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A GAME IN PHOTOS – Blake Hempstead on the 124th rivalry between ‘Cats & Griz

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The 124th battle between fierce rivals Montana and Montana State lived up to the billing on November 22, 2025. A game with six lead changes went back and forth until Montana State went on a seven-minute drive to close to game and secure a 31-28 victory. The win is MSU’s seventh over Montana in the last nine rivalry games and helped the Bobcats secure their third Big Sky Conference title in the last four seasons.

Skyline Sports had four photographers — Brooks Nuanez, Blake Hempstead, Jason Bacaj & Sydney Emond — at the greatest rivalry game in college football. Here are Blake’s best photos from Saturday.

BLAKE HEMPSTEAD, Skyline Sports photographer

Montana State safety Caden Dowler sewed up Big Sky Conference Defensive Player of the Year honors with his second pick six in as many weeks to help MSU regain the lead/ by Blake Hempstead
Montana State QB Justin Lamson gets hit by Montana senior Prince Ford/ by Blake Hempstead
Montana junior Eli Gillman after scoring a 52-yard touchdown to go over 100 yards for the sixth time this season. Gillman was named the Big Sky Offensive Player of the Year/ by Blake Hempstead
Montana freshman wide receiver Brooks Davis, pitched here scoring UM’s first touchdown of the game, finished his rivalry debut with 10 catches for 113 yards/ by Blake Hemsptead
Montana State captain JT Reed/ by Blake Hempstead

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About Colter Nuanez

Colter Nuanez is the co-founder and senior writer for Skyline Sports. After spending six years in the newspaper industry with stops at the Missoulian, the Ellensburg Daily Record and the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, the former Washington Newspaper Association Sportswriter of the Year and University of Montana Journalism School graduate ('09) has cultivated a deep passion for sports journalism during his 13-year career covering the Big Sky Conference. In August of 2014, Colter and brother Brooks merged their passions of writing and art to found Skyline Sports.

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