Montana Tech hands Northern football a loss to end the season

This past Saturday at Tilleman Field, the Montana State University-Northern football team wrapped up its 2022 season with a 49-6 loss to Montana Tech. While it was another loss for the Lights, there were some positives that they can take away as they head into the offseason.

“We’re not happy because we didn’t create the outcome that we’re hoping for, but at the same time, I saw some great strides in our offense’s ability to move the football,” MSU-N head coach Jerome Souers said. “I love the spirit and effort of this team and these guys are the foundation and the core of our future.”

The Lights offense had its best performance in weeks as it had 191 total yards of offense. After struggling on the ground throughout the season, the Lights finished the game with 150 rushing yards on 3.8 yards a carry. Running back Mason Dionne had his best game of the season as he had 24 carries for 108 yards. Along with the offensive line coming together, Souers credited his assistant coaches for putting the offense in a position to move the ball.

“I really need to speak to the names Steve Broussard, Tim Davis and Ryan Gatch for the offensive plan they put together,” Souers said. “If you had any idea about how many injuries we have and who actually could play offense, just to see that we had production like we did is a credit to them.”

But the Lights still struggled in other areas of the game. Starting quarterback Kaymen Cureton went 5-for-19 through the air for 41 yards and three interceptions. As a team, the Lights finished the game with four turnovers.

The Orediggers finished the game with 371 yards of offense with 201 yards coming on the ground. Kaleb Winterburn led the team with 122 yards and two touchdowns on 5.3 yards a carry. Jet Campbell got most of the snaps at quarterback where he went 9-for-14 for 128 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.

The Lights got the ball to start the game and picked up a few first downs thanks to both the arm and legs of Cureton. But the Lights eventually punted to the Orediggers, who took their opening possession down the field. Winterburn got the drive rolling with some big runs. Including a 14-yard run to the Northern 38-yard line. On the next play, Campbell threw a 38-yard touchdown to Trevor Hoffman to give Tech an early 7-0 lead.

After a Lights three and out, the Orediggers got the ball at the Northern 41-yard line looking to take advantage of the good field position. But after Tech worked its way to the 21-yard line, Samuel Sanders intercepted a pass from Campbell and returned it to the Northern 41-yard line.

The Lights could do nothing with the turnover as they went three and out again. With the ball back, the Orediggers marched down the field. After the interception, Campbell started the drive with three straight completions for a total of 36 yards down to the Northern 38-yard line. After picking up another first down, Campbell threw a 28-yard touchdown to Kyle Torgerson to push the lead to 14-0 late in the first quarter.

Over the next few possessions, both teams did nothing and had to punt it away. The Orediggers then got another scoring opportunity as they started a drive at the Northern 25 after a Northern mistake. Winterburn got three straight carries on the drive, including a 15-yard touchdown run to make it 21-0.

On the next Northern drive, Cureton threw an interception to Ezra Gulewich, who returned the pick 16 yards to the Northern 38-yard line. On the first play after the turnover, new Tech quarterback Blake Thelen threw a 38-yard touchdown to Torgerson to push the lead to 28-0.

The Lights got some momentum going on their next drive as they picked up some first downs. But after catching a pass from Cureton, Cannan Smith fumbled the ball and Tech recovered. Thankfully for the Lights, Brady Smelser intercepted a pass from Thelen to give it right back to the offense.

The Lights put together their best drive of the first half. Cureton started the drive with a 13-yard run for a first down. A personal foul on the Orediggers then gave the Lights another first down at the Tech 20. The Lights failed to move it further as Kaden Nelson kicked a 40-yard field goal to make it 28-3 heading into halftime.

The Orediggers put together another strong drive to start the second half. Winterburn was the main man on the drive as he had seven carries for a total of 35 yards. But the drive ended in the red zone with Campbell throwing an interception.

After a personal foul, the Lights started their drive at the Tech 48-yard line. Dionne got the drive started with a 20-yard run to the 28-yard line. Cureton then carried the ball 16 yards for another first down. But the offense stalled out and Nelson had to make a 29-yard field goal to cut Tech’s lead to 28-6.

The Orediggers retook momentum with a 64-yard return from Torgerson on the ensuing kickoff. A personal foul on the Lights then put the Orediggers at the Northern 14-yard line to start their next drive. Winterburn carried the ball three straight times on the drive, including a four-yard touchdown run to make it 35-6.

The Lights tried to respond on their next drive. But on third and 13, Cureton threw an interception to Alaric Greil, who returned the pick 25 yards for a touchdown to make it 42-6. The next drive did not go much better for the Lights. After some strong runs by Dionne to start it off, the drive ended when Cureton threw an interception to Angel Sanchez III. That interception resulted in a two-yard touchdown run for Landers Smith to make it 49-6, which would be the final score.

The Lights end their first season under Souers with an 0-10 record in the Frontier Conference. Along with playing with a young roster with little depth, the Lights dealt with injuries throughout the season so keeping pace with the tough teams in the Frontier Conference was a challenge.

The Lights now head into the offseason looking to build out their roster through recruiting as well as continuing to develop the players already in the program. While the Lights have been down as a program from before Souers arrived on the Hi-Line, Souers believes he and his staff are capable of pulling off the improbable and making the Lights competitive in the Frontier Conference in the future.

“There’s no mistaking the work that is left to be done but we’ve laid the foundation. We’ve changed the culture in the way that we wanted to so now it’s time to enrich that culture and repopulate our roster,” Souers said. “We’re going to do this and it’ll take everybody on campus and the community of Havre. But we’re going to do this. It’s not a question of if, it’s a matter of when.”