; and Santiago scored on a 75-yard run.

UND took a 31-24 lead into half.

Prukop was 29-for-40 for 224 yards and two TDs. He ran for 65 yards and a score.

In the third quarter, Prukop marched the Bobcats 65 yards and scored on a 3-yard keeper to tie the game 31-31. Prukop completed 8 of 10 passes on the drive.

UND needed less than three minutes to go back on top on Georges' second TD catch, a 21-yarder to make it 38-31.

Montana State again tied it on Prukop's 1-yard pass to Beau Sandland with 12:38 to play.

UND went ahead for good on Santiago's last TD.

"Against teams like this you gotta find ways to get stops," Schweigert said. "(And) we scored a lot of points and ran the ball well again."

The Bobcats' playoff hopes took a damaging hit with their fourth road loss of the season. They'll try and turn things around this Saturday when the host Southern Utah.

Portland State 35, Griz 16

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - Alex Kuresa threw two touchdown passes and ran for two more to lead No. 12 Portland State to a 35-16 victory over No. 17 Montana on Saturday night.

Portland State (7-1, 4-1 Big Sky Conference) has won three straight and remains a half-game back of conference-leaders Southern Utah and Eastern Washington.

Kuresa had touchdown passes of 41 and 46 yards, and scoring runs of 35 and 49 yards. David Jones added 165 yards rushing with a touchdown for the Vikings.

Montana's (4-4, 3-2) Makena Simis, who threw a school-tying six touchdown passes last week against North Dakota, was picked off three times by Patrick Onwuasor on consecutive drives in the first quarter.

Simis completed five passes, and had a 20-yard run to set up Jeremy Calhoun's 2-yard touchdown run to pull the Grizzlies to 14-7 midway through the second quarter. Simis bullied in from the one for a score with five minutes to play. And the Grizzlies recovered an onside kick after. But, Simis was sacked on fourth down and that ended any hope of a UM comeback.

"They've got an offense that's full of weapons," Montana head coach Bob Stitt said of the Vikings, who are off to their best start since 2002 and have beaten two FBS opponents this season. "Their quarterback is special and we needed to play a perfect game and it was a little bit tough early with the conditions."

The conditions were a torrential rain and strong winds, which hampered UM's passing attack. But, it didn't stop the PSU ground game, which piled up over 300 yards on the wet PNC Park Turf.

All five PSU touchdowns came from 35 yards out or longer.

"They're a big-play offense; they get a lot of big chunks," said Griz defensive end Tyrone Holmes, who was held without a sack for the first time this season. "They have a lot of speed on their offense and we have to be more disciplined and make tackles."

The Griz must likely now win out to have a chance at that FCS playoffs. But with two of their last three still on their road, and their only game against mighty Eastern Washington, winning out is a tall order. The Griz will try to start that three-game winning streak this Saturday at struggling Idaho State.

Note: Havre Daily News sports editor George Ferguson contributed to this story.