Lights ready for Western rematch

The Montana State University-Northern Lights played a hungry, angry, Rocky Mountain College squad last Saturday at Blue Pony Stadium. Now, the Lights have to play another team that's reeling a bit.

On Saturday, Northern (0-6, 1-6) travels to Dillon to face the No. 24 Montana Western Bulldogs (4-2, 4-2) in the final Frontier Conference matchup of October. And, like Rocky was last week when it came to Havre with a four-game losing streak, the Dawgs are in the midst of a losing streak of their own.

Including the bye week, Western hasn't tasted victory since a 49-13 win over Eastern Oregon on Sept. 28. The Dawgs, after starting 4-0, have lost back-to-back games, falling at Montana Tech back on Oct. 12, and last Saturday at Carroll College, when they lost on a last-minute Carroll drive.

So, Western, which already beat the Lights 38-13 Sept. 14 at Blue Pony Stadium, won't be happy when the Lights come to Vigilante Stadium. And, considering how powerful Western can be on both sides of the ball, the Lights will have their hands full.

Of course, Northern feels that way about its own team. Last week against RMC, the MSU-N offense came alive, with the Lights nearly totaling 500 total yards. Running backs Cameron Taylor and Jett Robertson combined for over 200 yards, while wide receivers Damari Caul-Davis and Marvin Williams, as well as true freshman TE Levi Keltner also had big outings against the Battlin' Bears.

On the other side of the ball, Northern struggled, however. In the passing game, MSU-N's young secondary continues to struggle, though safety Hunter Riley is tied for the Frontier Conference lead in interceptions with four. Still, the Lights - who have been stout against the run, with Justin Pfeifer in the middle, and leading tacklers Jaren Maki and Japerri Powell making plays, as well - are giving up a Frontier-worst 297 yards through the air.

And yet, head coach Andrew Rolin sees plenty of positives in his team as the Lights hit the stretch run of the 2019 season.

"We're close, we're closer than it looks right now," Rolin said. "We know we can compete, we know we can win games in this league. We're right there. But at the same time, there's no excuses. We haven't done it. We haven't done it on Saturday's, and we need to. We need to take that next step."

The next step won't be easy against a Western team that's now fighting for its NAIA playoff life. It also won't be easy against a Western offense that averages 33 points and over 400 yards of offense per outing.

Western quarterback Jon Jund certainly won't make life easy for the Lights either. Jund has thrown for 1,497 yards and 14 touchdowns this season, and he's been efficient, having only thrown five picks. He also leads the Frontier in total offense, while receivers Trey Mounts, Walker McKitrick and Nate Simkins, along with running back Kylar Prante, make the Dawgs a scary offense.

The Dawgs are also pretty scary on defense. Despite the last two setbacks, Western still allows just 21 points per game, and they have perhaps the best defensive player in all of the NAIA in senior linebacker Jason Ferris, who has 70 tackles already this season.

"Western is a complete football team," Rolin said. "They are very good on both sides of the ball. We've seen that, and we know what we're up against."

At this point in the season, the Lights do know exactly what they're up against. They are playing Western for the second time, and they also are hitting the final moments of what has turned out to be a tough 2019.

And yet, one thing Rolin knows is his team wants to win, and they're going to keep trying to win, including Saturday afternoon in Dillon.

"The fight in these guys, that's never been the issue," Rolin said. "They've been bought-in from day one. They'll always fight, and I love that about this group."

Northern meets Western Saturday at 1 p.m. in Dillon. The Lights are back home to face Carroll College Nov. 2.

Road Dawgs

MSU-Northern Lights (0-6, 1-6) at #24 Montana Western Bulldogs

(4-2, 4-2)

Saturday, 1 p.m.

Blue Pony Stadium

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