Cats, Griz play at home

The Montana Grizzlies and Montana State Bobcats were on opposite ends of the spectrum last weekend, and they may be again Saturday.

For the Bobcats (2-3, 0-2), a home game against struggling, but powerful Northern Arizona might be just what the doctor ordered. But after what happened to MSU in Sacramento last Saturday, things could go the other way, too.

Montana State returns to Bobcat Stadium for a showdown with the lumberjacks Saturday night, and fresh off one of its most difficult losses in years. Against winless Sacramento State, MSU watched helplessly as a 38-21 third-quarter lead disappeared in what was a devastating 42-38 loss.

Now, the Cats must regroup if they are to salvage head coach Jeff Choate's first Big Sky Conference season in Bozeman, and that starts with this Saturday's game against NAU, which was picked to win the Big Sky titled, but has struggled to just a 1-4 record.

“What I challenged the players on is, it’s time to grow up,” Choate said. “You can make excuses all day long, but the bottom line is, OK Chris (Murray), you’ve played five games of Division I football. This isn’t your first rodeo. Let’s go. Damien Washington, you’ve played five games of Division I football. OK? Opportunity comes, make the play. We’ve got some guys that are veteran guys that need to hear the same message. Curtis Amos, you’ve got to make a catch. Period. That’s not throwing anybody under the bus, that’s just a fact. I think he’d be the first one to say that.

“There’s plenty of blame to go around and it starts with me as the head coach in terms of tightening some things up on some details and being a little bit more demanding about some things that we need to do in some critical situations.”

Chris Murray is MSU's 17-year-old freshman quarterback who shined last week against the Hornets, and may step into the starting role for the struggling Tyler Bruggman this week, though Choate isn't confirming that. But quarterback issues are only part of MSU's problem heading into the NAU game. Dropped passes by veteran receivers, fumbles in the running game, injuries and a defense that was first in the Big Sky in many categories collapsing in the fourth quarter against Sac. State. It all added up to disaster, and now, the Cats might be on the brink.

And normally, a game against NAU would be a scary prospect, but All-American quarterback Case Cookus is out with a shoulder injury, and the Lumberjacks are coming to Bozeman fresh off a loss to perennial Big Sky cellar dweller Northern Colorado. Head coach Jerome Souers does have one of the best receivers in the FCS in Emmanuel Butler, a strong running game, and a veteran defense, but with Cookus out, the Cats' defense, led by linebacker Mac Bignell, should be excited about what it can do against a normally high-octane NAU offense.

In the end though, it doesn't really matter who lines up for the Lumberjacks, this game is about rebounding, about the Cats standing up, and a sold-out crowd under the lights of Bobcat Stadium is the perfect time to do just that.

“I think we’ve done a good job of putting ourselves in positions to be competitive in every game, but that’s not why I’m here," Choate said. "Our urgency and our attention to detail and our focus in critical opportunities needs to increase.”

The No. 10 Montana Grizzlies played with plenty of urgency last week in their 43-20 win over Southern Utah. The Griz racked up over 600 yards of offense, forced three turnovers, and quarterback Brady Gustafson, with WR's Jerry Louie-McGee and James Homan ran wild on a normally stout SUU defense.

The win bumped Montana up to 1-1 in the Big Sky and 3-1 overall, and things might even get better for the Griz with winless Mississippi Valley State coming into Washington-Grizzly Stadium Saturday afternoon.

The Delta Devils, who play in the SWAC, and are the great Jerry Rice' alma mata, haven't won a whole lot lately, winning just twice last season, and having yet to crack the own column in 2016. So, Montana is a heavy favorite, but, with just one more home game left before back-to-back road trips to NAU and Eastern Washington, head coach Bob Stitt won't allow his team to fall back.

Instead, fans should expect the Griz' offense to come out firing on all cylinders, and, Montana's hard-hitting defense, led by All-American Caleb Kidder, and a dominant front line that includes Ryan Johnson and Malta's Tucker Scheye, to keep the Devils from doing anything productive offensively.

In other words, the Griz won't take Saturday's non-conference home game lightly, instead, looking to keep the juggernaut that started against SUU, rolling.

Saturday's game between Montana and MVSU kicks off at 2:30 p.m. in Missoula. Saturday night's game between the Bobcats and Lumberjacks in Bozeman  is set to start at 5 p.m. Both games will be televised statewide on all Cowles Media Affiliates.